Coromandel
October 27, 2016
On the way to Coromandel from Matamata, we stopped at a random trail and hiked about 40 minutes up rocks and stairs to get a great view of an active waterfall. The trail seemed pretty remote, but was in really good condition. There's nothing to describe here that a picture can't represent better, so check some of these photos out.
Coromandel was our third stop, and probably our coolest AirB&B. We drove a few hours from Matamata to reach the town, and most of that driving was on narrow, winding roads that ran along the coastline. Periodically the coastal road would swing inland and start twisting through bright green farmland, rapidly taking us high above sea level and down again, giving us great photo opportunities. The contrast between the ocean and the bright green farmland was one of my favorite things about this area, as it's just not something you usually see on the coasts in the United States.
Eventually we reached Coromandel, which was a quiet little town with a lot of opportunities for seafood. Our B&B sat on a narrow strip of land north of the town, and had an awesome wrap-around balcony that gave us an unbelievable view of the ocean (particularly at sunset).
During our stay here, which was a couple nights long, we visited several attractions in the area. One day we took a long, winding, and mostly-gravel road through the woods towards the east coast of the Coromandel peninsula. Eventually we came out near Cathedral Cove, which is rock formation along the coast near the town of Whitianga.
A long hike (about an hour) took us from a "car park" down to the Cove, where we were able to snag some great pictures, enjoy the scenery, and delay the inevitable hike back up the trail to the car.
Following our trek back from the Cove we had planned on visiting "Hot Springs Beach," which is a geothermal beach where you can actually dig your own hot tub out of the sand. That's obviously dependent on the tides, though, and we didn't get lucky enough for the timing to be quite right. Maybe next time. Instead, we found a nearby craft beer brewery called "Hot Springs Brewing Co" and tried everything they had to offer. Same thing, right?
