We were enjoying out breakfast and coffee (flat white, of course) taking our usual slow start to the day. The patio doors were wide open and the sun was shining outside. I turned to Jan … “our trip is half over today”. She frowned … “awwwww” but then she added “we still have three weeks left, which is as long as our full trip the first time we visited”.

We love many things about New Zealand, but we especially love the vibrant street art scene and the open recognition of both English and Māori culture. Whitianga effectively combines both of these with some of the murals in town.

A panel beside the piece explains the context for the various murals around town, as well as for this particular piece.

Here is another mural, along with an explanation of the context.

We didn’t have any particular plans for the day, so I suggested we should take the small passenger ferry across the bay to Ferry Landing. The ferry takes about five minutes and runs continuously through the day.

AllTrails showed a short hike on the other side, that provided views over Whitianga, so we figured, why not? Near the beginning of the trail, a panel explained about Maori Pa – essentially a fortified area. There were the remains of one just off the trail. It looked interesting, so we decided to check it out. A Pa is typically built on high ground that is easy to defend and the path up the hill certainly showed that to be the case.

The top was overgrown, and it had largely been abandoned by the time Captain Cook arrived in New Zealand, but we could see the steep cliffs on three sides down to the sea. Later on the hike, we had a better view that clearly showed how well it was positioned for defense. The area to the left of the grassy area is a peninsula with steep cliffs on three sides.

Then it was back to the trail, which wasn’t quite as open, or well signed as we had hoped. But we pressed on with good humor.

And then it headed up, and up, and up. The tree roots on the path were actually quite useful to provide traction.

Further on, the path was better maintained, but it still continued upward.

But when we made it to the top, the views were worth it.

The cliffs themselves were also fascinating.

We had been hoping to see birds, but they were nowhere to be found. But eagle-eyed Jan spotted this Cicada.

The plant life was also interesting. This was a fascinating plant we spotted on a tree branch, with air roots and flowers that looked alien.

Here are a few more views from the hike.

Then it was time to take the ferry back across the bay. No prizes for guessing how we finished our day.