Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Bream Head
caps off the craggy finger of land. A five-hour one-way walking track from
Urquharts Bay
to
Ocean Beach
passes through the
Bream Head Scenic Reserve
and lovely
Smugglers
Bay
and
Peach Cove
.
Magnificent Ocean Beach stretches for miles on the other side of the headland. There's
decent surfing to be had and lifeguards patrol the beach in summer. A detour from
Parua
Bay
takes you to glorious
Pataua
, a small settlement that lies on a shallow inlet linked to a
surf beach by a footbridge.
Sleeping & Eating
Kauri Villas
( 09-436 1797;
www.kaurivillas.com
;
73 Owhiwa Rd, Parua Bay; d $130-175; )
Perched on a hill
with views back over the harbour to Whangarei, this pretty blue-trimmed villa has an old-
world feel, due in part to some very chintzy wallpaper. The decor's more restrained in the
self-contained lodge and annex rooms.
B&B
$$
Parua Bay Tavern
(
www.paruabaytavern.co.nz
;
1034 Whangarei Heads Rd; meals $15-31; 11.30am-late)
A magical spot on a
summer's day, this friendly pub is set on a thumb-shaped peninsula, with a sole pohu-
tukawa blazing red against the green water. Grab a seat on the deck, a cold beverage and a
decent pub meal.
PUB
$$
MARINE RICHES AT THE POOR KNIGHTS
Established in 1981, the Poor Knights marine reserve is rated as one of the world's top-10 diving spots. The is-
lands are bathed in a subtropical current from the Coral Sea, so varieties of tropical and subtropical fish not seen
in other NZ waters can be observed here. The waters are clear, with no sediment or pollution problems. The 40m
to 60m underwater cliffs drop steeply to the sandy bottom and are a labyrinth of archways, caves, tunnels and fis-
sures that attract a wide variety of sponges and colourful underwater vegetation. Schooling fish, eels and rays are
common (including manta rays in season).
The two main volcanic islands, Tawhiti Rahi and Aorangi, were home to the Ngai Wai tribe, but since a
raiding-party massacre of 1825 the islands have been
tapu
(forbidden). Even today the public is barred from the
islands, in order to protect their pristine environment. Not only do tuatara and Butler's shearwater breed here, but
there are unique species of flora, such as the Poor Knights lily.
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