A Whatipu Weekend

On Sunday Anisha and I travelled to Whatipu. Whatipu is a Scientific Reserve owned by the Department of Conservation and managed on behalf by the Auckland Regional Council. It is located in the Waitakare ranges approximately 40km from Auckland Central.

A large portion of the road to Whatipu is unsealed which my GPS alerted to me when I programmed in the location. We arrived at the main Whatipu car park in the morning. The first thing we did was walk to the beach. This is the first time that Anisha has seen a black sand beach. We took some photos of the beach, the ocean, the mountains, and the rocks. We took photos of some odd-shaped rocks, with their shape no doubt caused by water erosion.

After the beach we went on the short Whatipu Cave Track. This track was 90% sand which gave our legs a really good workout. We saw and went into about 5 different caves. The caves ranged from small nooks to fantastically large structures.

There is an official camp spot at the end of this walk which is was simply a large open area with a portaloo besides it. We returned via some cut tracks though the long grass which ran parallel with the track we took to get in. Once we finished this walk and came back we had lunch. I had made some rolls the night before. Overall, the weather today was not that hot. It was raining a little, was windy and the sun was barely seen through the heavy cloud cover. Better luck next time.

Unfortunately I have misplaced my Sony Camera (found now) but Anisha took her camera and we collectively took some interesting photos.

The only other exciting this we did this weekend was to see Rouge Assassin at the Silvia Park movie theatre.

Additional Information: Whatipu, at the entrance of the Manukau Harbour, is best known for its remoteness and natural heritage values - its windswept sand dunes, wetlands and wildlife. This unique landscape, now part of the Waitakere Ranges Regional Park, has long attracted visitors seeking a wilderness experience. - www.arc.govt.nz