Citizen of Sails

In the second installment of our ongoing series "Auckland: What's the Deal?", I'll be taking you to Waiheke Island. Waiheke is located in Hauraki Gulf, approximately 35 minutes from Auckland by ferry. The island holds some of the oldest radiocarbon dates in the country, suggesting it was one of the first places settled by the Maori.

I left Auckland's waterfront on an early afternoon ferry and arrived at Matiatia Bay on the western extreme of the island. It was a drizzly day, so I spent much of the ride to the island inside the main cabin. I've been hearing that Auckland tends to be this way come Autumn, so I'd given up waiting for a sunny day to go. Upon disembarking, I set out on foot for Oneroa. There weren't many side roads, so getting lost was not a considerable issue. There were a number of tramping paths, though, and I spotted a couple that I might want to explore once my tramping partner arrives.

The walk took less than twenty minutes, and the opportunity to take in the landscape was more than worth it. The lack of large structures provided some excellent views of grazed-over hilltop farms and vineyards, rounded valleys with groves of mixed vegetation (what I call the "three p's": palms, pines, and plain-ol'-deciduous), and, upon cresting a hill, the spectacluar white sand beaches and aquamarine waters of the bays.

Once I arrived in Oneroa, one of the more populated areas, I could see that I might have a brief reprieve of blue skies coming my way. I ducked into the Lazy Lounge restaurant to have lunch and wait it out. I ordered a pineapple pizza, which, while dramatically overpriced, was all I could have wanted at that point. The atmosphere was very relaxed and beach shack-ish; it reminded me of a few places on Oahu's north shore. I also had myself Montieth's "Radler," which is essentially a pre-made shandy (or beer + Sprite). Terribly refreshing for an early afternoon beer. As I finished the last sip the sun burst out of the clouds, and I rallied down to the beach to enjoy it. Of course on an island in the tradewinds it doesn't last long, so I soaked up a few rays and dipped my toes into the sand, sucking in the salted air like it was the breath of life itself. The cove where the beach lies is tremendously beautiful, but today was highly uninhabited, and I was nearly alone in enjoying it's ephemeral splendor. By the time I took up the camera the sun was retreating again, and I soon found myself brushing the sand off my feet beneath the cover of a nearby tree as the bay became pocked with raindrops. As I made my way back up from the short I took one last look at the beach, and swore to come back on a sunnier day.

I wound around Oneroa once more and then proceeded back to the docks for the five o'clock ferry. By now the more vicious-looking storm clouds had moved beyond our path, and I ventured to the top deck to catch what I couldn't see on my way over. This had to be the highlight of the trip, for it allowed for some fantastic sight-seeing. Areas where the sun touched were piercingly colorful in hues of turquoise, pale and kelly green, and bright whites, while the areas under cloud cover were dulled or foreboding. The approach on the city gave me a new appreciation for Auckland's symbolism in this country; like approaching NYC or San Francisco by boat, I'd imagine. All in all a wonderful day, one I would gladly repeat to introduce a newcomer...

Cheers,
Benji

P.S.- Please excuse the bizarre layout; blogspot has a hard time alternating between html and it's Rich Text format. We can't all be perfect.