We made it all the way to the very northern tip of the North Island! Cape Reinga is a sacred place for the Maori people, who believe that this is where departed souls return to the underworld. And it's gorgeous.
It's also where the Tasman Sea meets the Pacific Ocean. One guy told us that the currents often collide in a striking wave display. That wasn't really the case when we were there, and it's possible that the turbulence you see in this picture is just from rocks below the surface. Or may it's the seas colliding. Pick whichever explanation you prefer!
Just south of the Cape, there are spectacular giant sand dunes. I can attest that they are difficult to climb, but a lovely place to lay and read for awhile.
On the other (east) side of the peninsula, there is a lovely white sand (silica) beach.
And then stretching for quite aways down the west side of the peninsula, 90-mile beach, vast and forlorn.
We took the scenic drive along the west coast as we made our way back south, stopping for a couple of short walks in Waipoua Forest, one of the last remaining remnants of the dense forest that covered 95% of New Zealand...before cometh man.
Hard to imagine that kaori trees this massive used to cover the island. They're almost entirely gone, now, so the chance to see the biggest remaining specimens made a trip to this forest very worth taking the scenic route south.
I also love how the bark of the kaori trees is an ecosystem unto itself.
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