On two previous visits to Paihia, we took a ferry, run by the Explore
company, to Urupukapuka Island, one of 144 islands in the Bay of
Islands. It has one cafe, some camping and
lots of hiking trails. This time, we found out that there's a "new"
destination for Explore that goes to another even more remote
island called Moturua. Sign us up!
Our day started out by going on the ferry to Urupukapuka. From there we checked in at the cafe to receive our boxed lunch, as part of the package from Explore, and soon after boarded a barge that would take us to Moturua, a 15-minute ride. We were the only passengers on the barge that had a capacity of 20. Were we the only people who knew about this trip? Intriguing! (Anybody remember "Fantasy Island"? TV show about visitors being taken to a remote tropical island where dreams come true? Just a fleeting thought.)
Most of the land on the island is public with a hiking track that goes around its perimeter and camping is not allowed. A section of the island is private land where the owners of the Explore company have a house. This
island has several pretty beaches and there are many day boaters who come
into the bays. Since there are no harbors, they must have a dingy or swim to get to shore.
More boring pix of beaches...
We passed remnants of bunkers built during WWII. New Zealand was afraid of a Japanese attack, which fortunately never happened.
At one of the bunkers, we met a family who were Geocaching. In case you don't know (we didn't), it is an outdoor recreational activity, in which participants use a GPS receiver or mobile device and other navigational techniques to hide and seek containers, called "geocaches" or "caches", at specific locations marked by coordinates all over the world.
A typical cache is a small waterproof container containing a logbook (sometimes with a pen or pencil). The geocacher enters the date they found it and signs it with their established code name. After signing the log, the cache must be placed back exactly where the person found it. Kind of like an international treasure hunt. We met a family that had found the cache, but there wasn't a pen. The Rubins to the rescue--we had a pen! The kids were so excited to log in. They continued on to the next Geocache. We continued our hike.
After
being on the island for about 2 1/2 hours, Captain Andy picked us up
at our starting point and returned us to Urupukapuka where we relaxed on comfy bean bag chairs waiting for
the ferry back to Paihia.
What a great way to end our time in the Bay of Islands. Time to head back to Auckland!
Our day started out by going on the ferry to Urupukapuka. From there we checked in at the cafe to receive our boxed lunch, as part of the package from Explore, and soon after boarded a barge that would take us to Moturua, a 15-minute ride. We were the only passengers on the barge that had a capacity of 20. Were we the only people who knew about this trip? Intriguing! (Anybody remember "Fantasy Island"? TV show about visitors being taken to a remote tropical island where dreams come true? Just a fleeting thought.)
Our trusty barge
Captain Andy and his excited passenger on the way to the island
The ramp on the barge allowed for a Normandy-like landing,
fortunately without being sprayed by bullets
fortunately without being sprayed by bullets
More boring pix of beaches...
A boater going in circles dragging a child on an inner tube
Sea star on the beach
Sea star on the beach
...and the bush track.
Time for lunch: sandwich, scone, fruit, cheese, crackers and a drink--delish!
We passed remnants of bunkers built during WWII. New Zealand was afraid of a Japanese attack, which fortunately never happened.
At one of the bunkers, we met a family who were Geocaching. In case you don't know (we didn't), it is an outdoor recreational activity, in which participants use a GPS receiver or mobile device and other navigational techniques to hide and seek containers, called "geocaches" or "caches", at specific locations marked by coordinates all over the world.
A typical cache is a small waterproof container containing a logbook (sometimes with a pen or pencil). The geocacher enters the date they found it and signs it with their established code name. After signing the log, the cache must be placed back exactly where the person found it. Kind of like an international treasure hunt. We met a family that had found the cache, but there wasn't a pen. The Rubins to the rescue--we had a pen! The kids were so excited to log in. They continued on to the next Geocache. We continued our hike.
Our young Geocachers on top of a bunker--
the girl in the pink hat is holding the small black capsule
the girl in the pink hat is holding the small black capsule
What a great way to end our time in the Bay of Islands. Time to head back to Auckland!
YES, a great way to end your time in the Bay of Islands. Your own private boat trip to Moturua! Thank you for enlightening us about the geo-caches. How fascinating. Thankfully you were carrying your trusty pen. You look so cute and relaxed, Laurie, in the bean bag chair photo.
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