Tag Archives: hike

Whangamumu and Roberton Island

We arrived in Whangamumu harbor around 2:00am, dropped the hook, had a celebratory beer and crashed.  

Jason woke up to a glorious day showcasing the beauty of Whangamumu!

That is Jason sitting on the port helm seat as Matt takes his photo with the drone.

Last month we released a full blog post on Whangamumu and its rich history with whaling.  Be sure to read all about it here.

We took Jason ashore to explore the whaling station and waterfall.

It had not rained recently so the waterfall was not gushing down, but it was still very pretty.  We were able to hike up the falls about 25 meters and just soaked up the beauty.

Sugar Shack had the bay all to herself.  The water gently lapped against the hull, the sun was shining, and everything was so peaceful.

It would have been lovely to hang out here for a few days.

However, we only had a few more days with Jason so we decided to move on to our next stop.

Roberton Bay, Bay of Islands

As you round Cape Brett you pass by two must see spots.  The first is the “hole in the rock on Motukokako / Piercy Island.”  This is an iconic natural attraction.

The peak of the island stands nearly 148 meters high with the top of the archway standing nearly 16 meters high.

Experienced and a little crazy skippers will take their boats and jet skis through the center of the tunnel.

We are content to just pass by on this beautiful day.

We dropped the hook at Robert Island (Motuarohia Island) which is a stunning little island with two lagoons.  

Captain Cook anchored and landed here in 1769.  The Maori’s named this island Motuarohia which means “Island of Loveliness.”

Mother Nature gave us a gorgeous sunset with a full moon on display.  

The sky had so many beautiful colors that it took our breaths away.

Our blog posts run 6-8 weeks behind actual live events.

We visited Whangamumu for a 2nd time with Jason around the end of May 2026.

Lake Taupo, Mt. Tauhara, & Waitomo

We take a very beautiful scenic drive along the Forgotten World Highway.  Leaving Whangamomona around 0730 gave us sweeping views with a misty sunrise.  Our destination is Lake Taupo.  

A total surprise to us was that we got to go through one more tunnel and this one was a beauty!

Pukawa Villas

Oh my goodness!  We had the most amazing stay at Pukawa Villas overlooking Lake Taupo. 

We stayed in a 2 bedroom, 2 bath apartment with a huge veranda overlooking the lake. Everyone room had a view that was breathtaking.

Mt. Tauhara Hike

We did not have anything planned in Lake Taupo. 

But we did manage to find a great hike to the top of Mt. Tauhara.  It is 538 meters to the top at a distance of 2.5km. It took us about 3 hours return.

The trail is well marked and easy to follow. 

It is straight up so can be a bit strenuous, but several kids did the hike.

The views were absolutely magnificent!  A stunning photo no matter where you looked.

After our hike we headed toward Waitomo. A short 2 hour drive from Lake Taupo.

Waitomo

We are staying at the Waitomo Big Bird and Small Animal BnB.  Not exactly what I imagined when I booked the place.  But the farm animals were amazing and the hosts are lovely.

She had llamas, alpacas, cows, dogs, goats, sheep, horses, donkey, pig, emus, ostrich’s, and munchkin cats.

I became friendly with Victoria who has to be the friendliest ostrich on this planet!

Did you know that an ostrich egg is equal to 24 chicken eggs and can feed 18 people?

Anne, the owner of Waitomo Big Bird breeds munchkin cats.  I had never heard of them!  These cats are adorable with their stubby little legs.  The also have the friendliest demeanor and are truly human loving cats.

Our blog posts run 6 weeks behind actual live events. 

We spent our time in Lake Taupo and Waitomo in early February 2026.

Waterfalls: Paranui falls to Whangarei Falls

In between our boat projects we take a lovely walk between two beautiful waterfalls.  We start at the AH Reed Memorial Kauri Park where we encounter the Paranui Waterfall.

This is a relatively short walk (3 miles and 1hr20min return).  The path is very easy to follow and fairly easy.

A great website with lovely photos can be found here.

The best spot to see the Paranui Falls is from the lookout (across the gorge from the parking lot).  This 23 meter tall waterfall is surrounded by lush vegetation.

You descend about 100 stairs to get to the main trail which is absolutely lovely. 

AH Reed Park has several well maintained bridges and paths ranging from dirt, stone and cement).

All of the paths run along the Waikoromiko River.

After about 40 minutes we reached the Otuihau Whangarei Waterfall.  These falls are 26.3 meters high and cascade over basalt cliffs.

This was a large, gushing waterfall leading to a big lagoon.  

This was such a beautiful waterfall that I took photos from every direction. 

We walked to the top of the falls (top right photo), bottom, left and right side of the falls. 

On the way back, we cross the famous Canopy Bridge which surrounds New Zealand’s majestic Kauri Trees. 

New Zealand honors and protects these massive trees which are up to 500 years old.

Even though it is a short walk it is absolutely one of my favorites!  

Our blog posts run 6-8 weeks behind actual live events.  We visited these two waterfalls in early December 2025.

Find Paranui Waterfalls on No Foreign Land and find the Whangarei Falls on No Foreign Land.

We haul out Sugar Shack at Norsand Boatyard in our last blog post.