Tuesday, March 31, 2009

Hiking Around Northland

We have enjoyed a lot of hiking recently. Rene, her son Riley, Phillip, and I did a hike 10 minutes from our house going from Urquate's Bay around to Smuggler's cove. You could see Ocean beach off in the distance. It tokk a few hours but was a beautiful hike to the beach.

Lynn and I got away for one night for a much needed to retreat together. It's only the second night together without the kids the whole year. We stayed at a lovely old bed and breakfast an hour south of town in a place called Mangawhai. We laughed because some white New Zealanders say the name like "Maine-ga-why" and the Maori word/way to say it is "Mon-ga-fie". We had a great time eating at a French cafe called The Kiwi and The Frog named after the married New Zealander and French Chef that own it. It was the best meal in New Zealand and the best cheese plate ever! After dinner we walked down the remote natural beach and saw the most amazing stars in a clear moonless night sky.The next day we set out for a 3 hour hike across the beach and up the Bream Head mountain cliffs then back on a loop across a very rocky mile of beach.


This is Lynn before we headed up to the top of the cliffs. The beach behind him is where we saw the amazing stars!

(Above) This is along the tops of the cliffs. The mountain off in the far distance is the Ocean Beach area we live next to.
The view looking back at the Mangawhai surf beach from the cliff tops (above). The trail went through a very lush tropical forest where Lynn took the pic of me (below).I had hiking shoes on but you should have seen Lynn's size 13 jandals (aka flip flops) along the beach rocks for the last hour or so.
There were amazing amounts of shells on some areas of the beach. You just walked for 100 feet of nothing but shells.
This parking lot at the trail head and surf beach is indicative of the outdoor lifestyle here. The kayaks, walkers, surfers, and bikers enjoying the vast great outdoors New Zealand affords.
Lynn often hikes the mountain behind our house (Mnt Aubrey) for exercise because in 30 minutes you can get a good stair climb heart pumping walk with a view at the top. Andrew and I went with him after dinner the other night and enjoyed a rest on the bench for a minute.

The sunset view at the top was worth the hike. The hospital sits about where the sun is setting.

Our time here is setting too and it is hard in ways to think of leaving the beauty here and the people we have come to know but we are excited to see our friends and family back home. Please leave comments to let me know you were here. It takes so very long to upload the photos and encourages me when folks scan over them.

9 comments:

Anonymous said...

Hey Dawn,

As always we really enjoy looking at the pictures and sharing in your adventures of NZ. We also can't wait for you guys to return home. We're sure you want to get home to see you Mom and Dad.

Enjoy your remaining time in NZ and we will see you soon!!! Give everyone our love!

Steve, Cheryl & Gracie

Anonymous said...

Great pictures and stories. I may not comment often enough, but I assure you that I have been keeeping up with you guys. You are going to continue this blog once you get back to the exotic hills of East Tennessee, correct?

Scott

Sister, we need each other! said...

Oh my... Phillip looks so grown up and such a handsom young man! And your hair look great Dawn :) ... I love it so long!

You are going to have lots of wonderful/beautiful pictures to be framed and hang on your walls when you get home!

I too hope you continue with your blog once you return home!

Hugh said...

Oh how cool is that, we used to go to Mangawhai for holidays all the time when I was a kid as we had family friends that have a bach there around the corner from the surf beach that overlooks the estuary. Thanks for sharing the photos, a nice trip down memory lane for me.
Your blog has been absolutely fantastic for us to follow, and we have sent the link to many people to see your adventures.
Make the most of your remaining time there, it will be hard to come back I think, in more ways than you realise. However, we look forward to seeing y'all again, at least until the next adventure.
Cheers,
Hugh, Lynn, Josh and Mitch

Anonymous said...

Hey guys! Jay and I look at your blog regularly and are amazed at both what God is doing there and the absolute beauty of New Zealand! We (and everyone at Mountain Ridge) cannot wait to see you again soon!! We had fun praying for your precious family the other Sunday at church and will be praying for a good transition as we know it will be wonderful yet hard to come back home. We love you guys!! Thanks for keeping us updated this past year through your fabulous blog!
Love,
Christy, Jay, Michael and Joshua

Unknown said...

Hey Dawn,

I check the blog 3 to 4 times a week. I have enjoyed seeing your lives abroad. I hope it has been what you expected and more. When you all get back you need to keep blogging so I can continue to keep up. Or facebook.

tom

Leslie Lee said...

Hey guys! It sounds like you all are having such an awesome experience in New Zealand! I can't believe how much the kids have grown! It's crazy! I have been praying for you all this whole time. And have enjoyed reading how God is/has been working! Can't believe it has already been a year!

Tell everyone hi!...will continue praying!

- Leslie Lee

erica said...

Though I don't always comment, I have been keeping up with you guys all year! Love the blog! The pictures are amazing, I can only imagine getting to live in such a beautiful place. What awesome work you have done for our Lord. NZ won't be the same, and I know that you will be missed when you leave. We can't wait to see you and look forward to hearing all about your experiences!
love,
Erica, Noel, Sydney & Brandon

sharmaine said...

Hey Dawn,
Rene and I have just been cruising your pics and theyre great,it all looks so beautiful!!!We miss you guys so so much and this has been a great way to connect with the fun memories.With love from ,
Rene and Sharmaine

P.S Keep the blogs coming!!