Windy West Coast

I got up and at 'em early today. I drove to the West Coast and walked around the Te Henga (AKA Bethell's) Beach. Many movie and television scenes have been shot on this beach. It is gorgeous, but probably even more beautiful when the wind isn't blowing 50 miles per hour. By the way, I saw the newspaper headlines, "Chaos Rains after Storm." So yesterday wasn't my imagination, Auckland had winds up to 150 km (about 90 mph). Apparently, they also shut down the airport for most of the afternoon, so now I'm glad I got up so early to get here. Anyway, it's still windy today, but nothing like the branch breaking yesterday. I drove south from Te Henga and hiked to the Karekare Falls, as well as the beach opposite the parking lot for the Falls. The travel book noted this was a very sacred area for the Mauri, and there were visible pas (fort areas) within the area to protect it. The waves are killer, dude, and some of the best surfing is in Piha. I went into Piha, hoping to get lunch, but they only have surfing there. I went back into Auckland for lunch and to find a place for the campa.

I can't seem to post pictures, but I'll keep trying. You wouldn't want to see the rain right now, anyway!Read more