City of Sails and Windy Welly

Right now we are sailing from the north to the south island of New Zealand. Sun setting and while Carlos watches for whales I’ve just thought that we almost haven’t talk about the cities in New Zealand. Is not that they are boring is just that the country side, beaches, lakes and mountains are so amazing that we rather share about that. Anyway…

Auckland, the biggest city. Beautiful place and geographically blessed. It has two harbors that frame a narrow area full of volcanic cones and fertile farmland. Tasman Sea and Pacific Ocean comes really close to each other at some points. Numerous marinas give it the nickname of the “City of Sails”.  Was fun to buzz around the cafes and bars of Ponsonby and K’ road and go up the Sky-Tower to have the best panoramic views of the city. We walked the scenic Tamaki drive to Mission Bay as all the citizens do on weekends but we didn’t had the chance to visit the nearby wild islands.

Wellington, cultural and politic capital, known as Windy Welly ‘cause force winds normally blowing. Beautiful, waterfront and surrounded by hills, it’s a family-friendly city, full of art-houses, bars (we had the best kumara fries ever), cafes, boutiques and restaurants. Te Papa, the national museum, mixes history and modern technology. There’s surf close to the city too. We’ve surfed Lyall Bay, right next to the airport. Waves small and unpowerful and cold water but always better than nothing.

Forgotten World and Surf 45 Hwy

We are not gonna forget the drive through the forgotten World Highway. That’s a road between Taumarunui and Stratford. The drive winds through hilly bush country, passing many heritage Maori sites. It took us almost four to drive 150km. After every curve we found some secret corner making us stop. Small hidden waterfalls, hundreds of sheep in the hills, one way tunnels, stunning landscapes, the most fresh and clean air ever breath, the loneliness of the drive… All that made it magic and unforgettable.

We arrived to New Plymouth under a heavy rain. The surf for next day was supposed to be good so we went sleep early. Still raining in the morning and the surfed messed by the wind. Carlos surfed classic Fiztroy but as it was insanely crowded we drove south along the Surf Hwy 45. All along the way you have good surf beaches, mostly isolated and surrounded by farmlands and tractors.  We checked most of them but the surf conditions were bad; windy and messy everywhere. So unluckly we still have been surfing much but we had the best mixed berries organic ice cream ever and walked under the rain in Mt. Taranaki jungle forest. It’s clear that in New Zealand there are many good surfing spots but you really need to know where and when to go depending on swell, wind and tide conditions.