Day # 121 - 128

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We left the beautiful Mangawhai and snuck back to home (Rotorua) for a couple of days. This is the first time back home in 4 months and the longest we have ever been away from here😊. The sun is shining and the place is humming with tourists. A quick catch up with family then off to the Coromandel to help our Son and his partner with the big shift from Rotorua to Whitianga.

A bit of spare time allowed us to visit Pauanui on the way. The place has developed significantly since we last visited. Gone are most of the sections which housed utility sheds and caravans. All replaced with baches/houses (some of them Mansions). Down the Northern end is the entrance to the Tairua Harbour, with views across the water to Tairua and Paku Hill. From here you can catch the ferry across to Tairua. It’s a nice spot to park yourself and watch the boats come and go. The Southern end of the beach is where you start the track up to Mt Pauanui. The track is steep and very uneven, as we made the climb up you soon worked out that it was going to be a slow careful walk back down. At the top we were rewarded with fantastic views down the coast and north over Pauanui and Tairua. Not far from the summit there is a track that leads down a gully to the rocky Cave Bay, from here you can follow the rocky coast back around to the carpark. This is an alternative to heading back down the steep summit track. This track was still relatively steep in places and pretty overgrown. A bit of bush bashing was required (unfortunately for me most of the bush was face height!). The sign at the bottom of the gully says this track is currently under construction😊. From Cave Bay you walk over a stretch of rocks to Flat Rock (A great spot for Fisherman), from here you are back on a track that leads to the carpark. Shame the sun wasn’t shining as I don’t think my photos do justice to this walking track. Fact of the day: Mt Pauanui (387 metres), Mt Manaia (460 metres), Maunganui Bluff – Ripiro Beach (460 metres), Mt Maunganui (232 metres), Rainbow Mt (743 metres), Mt Pirongia (959 metres), Mt Te Aroha (952 metres), Mt Ngongotaha (757 metres).

More travels to come once the fences are built and the boxes are unpacked😊

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Comments

[Mumtraveller]

Colours
Lovely colours captured in this shot.. Looks so peaceful.