March 2010 - Hawkes Bay & Coromandel
I'm just back from my Coromandel holiday which this time included Hawkes Bay's World Naked Bike Ride.
On Friday 4th March, I went to Opoutere Beach for the first time and found all the textiles and nudists mixed together all along the beach. I managed to walk to the end and back - about two hours walk. Great beach, no pervs. When it was time to leave I decided to go nude on the long walk back to the car park, through the bush. So tranquil and refreshing.
I then went to Hot Water Beach, but the small area of beach with the hot water, was completely packed with people. Not my scene, so I went up to the northern end of the beach where I was able to be nude until about 6.30pm. I stayed that night in Whitianga.
The next day I travelled to Otama Beach north of Whitianga. A fantastic day with a few people in the car park, so I walked north along the beach a little before discarding my clothes. I had the whole beach to myself, mostly. Those that did walk past were not interested in me, anyway.
I had to leave Opito Bay for next time, as I wanted to get to Matarangi Beach. I was able to walk naked, most of the way back to the car park.
Then it was back over the partly tar sealed road to Matarangi Beach. I hadn't been here before and got a little lost, but parked by the golf course and walked through to the beach, were I went nude amongst all the Auckland textiles - this was going to be a real test, but after lying and swimming in the nude, no one around batted an eyelid. I think the further you go along the spit the less textiles you encounter. So that was it for the day - I headed back to Tauranga.
On Friday 12th March, I headed for Rapere - the Hawkes Bay Naturist Club for the weekend. I stayed in Norm's Lodge and on Saturday joined up with Nick Lowe for the nude bike ride from Bayview to the Tangoio rest area. Best thing I have done in long time. It was like the Tour de France. People were coming out of their houses, batches, the pulp and paper mill, cheering, clapping and taking photos. Then there was all the positive tooting by the cars going in both directions.
We stopped at the rest area for a while, still naked, Then three of us more energetic males sprinted back to Bayview on our bikes, still nude. The rest came back in the support vehicles that had followed us out there.
I'd like to see this snowball into a bigger event, with more numbers, more distance; and if possible involve more of suburbia, rather than going mainly through the countryside.
To finish the day, at Rapere we had a pot luck dinner and a merry sing-along. A lovely bunch of people. Then on Sunday I went for a nude bike ride by myself, about 6km out toward Rissington and back. The weather was fantastic - just as I remembered it from when I lived there, all those years ago.
On Friday 19th March, I travelled to Te Kuru Beach just north of Tairua. I walked north a little way along the beach and went nude from then on, up and over the hill on the DOC walking track to the next bay.
There was only a German couple walking along the beach. I walked to the end and back, and found that the German couple who had seen me naked, decided that was cool and and went for a nude swim themselves. So, back over the walking track naked, past the car park and continued to the southern end of the main beach. Here you'll find private little enclaves to yourself. I plonked myself down in one to rest for a while. All the people that passed me were tourists, given the time of year, so really no worries doing it all in the nude. It's such an out of the way, relaxing, tranquil area to visit.