Tag Archives: waterfall

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.

Great Barrier Becomes Great Again

We were anxious to get off the boat after the massive storm.  We needed to stretch our legs, enjoy the sunshine, and find gratitude in nature.  Several cruiser friends of ours were anchored near by so we enjoyed a few hikes on Great Barrier Island and a huge feast.

Glenfern Sanctuary Loop

We did this loop with our friends Dan and Lexi a month ago.  However, it is so very pretty that it is worth doing multiple times over.  The Glenfern Sanctuary Loop is an easy hike/walk that takes about 1-1.5hrs.

There were 8 of us from 4 different boats.  Roam: Jim and Pam, Chaos: Mark and Karen, Fundango: Scott and Joanne, and Sugar Shack.

Warrens Loop and Waterfall

The day after the massive storm we hiked Warrens Loop to a waterfall.  We figured the waterfall would be massive with all of the extra rain and it did not disappoint.

I thought the trail would be totally muddy, but it actually was not too bad.  This is another easy hike/walk that takes about 1hour.  Well marked trail through a super lush forest.

The waterfall was gushing with tons of water pouring out over the rocks.  It was stunning.

There was so much water that it was spilling over making multiple falls.

We took a different route on the way back.  We followed the river for about 100-200 yards, crossed over the river and came to another trail.  

We ended up crossing the river 3 times.

Port Frizroy

We moved to Port Fritzroy because we needed a change of scenery.  We were not planning on staying long as this is typically not a great anchorage. 

We had a super foggy morning that sure made everything look beautiful.

Matt went for a paddle board while I met our friends for breakfast.

Our friend boats were planning on doing dinner at the Port Fritzroy Boat Club.  It is a simple affair, but pretty tasty food.  

The next morning we went to Orama which is a Christian center that hosts Saturday morning breakfast.  

They had a small menu but everything was delicious!!  

Our blog posts run 4-6 weeks behind actual live events.

We were at Great Barrier from mid-March to end of March 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.