Description: As I gripped my seat on a nine-passenger plane and craned my neck to look out at the sea, I was torn between thinking "this’d better be worth it" and "this is the coolest thing ever." Wearing giant headphones to dull the noise of the propellers, I was encased in my own thoughts over Auckland’s Hauraki Gulf islands.
It was the beginning of my daylong Untamed Island Tour with
Bush and Beach Tours, led by the ever upbeat Dawn Gasparro. We met at 7am at Auckland’s airport and hopped a 30-minute
Mountain Air flight to Great Barrier Island. We landed without incident at one of the island’s tiny airports, where Dawn’s van was waiting. Our first stop was the Claris Texas Café for a hearty breakfast—just what we needed after a few hours’ sleep.
While we ate, and then drove, we learned more about this beautiful place. Less than 1,000 people live on the 111-square-mile island, although it’s a popular vacation spot around Christmas and New Year’s and supports a decent tourism infrastructure, including lodges, car rental agencies, and
bachs (holiday homes). In the 1970s, the island was a popular center for alternative lifestylers and their "cash crops," as Dawn put it.
We continued on with a hike to Kaitoke springs, with Dawn pointing out flora like fragrant manuka and kanuka tea trees. One of the girls on our tour, a bird expert, quickly identified the pateke brown teal, a small duck nearing extinction. There are only 1,200 of them left in the world, and 800-1,000 live on Great Barrier Island.
For a break from hiking, we made a stop at the Aotea Community Art Gallery in Kaitoke, a co-op where over 70 artists sell their creations. It's a must-see space full of gorgeous things.
Our next stop was an oceanfront farm with which Bush and Beach has partnered, where we ate an amazing lunch prepared by the farm’s owner—warm and cold dishes, fabulous New Zealand baked goods, and the best oranges I’ve ever tasted. The owner, Helen, also rents her home to guests, and after walking Phungipea Beach, playing with her dog, chasing her sheep, and feeding her eels, I know I could get comfortable there. The shell-dotted beach is somewhat sheltered by another island, and the sand meets electric-green hills. It’s literally the most beautiful spot I’ve ever seen. One of the hills is also the site of the S.S. Wairarapa shipwreck—the second-worst ship disaster in New Zealand history—and serves as a lovely gravesite.
Our last hike was the Palmers Track at Windy Canyon, a short, uphill trek to great views out to sea. Soon it was time to head to the airport for our late-afternoon flight back to Auckland.
If you have more than a day, there are a number of beautiful B&Bs on the island; I saw and liked Mount St Paul Lodge, a 7-year-old property with gorgeous views. But however you see Great Barrier Island, just be sure to go!
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