The Wild, Wild West Coast of New Zealand
Posted: Sunday, February 25, 2007
by christine brooks
hang ten nutrition
I arrived in New Zealand at the peak of their summer, February 4 th . I was immediately greeted by Peter, who owns and operates the Piha Surf Shuttle. His smile and his thick New Zealand accent instantly told me I was home. Although not from New Zealand I was hopeful that I would click with this South Pacific community and have a home away from home.
The road to Piha is extremely curvy, with little room on either side for a mistake, and I never noticed any street signs. When I asked Peter about this he assured me that he knew just where he was going, "no worries."
At the top of Seaview Road he pulled over for a minute so I could see the ever-famous Lion Rock and Piha beach in all its glory. It was paradise. A few more minutes on the road and we pulled in to Piha Surf where Pam and Mike Jolly greeted me with tea and coffee. After a few minutes of socializing, Peter was off again to shuttle more people to one of the most famous surf beaches around.
After a brief tour of the campground I was on my own. Within seconds, I dropped off my bags and headed down to the beach and the "town." After an incredibly steep and windy walk down the mountain I headed into what I thought was the center of town and had a look around. It was then that I learned there wasn’t actually a center and the town was more of a village. The "center" consisted of the Piha Store, the post office (which brags that it is open 8 hours per week), an art gallery and the Piha Volunteer Fire Department. After checking out the store and small surf shop attached to it, I headed down to the beach.
Before hitting the black sand I stopped to admire the warning signs posted everywhere! Strong rip currents, unstable cliffs, and dangerous swimming signs were at every entrance. Two orange and red flags were positioned on the beach and swimmers were instructed to only swim between the flags to keep the rescues easier to spot. (My first day there had over 20 rescues.) I was tired, and jetlagged so maybe I would just dip my toes today. Swimming and surfing could wait one more day.
After resting a bit from the jetlag, (Piha is 18 hours ahead of Eastern Standard Time,) I began my wwoof work. Wwwoof, (willing workers on organic farms,) is an organization that allows people to travel all over the world and work in exchange for board. My work took place at Piha Surf and was actually more fun than anything else. I worked for three hours per day and did everything from picking up sheepie poo, to painting an A-frame, to repotting a plant. After that, my time was my own, to relax, hike, surf, swim or just explore.
A few minutes down the road I found an awesome waterfall. Kite Kite Falls (pronounced kitty kitty) was truly an amazing sight and just a few minutes off the main road. The hike wound through the rainforest and was filled with the sights and sounds of any forest and provided much needed shade for me on my first trip to the falls.
Each day in Piha, although similar to the day before, never got boring. It seems that each trip to the beach, or the forest provided something different and it would be impossible to soak all that Piha had to offer in my short weeks there. The weekends in Piha were also very different than the weekdays. Tons of people poured in from the city (Auckland) and crowded the beaches, the surf shop and the only place to get food on the beach, Blair’s. These weekend warriors provided much entertainment, and people watching were at its peak.
The three "restaurants" in town also brought in the nightlife for Piha. I use the word restaurant and night life very loosely as the restaurants were not actually restaurants but more of gathering places, and the nightlife was more like surfers gathering to talk about the waves. The three places: The Surf Club, the Bowling Club and the RSA Club were more than happy to serve of some Speicht’s beer and steak burgers while locals gathered to compare stories. On my last night there, the lifeguards joined us but had to leave abruptly to look for a missing woman. Apparently this was nothing new. As they ran off, changing as they made their way to the "rubber duckie" (rescue boat), they were all business. It was obvious that they were true professionals and they too took Piha beach very serious. Mother Nature was no joke in this neck of the woods. (I did learn that after an extensive search, by boat, scuba and helicopter that the missing woman had been found…in her kitchen. I guess this too, happened often.)
The surf in Piha was definitely challenging, at least for me anyway. The waves were deceivingly large, and extremely powerful. Surfers did not need to stay within the flags but they did serve as a guidepost and I constantly found myself being pulled away from the flags towards the rocks. The first few waves sent me flying, and even my surf instructor, Jon Paul, laughed as I struggled to even paddle out. It’s funny how calm the water always looks from the beach! After a few hours I got the hang of things and even managed to not scream when I saw the waves coming head on. (By the way, the locals thought these waves were small...)
As my days turned into weeks I knew my wonderful trip was nearing its end. Although I would look forward to indoor plumbing again, there were so many things about Piha I would miss. I would miss midday tea and chocolate covered biscuits. I would miss the Tui birds that got drunk off the pollen and wobbled, sang and hung upside down by one leg from the tree outside my window. I would miss the sound of the ocean as I drifted off to sleep, but most of all, I would miss the people. I would miss how carefree they were and how wonderful they made me feel. There was something about this rugged coastline, and its gracious villagers that welcomed me and made me feel at home. If you are lucky enough to get to New Zealand and only see Piha it would be time well spent. And if you do make it all the way to Piha, I hope you take the time to visit the non profit art gallery and have a coffee at the Piha Store. Take the time to visit and get to know these people, I promise they are well worth the trip.
This Article has been viewed 176 times. (Not updated in real-time.)
No comments yet.We want your comments! If you can read this, you don't have javascript enabled, so you can't use this comment system. Please enable javascript.