Let’s pick the story back up after our winery stop from the last post. The sun was setting, and we only had a 20 minute drive or so to our next stop: Waipatiki Beach. The winding road and drastic elevation changes kept the RV in 2nd or 3rd gear most of the way (this is the road pictured in the “Kiwi Bound” blog post with all of the sheep in the middle of the road). When we pulled up to this beautiful place, we noticed it was a full on farm complete with pigs, chickens, horses and cows. We were welcomed by a giant pig wanting to be petted just like a Black Lab (pictured below). The site was situated in a steep valley with only one road in or out. Ely and I snuck down to the beach to take it all in and surf a little wave before dark.
The next morning we woke up and pointed the RV northeast for our 2.5 hour drive to Gisborne. The southeast portion of the town seemed like a shadow of its former self with twisted metal buildings that looked to be abandoned long ago. However, there were lots of waves to be found. A short drive north to Wainui Beach had 2 or 3 distinctly different waves that proved to be a lot of fun. I also surfed a break close to our site that was a bit of a closeout named Gizzy Pipe. Also just outside of town to the south is a pretty killer winery Ely and I indulged in.
If If you’re counting, that’s 12 different surf spots in 8 days. I never thought 12 spots would be in the cards for the whole trip. We have taken 500+ pictures and about 5 or 6 minutes of pretty random video footage from here and there.
Next on tap: a geyser in Rotorua, sheep shearing with Ely and the epic Cathedral Cove. Stay tuned!
