We were able to take a day off from working on the farm for a tour up to Cape Reinga to see the Tasman Sea collide with the Pacific Ocean. It’s actually not the northern most tip of the island, as might be expected.

Our hosts connected us with a local tour bus company so we could see other sites along the way. We started by driving north on 90 Mile Beach (on the west coast). Yep-the tour bus drove on the beach. That’s how hard and compacted the sand is.

We made a little stop to see Hole in the Rock Island . . .

Then drove to the sand dunes and went sliding down!

Drew had time for 3 good runs and I took 2. The uphill climb in the sand was brutal! (Plus I wiped out big time the first time down the dune, so what you see is my much improved second attempt.)

It was exhilarating flying down the dunes like that. A beach version of sledding I suppose (on a really, really big hill without the wet chill that goes down to your bones. I’m loving this warm weather!)

Our next stop was Tapotupotu Bay for lunch.

Unfortunately, ‘lunch’ was nothing more than a bread roll and a selection of crackers and muesli bars. We were glad we brought some fruit with us in our backpack.

But we couldn’t have asked for a better spot for a picnic!

Then it was off to Cape Reinga!

As much as I wanted a really amazing picture of the famous lighthouse, it really wasn’t possible with the throngs of tourists (but who I am to complain–I guess I am one of them!) We did manage to get some spectacular pictures of the area though.

You could actually see the whirlpools created by the meeting of the Tasman Sea and the Pacific Ocean at the Cape.

We made our way back down the east coast, stopping at Rawara Beach (where the white sand is so full of silica it squeaks when you walk on it) and Houhora Heads.

You can view more pics of our experience on Facebook!