Mount Maunganui...

We were kicked out of that campsite around 10.30am when a woman came from what i thought was a storage hut for wood that turned out to be her home and told us if we wanted to stay any longer we would have to pay.

We were happy to leave but had to get changed and sorted in the public toilets then made our way up to Mount Maunganui to have some ice creams and a short walk and some lunch.

When we arrived at the Mount after a lovely lunch at "The Cafe" on the high street (no wifi , little expensive but large portions) we then went to the beach to see the mount and got an ice cream (mr whippy) dipped in melted cadbury choc - yummy. Free parking by the beach 120 mins. 

It was quiet and a slightly dull day weatherwise plus a five year old boy had been swept out to sea a few days before and we had been told this was why it was so quiet. It was a shame for obvious reasons but also for the vendors as there are plenty of vendors to choose from on the beach ranging from savoury to sweet. A day or two before we arrived a vigil was held for the little boy with around 1000+ people turning up and some went out on surf boards with floating candles. We were told it was loveLKy to see. 

However, this day was raining and dull so we didnt climb the mount but decided to drive on up to the hot water beach and made a few stops along the way. Apparently there is a great little campsite at the bottom of the mount and a great walk around the edge to do. If the weather hadbeen better we would have spent a day or two here, it was lovely, nuce little town with plenty of shops and cafes and water sport activities. 

We stopped at a few beaches along the coast , all as beautiful as the next , with little walks and picnic areas. Finally we went to the hot water beach and arrived around 5pm so the tide was too low to dig any pools but we did get to do a nice walk. Around 20 minutes, follow the hill up to y the top and bear left into a pathway, follow this doen to the rocks and walk bscck along the beach. We then sat and watched the sunset before drivibg back doen the peninsula to a small place Tairuni? The village is relatively small but has ample shops and a great lake area with beautiful views and picnic areas and small children's play area. If coming from the north, turn left before you go over the bridge from the main road , or if coming from the south , turn right after the bridge and there's a campsite behind the library on the left, the sign has huge flip flops on. It was $28 for the pair of us and had free WiFi, kitchen area, showers (cold -p.s do NOT pat the $2 for an extended shower as the shower doesn't stop running until you turn it off anyway, also it never even gets warm) , tv room with local info and 10+ tv channels. Check out is at 10am, it's a quiet place to park and has chickens roaming free which is quite nice to wake up to. The guy at the office was friendly as so we're all the people on the site. The guy even ran after us when Luke had left his towel on the roof and driven off. We then parked outside the library next door to get their WiFi for a couple of hours before we set off to Thames which was a couple of hours drive away. 

Love S&L xxx