Country Article / Postcards
Hot Water Beach
Date: 11/10/2003Dear Reader,
Auckland city dwellers love to escape over the holidays and head for the beach--so my husband and I did they same. We left Auckland on the southern motorway, and drove about an hour to the Coromandel peninsula.
Crossing the peninsula, we pass forests with ancient Kauri trees and younger trees that looked like giant ferns. On the other side of what the locals call The Coromandel are tidal estuaries and beaches with names like Sailors Grave, Cathedral Cove, and Hot Water Beach. These beaches are never crowded--you'll find few footprints in lots of sand.
By the time we reach the small town of Tairua, the traffic has all but disappeared. Our car crosses one-lane bridges and gravel roads and takes us to Hot Water Beach. We see a fisherman smoking his just-caught snapper over a wood fire and native Maori people gathering shellfish.
On this beach, a hot fresh water spring hides just under the surface of the sand. We dig our own hot tub with a small trowel (it's best to do this at low tide). Here's a tip--dig near the rocks. You'll see other people digging all over the beach, but near the rocks is where you'll enjoy the best soak until the incoming tide washes your hot tub away.
We head back to Tairua for dinner at Shells (named for 30,000-shell collection). The locally harvested scallops, green lip mussels, and oysters are the best I have ever tasted.
We ended our relaxing day at the newly built Cedar Lodge, where for a mere $7 each we stayed in a private room with a beautiful lake view (contact details below).
Jan Pehrson
For International Living
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