coromandel - day 2

i got up bright and early this morning to head off for a day of driving. first, i drove north of colville to the tip of the coromandel peninsula. as i made my way to port jackson, the last 'town' on the map, the paved road gave way to gravel and climbed in elevation while still maintaining the sheer drops off the side for the unwary. new zealand am radio (all i can get in the car) was abuzz with talk of the great success in sport the night before. there are fewer and fewer houses the farther north i went and i got into the habit of noting where the last sign of human life was on the odometer in case i broke down and had to walk for help. eventually i made it to port jackson. expecting to find a small town, i was surprised to find only a woman and her kids on a small tractor and her husband on a large tractor driving around the family farm. that's all that's there. she pointed me through a gate to head the last 7km to fletcher bay and i left with pippa barking her fool head off at the farm dogs through the back window.

to get to fletcher bay i had to ford a stream and had a "don't know how them duke boys is gonna git outta this one" moment before deciding to gun it across. fortune favors the bold, or at least those with momentum, and i was rewarded with making it to fletcher bay to find...not much. there's a campground and a backpackers that is closed for another few months. but boy, is it secluded. after spending a few minutes alone on the beach in the rain, i decided to head back.

despite the rain, my intention was to get back down to coromandel town and head up route 309 into the hills, as there are several points of interest along the way. there's a tourist place with lots of little contraptions that run solely on water, a nice waterfall about 4 minute's hike from the road, a stand of kauri that's 10 minute's hike from the road and, most importantly, a more serious hike up to castle rock. castle rock is one of the highest points on the coromandel and on a clear day (not today) you're supposed to be able to have spectacular views of both coasts. unfortunately, as i found out in coromandel town, the path is closed for logging and you actually can't even drive on 309 all the way across the peninsula. i had intended to come this way yesterday and am now glad i didn't. even so, the other attractions were very nice and pippa enjoyed running through the underbrush smelling everything she encountered.

the coromandel is truly amazing and i have every intention of spending more time there. this first trip was just sort of a scouting mission. even when the weather is bad the landscape and foliage are incredible. the whole area is largely unspoiled and would take a week or two to do properly. i'm sure i'll end up dragging some visitor with me to go back when the weather improves.