🙂 Lovely scenery
🙁 Miserable people!
Set off at after our showers and drove the twisty route through the mountains then along the coast which was reminiscent of Loch Lomond in Scotland.
We drove all the way to Cape Collville and found a lovely DOC campsite which was deserted and overlooked a stunning bay – beautiful. The road to the site was twisty with some sheer drops. We had to stop twice to open gates to get through. Parked the van and Trent played on a swing on a tree next to us which kept him entertained while we cooked spag boll. School, dinner and bed!
Trent was up first thing to play on the swings. We did a lovely walk but I headed in wrong direction and we had to navigate barbed wire fences! Very muddy and lots of cow poo! By the end of the walk Trent was covered head to toe in it! 3 hours later we were back at the van and all had to change out of our smelly poo ridden clothes!
We decided to head to a winery in Purangi that was referenced in our Lonely Planet. We were received with a warm welcome by a friendly young chap stoking a cosy fire. He showed us to the toilets and when we came back we were met by a hostile and miserable old goat who was in charge and extremely unfriendly. We tried three wines which tasted like vinegar and which is why we guessed er face also looked like a slapped ass. We made a joke about tasting all the wines and she told us pointedly that we had sampled enough. She was truly vile and we decided that we wouldn’t waste our time or energy in such an unwelcoming environment and left without eating or buying any wine. Their loss – we had arrived with the intent of stocking up on wine … best they find a new front of house or they may go under!
We drove to the ‘hot sands’ beach where the sand is supposed to be warm and heated by underground hot springs…. mmm…we dug the obligatory hole … but certainly did not feel the warm waters – maybe because it was freezing cold and raining! Drove on to buy some veggies (another miserable shop keeper!) and cooked up a delicious chilli with cauliflower cheese – divine – although we had no wine! lol. Trent did school and then had a meltdown… we decided to leave the people of Coromandel to their own miserable devices and drove on first thing in the morning in the exciting direction of Rotorua!
Go to: New Zealand
