Whaiheke

In the post about Rangitoto, I told you that I also went to Whaiheke (I sincerely hope I am spelling that correctly). Then proceeded to not even talk about it. Well. Here's Whaiheke. 

It's an one of the more sizable islands just a ferry ride away from Auckland. It's covered in vineyards and beaches. And you can guess why people go there. Good wine and beautiful sand. 

I headed there just to see what all the fuss was about. And, you know, the beaches sounded pretty beautiful. I'd also heard there were some good walks around the island, so I wanted to do some exploring. 

After two ferry rides, I got to the island around 11, and set out to the nearest town to get my bearings. An ice cream and a stop at the market for some picnic supplies later, I set out on one of the nearby coastal walks, a loop that would take about two hours.

THe first half of the walk took me through some pastoral lands. If I'd forgotten I was in New Zealand, the many sheep around me would have reminded me of where I was. I stopped at one of the wine bars along the way, ordered a bite of lunch and sat back and enjoyed the view. 

The rest of my walk was along some lovely dramatic beaches. The sort of things that probably shouldn't be allowed to exist in real life. I stopped off at one of them and perched on the rocks for a bit, reading in the shade. I did more reading and writing on that island that I had for the entire week before. 

While I'm sure most people go to Whaiheke to make the rounds of the vineyards, or to spend all day on one of the white sanded, swimmer friendly beaches, I rather enjoyed dissapearing into the trees for a bit and stepping onto some gloriously rocky beaches for some creative time. 

Lunch

View from the wine bar

Views from the beaches

View of the hills

View of a beach

View of the beach