Drew Brophy - Surf Lifestyle Artist» new zealand surf and paint tour

NZ Travel Log 0305 – Shipwreck Bay and Wallyworld

Maria "Spunk" Brophy — Fri, 06 Mar 2009 04:40:21 +0000

Remember the movie “National Lampoon’s Vacation” with Chevy Chase? They drove days and days to get to the famed Wallyworld for their big yearly vacation. They traveled through bad weather, survived car trouble and even Aunt Edna’s death, only to find that Wallyworld was closed – and a big disappointment.

Here is our NZ equivalent of Wallyworld: Wiggs was so excited to go to the well advertised Hot Spring Pools and Waterslides. The brochure pictures kids having fun on water bumper cars and big slides.

We drove hours in pitch blackness through country roads, all night long. Drew wanted Wiggs to wake up to this wonderland of fun, so we free-camped in a turnout across the road with a plan that when the gates opened, we’d be ready. And when the sun came up – well, we found

False Advertising!

WALLYWORLD! It looked nothing like the brochure! An old inn-

The real deal!

keeper that has worked one too many years grumpily took our money. We pulled into a run-down, abandoned theme park with about 6 people present, all over the age of 80. The wind was howling and it was cold, which added to the ominous feeling.

Not easily daunted, and in typical Brophy fashion, we put on our swimsuits and jumped in. Wiggs didn’t know the difference – to him, it was the most fun he’d had all month!

SHIPWRECK BAY: Prior to our Wallyworld pilgrimage, we were in the Northland at Shipwreck Bay. Famed for its long left hand waves that wrap around the point, its beauty was stunning.

The coolest thing about Shipwreck Bay is that you can actually drive around the point, if you dare. There is no road, just a beautiful, rocky point that wraps around and leads to uncharted lands on the other side. We drove a short distance on the point, until we hit a large rocky outcrop, and decided to stop there because: A) We were almost out of fuel and B) it looked like we needed a 4-wheel drive. It would suck getting stuck out there……

Shipwreck Bay has great waves, so we hear (it was flat for us). There were more pigs on the beach than there were waves.

Pigs on beach at Shipwreck Bay

With lack of waves, we did some paddle boarding in the warm, crystal clear water. Wigg’s even tried a little paddle boarding, too.

IS IT THE END OF THE DUMMY RUN?

We are now heading back to Raglan, where we know there are waves. And maybe we should have stayed there all along, but hey, then we wouldn’t have seen all that we’ve seen, eh? At this point, we feel we know the North Island like the back of our hands.

And we hope that this is the end of the Dummy Run.

Thanks for all your surf prayers – A huge swell is expected – just in time for Drew’s Birthday (March 8th). Let’s hope it delivers!

Wiggs found a piece of shipwreck!

Kauri Coast Lookout

Life is Good – Spunk and Drew & Wiggss xxoo

Paddleboarding in flat spells.....

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PPS: Read Post titled “Don’t hate me because I’m American”.

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NZ Travel Log 0302 – The Dummy Run and Darwin’s Hell Hole

Maria "Spunk" Brophy — Tue, 03 Mar 2009 08:33:37 +0000

We are up in the Northland now – in the Bay of Islands.

We’ve been on a relentless search for waves, and each time we think we are going to find waves just at the next surf spot, well, think again!

We arrived Sandy Bay on a beautiful afternoon, and we were stoked to find nice waves, not big, not perfect, but hey, they were waves.

We met a local there and told him about our wave woes – how we’ve been chasing something we aren’t finding. He said “that’s what we call a Dummy Run, mate!” well said. Well said.

Elliot's Bay

We “free camped” alongside Sandy Bay and stared at the stars all night. Wiggs can point out the Southern Cross easily now.

We found Elliott’s Bay – an amazing little spot surrounded by farms. Drew worked his Go Pro on the paddleboard (small waves again) while we listened to about 100 cows bleating (do cows bleat?) next to the beach.

Onto Russell, the town that Darwin dubbed “the hell hole” because in the 1800′s it was a port for convicts, prostitutes and other dredges of society. It’s quite nice now!

We are onto discovering more of the Bay of Islands. Drew just went online and found that waves are expected along both coasts – now we just need to

Darwin's Hell Hole?

decide which way to go??!! The Dummy Run Continues!!!!!

Sandy Bay - Great Free Camp Site!

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NZ Travel Log 0228 – Coramandel Peninsula, Hot Water Beach and Praying for Surf!

Maria "Spunk" Brophy — Sat, 28 Feb 2009 20:54:17 +0000

Getting an internet connection here is nearly impossible at times. It doesn’t help that my laptop screen has become cracked (I guess Sony Vaio’s don’t travel well). This lap top was top of the line about a year and a half ago. I’ve had nothing but trouble with it from day one. I WILL NEVER BUY ANOTHER PC – It’s Macs from here on out! Drew has never had a problem with his macs…

Hot Tub on the Beach!

Getting to Coramandel Peninsula was a challenging drive through winding roads on cliffs and in some cases unpaved roads. But Hot Water Beach was a hit and we stayed for a few days. Dylan and Drew dug holes in the sand which brought up hot bubbling waters - a real hot tub on the beach!

The waves continue to be small, but Drew is making the best of it and paddle-surfed this beach. I paddleboarded the river and Dylan even paddled around a bit on Drew’s board.

A hike to Cathedral Cove was long and hard for Dylan. Drew decided to bypass the hike and meet us around the coastline by paddleboard. Wise choice – the paddleboarding was much easier than the hike.

: Hiking behind Cathedral Cove

We decided to treat ourselves to hotel rooms the last 2 nights – much needed to keep the peace in the family. Living in a tiny campervan with 2 other people can get frustrating after a few weeks.

Tomorrow we drive up to the Northern Territory. Please, God, give us some surf!

Spunk xxoo

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: Wiggs running through Cathedral Cove

: Cathedral Cove Lookout

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