The Hibiscus Coast: Beach Love

Apart from Matakana, which is always our favourite day trip when staying in Whangaparaoa, here are a few places we visited on the Hibiscus Coast.

The French Bakery, Silverdale

Let's start with the beginning of all beginnings, shall we? Breakfast. We went back more than once for their delicious pastries for affordable prices: 5 croissants for $10, 5 pains au chocolat for $12! And all baked by a real Frenchman, too. 

Silverdale, along with many other towns near Auckland, has been expanding rapidly and this is just one of the many shops that has popped up alongside the massive supermarkets and housing developments. 

Gulf Harbour

Gulf Harbour was our home while we were here, as Yannick's dad was kind enough to put us up. This was the view from our deck, so you can see why I liked to read out here in the mornings (with a breakfast of Christmas cake oftentimes). Walking around the marina was a nice way to pass some time in the afternoon. 

Stanmore Bay

On Christmas Day, we sat out and read at Stanmore Bay before our excellent Christmas lunch. Though it was a little cloudy, it was still warm and not windy. Looking at you, Wellington! Take note.

Stanmore usually loses some of its sand over the year and gets rocky, but by summer it's always back. This year however, there was a storm which stripped the sand away and it didn't have time to return. When running into the sea one day for a swim, I tripped and skinned the top of my feet. Another travelling foot injury, but this time without an infection. Huzzah!

Tindalls Beach

The great thing about Whangaparaoa Peninsula is that whether the wind is a northerly or a southerly, you can still go the the beach. All you have to do is pick a northerly-facing or southerly-facing beach, whichever will be facing away and you get a calm beach where you can nap to your heart's content. Tindall's is one such beach, and also fit for petanque.

Needing a mention here is the village of Manly. It has two beaches named for it, Big Manly Beach and Little Manly Beach. The village itself has a few shops, many of which are called things like "Manly Bakery" and "Manly Liquor". But my top pick for Manly Village is the Manly Fire Station. Every time we drive past it I giggle.

Though I didn't get any pictures of it, Shakespear Regional Park is a highlight of the Peninsula. It's got a great beach at Te Haruhi Bay and plenty of shaded park for BBQs, a game of cricket or a quiet picnic. Much of the park is a pest-free zone, with a high fence that encloses it to keep out pests such as mammalian predators (possums and cats).

Wenderholm Regional Park

A little way into one of the bushwalks, and you get this view of the river coming from the left leading into the sea. 

The discarded leaves from the Nikau palm make for great sleds. Here Yannick is pulling me down the path as I sit in the spoon-shaped base of the leaf. 

The bushwalk - note the wooden path, which is a mark of a 'fancy' bushwalk. Sure, it was only in some areas, but fancy nonetheless. They normally just chuck some gravel down, or don't bother at all leaving you to trudge through overgrown foliage and mud. 

And me swinging on a vine. Just like Tarzan, apart from the terrified look on my face (despite the fact that I am less than 10cm from the ground). 

We spent the rest of the afternoon under the shade of a tree in the park, reading and eating salami sandwiches and cherries, and then on the beach, where nearby children were having a race. When the sun got too low, and I was shrouded in shadow, we had to depart. How I love spending everyday at the beach.