March 2, 2009
Otoupere - "Thanks, legend."
I was awakened by the sound of someone waxing up their board. Seeing as Taranaki had been blown out and unrideable for days, and I just had done a major cross-island drive the night before in hopes of getting waves, that was a good sound to wake up to.
I am back in Otoupere on the Coromandel Peninsula -- the first place I visited back in Nov. when I finally escaped from Auckland. After all the mind-blowingly beautiful places I've seen, one might think that Otoupere would not be as impressive. Not so: Otupere is like an old lover you see after several years, and they look hot. The place is spectacular.
What really makes it is that the parking lot is 1/4 mile from the beach. You walk through the most amazing, thick forest and think, "there's no way this leads to a beach." And then you get to the little opening onto the dunes, and this spectacular 2 mile-wide white sand beach opens up before you. Not a single sign of development, totally pristine. As the expression goes, "good roads bring bad people; bad roads bring good people." The trail acts as a filter -- you get a much cooler crowd when there's a walk involved: nudists, naturalists, backpackers, etc. No RVs and lager louts, thank you.
I met a cool shaper and his gf from Auckland, and was super-stoked when he saw me get slotted this morning. The water is still warm, and on a sunny morning with no wind, it's about as pleasant as you can imagine.
Some kiwi teens asked me for some "wix", and I was happy to provide. When one kid gave the bar back, he said, "thanks, legend."
Do I really look that old?!
Otoupere - "Thanks, legend."
I was awakened by the sound of someone waxing up their board. Seeing as Taranaki had been blown out and unrideable for days, and I just had done a major cross-island drive the night before in hopes of getting waves, that was a good sound to wake up to.
I am back in Otoupere on the Coromandel Peninsula -- the first place I visited back in Nov. when I finally escaped from Auckland. After all the mind-blowingly beautiful places I've seen, one might think that Otoupere would not be as impressive. Not so: Otupere is like an old lover you see after several years, and they look hot. The place is spectacular.
What really makes it is that the parking lot is 1/4 mile from the beach. You walk through the most amazing, thick forest and think, "there's no way this leads to a beach." And then you get to the little opening onto the dunes, and this spectacular 2 mile-wide white sand beach opens up before you. Not a single sign of development, totally pristine. As the expression goes, "good roads bring bad people; bad roads bring good people." The trail acts as a filter -- you get a much cooler crowd when there's a walk involved: nudists, naturalists, backpackers, etc. No RVs and lager louts, thank you.
I met a cool shaper and his gf from Auckland, and was super-stoked when he saw me get slotted this morning. The water is still warm, and on a sunny morning with no wind, it's about as pleasant as you can imagine.
Some kiwi teens asked me for some "wix", and I was happy to provide. When one kid gave the bar back, he said, "thanks, legend."
Do I really look that old?!
2 comments:
So--what do you do on your rainy days? That's what every traveler would liked to know.
internet, reading, driving, hot springs, movies, and play guitar
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