North coast, Northland

We were excited to make the long drive to the most northerly part of the island; Cape Reinga and Spirits Bay. We pitched up on the DOC site and had the most beautiful sunset on the beach. Day four and finally Cape Reinga where the Tasman sea meets the Pacific Ocean. You can even see the rough waters where the two oceans collide. The Maori see this place as where the spirits depart this world for the next (a place called Hawaiki, the former land of the ancestors). We really felt this was a special, spiritual place and could have sat there for ours. I think we were also quite lucky to go at a relatively quiet time - apparently the place gets overrun with tourists which I think would ruin the atmosphere! The day turned incredibly hot, but we couldn't resist (well me, Andy) a body board down the massive dunes at Te Paki. Maddie was scared at first, but eventually she loved body boarding down the 100ft dunes!Read more