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Wednesday, March 7, 2012

Papamoa Beach - part 2


You can just see Mt Maunganui from our kitchen table
While we had originally planned to stay two nights and then move on it did not take us long to change this plan as we both independently thought this is where our New Zealand adventure should draw to a close. As I mentioned our cottage which was one half of a duplex was sitting right at the crest of the dunes with magnificent views.
The moon shines off Papamoa Beach

While there was no oven in it the interior was modern with a high ceiling that followed the arc of a wave. Furthermore, the was a spa tub which was wonderful after a swim in the ocean. And then there was the beach. Miles of it starting right at our doorstep. The second morning there Julie went to the office to get change for laundry. A little later while we were on one of our many beach walks she mentioned that she enquired as to whether we could extend our stay and sure enough it was free for the Tuesday & Wed night as well and so as soon as we got back we booked. Four nights staying put in such beautiful surroundings felt like true luxury. There were four of these beach front ocean cottage duplexes and during our stay there were only two others occupied thus it felt very much like our private domain. Aside from doing a bit of shopping and visiting a kiwi fruit operation we did not do much more than walk on the beach, swim a bit, eat, sleep, read, soak in the tub etc.
Just don't pinch me

The mornings were very cool and I could not quite convince Julie to be up early enough to come with me to watch the sunrise. Two of them were quite photogenic but the third not so much and this morning I didn't make it out in time for reasons I will not disclose. When we first arrived we were using the maps app to try and figure out which islands were which and there was one small blip right on the horizon directly in front of us that we couldn't figure out because the only thing that was supposed to be there was the Astrolabe Reef. We learned later that indeed this was not an island we were seeing, it was the container ship Rena that had gone aground on the reef last October. I recall reading about it in the news at the time but of course forgot all about it. They have still not offloaded the containers as none of the cranes are operational. Most if not all of the fuel leaked out which wreaked havoc on the sea life in the area. Apparently several of the containers that were lost contained various food products and as all this food drifted in towards shore the sharks followed it in closing the beaches for days on end.

The owner of the Top 10 resort told us that this has. Even her worst season on record (42 yrs) as nobody wanted to holiday at Papamoa because of the wreck. Julie did manage the sunset beach walks and we watched with interest as the surf casters came out with their 12 foot long rods to fish for red snapper and other local fish. After baiting their hooks they would wade out into the surf and then launch a mighty cast with the objective of making it out to the ocean side of the breakers, right where the fish like to feed at dusk. Then, back to shore they would go where their rods would sit vertically in the sand, the fisherman watching the tip for any nibbles. There were other forms of shore fishing we watched; one involved setting out in a kayak with the baited hook, line and sinker to get passed the breakers. Another involved a small machine called a nautilus. Shaped like a miniature submarine this radio controlled device was propelled electrically and could go out to sea for miles if you had enough line. Anyway, it was all very interesting to watch. For the first two days the ocean was fairly calm. The breakers coming in could and did bowl you over should you try to resist them, but they were manageable. At night you could hear each wave as it came in and you knew when a wave a bit bigger than the rest had come into shore by the sound and feel of the 'whump' as the wave broke - little deeper sound and a little more sonic vibration. Yesterday however things were very different and we came to understand why this beach is a destination for surfers worldwide.
This section was crowded with surfers by 6:00




 It was a fine sunny day with only a light breeze but the waves rolling in from the open ocean were huge in comparison to the first couple of days. Rather than hearing each wave break there was now a continuous roar as these giants pounded into shore. At 4 pm the were maybe half a dozen surfers out there. By 6 pm maybe 30 or 40. At sunset the was not a surf caster to be seen which is understandable as neither cast nor kayak nor nautilus would have been able to overcome this surf. It was marvelous to behold. Now, the last little tidbit I want to leave you with concerns the stars. As I mentioned earlier I discovered that the moon was waxing which was a disappointment to me given that I had not yet sighted the famed Southern Cross or that star so many scifi tales find irrestsistable - Alpha Centauri - and I was afraid that with such a bright moon any hope of seeing them before our departure from the southern hemisphere would be lost. Wanting to make one last effort I went online to try and find a website that would help me as I was finding the star charts very difficult to understand. Anyway, one of the sights described where you should look depending on what time of day during what month. For me to look southward I had to go to the front door which I did without much optimism given that not only was the moon very bright the we're lots of street lights out that way. In any event, I opened the door and, boom, there they were in their glory just jumping out of the sky at me. The bright moon had acted as an aid not a deterrent. When will I learn not to prejudge how things might affect me and my surroundings?

Sunset walks are good for the soul

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