I check out early the next morning. Drive on to Papamoa. Glenn is in Auckland, but his son can just as easily sell me a kite. As long as the kite is as good as it looks, I’ve landed a good deal. Barely used 12 North Vegas 07 incl. 1 year old bar and pump/leash for 430€. Got my wings back. Keep flying.
The Coromandel Peninsula is one of the oldest settlement areas in New Zealand. Both Maori and Europeans. It’s much warmer here. The landscape changes constantly between the Allgäu and the Dominican Republic. I fly a little carelessly, almost running out of fuel at the tip of the peninsula, 50 kilometres from the nearest petrol station.
The route is a 250km rollercoaster ride. The uncertainty of whether a wheel will fall off adds to the thrill. Coromandel is also quite volcanically active. There’s a beach at the top called Hot Water. You dig a hole in the sand, wait until it fills with hot groundwater and enjoy the view with a warm bum.
On the way back, I take a nice alternative route. The sign warns of 25 kilometres of bends. After 5km, the tarmac ends and a gravel track winds its way through steep hills. In front of me, a small McRae skilfully speeds around the bends at up to 80km/h. If I were to crash my car into a tree, I would probably increase its market value by around 50% due to the Chinese scrap metal prices. I heat up after it. Dust and flying stones, a few very wide skids. After 20 minutes, I’m on the other side of the peninsula and the car looks as dirty as it is.
I head back to Auckland at full throttle on the west side for sunset. I’ve got loads of couchsurfing bookings. Time to plan the route. Yaping House again. Free internet has rarely been so nice. A German points out to me that the exchange rate to the euro is not 1.3, but 1.9. Suddenly, New Zealand is 50% cheaper.
Frank Woelky, born in 1973. Kitesurfer since 1998. Since 2006, I have been combining kitesurfing and web design on trips lasting several months off the beaten track.