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Mark Moxon's Travel Writing

New Zealand: Coromandel

A yacht in the Coromandel peninsula
The Coromandel peninsula is a beautiful place for a bit of sailing

My next scheduled work visit was with the Acorn dealer in Thames, so I reluctantly left the beach behind and headed west, back towards civilisation. Gwynne and his wife Alice live with their son Tobin in a beautiful house in tiny Thames, a little town tucked away at the southern end of the Coromandel Peninsula. If my previous dealer experiences had been great, this visit was simply wonderful. Alice's dad owns a yacht – one he built himself from scratch, no less – and we spent the weekend out in the Hauraki Gulf, exploring, swimming and fishing.

A bucket of snapper
Fresh snapper from the sea
Coromandel sunset
Coromandel sunset

Sea Morning

The view from Green Island
The view from the top of Green Island

Waking up on a yacht in a remote natural harbour is quite an experience. As your eyes open, you notice a slight swaying, and it took me some time to work out where on earth I was, even though I've spent practically every night in a different place on my travels. Then the smell of the sea wafts into the cabin, the sounds of merry breakfasting carry gently across the boat, and the next thing you know it's time to eat, shake the sleepy dust out of your eyes and get moving. Having the sea air breeze through your hair as the boat catches the wind is surely one the best ways to wake up in the morning; it even beats coffee.

Gannet nests on Green Island
Smelly gannet nests on Green Island