63 and free

So my wife said, “Let’s do the hop on hop off bus on Waiheke Island. We’ll just walk on over to the ferry terminal on the quay, catch the boat over and have an easy day.”

Uh huh.

19.4k ‘Bernie-sized’ steps (in case you are keeping track Heather), 300 stairs and 12.4 km later we are taking it easy. You would think I would learn. 🙄

The first thing we noticed was the similarity of Onetangi beach to what one sees in Oregon and northern California. Probably just the forest and the flowing mist.

One of the coolest sights was the “New Zealand Christmas Tree”, which sprouts red blossoms starting in mid-December. The variety of plant life was astounding.

To answer your question: of course there was wine! First up was the Miro vineyard and winery. A very small batch winery making only 800 cases a year. They sell out quickly.

The owner clearly has an obsession with Gaudi.

Then we had lunch and sparkling wine at the Batch vineyard and winery, located on the highest part of the island. The ‘champagne’ (oops, not allowed to say that!) was excellent, as was the cuisine and the views. It was our favourite winery of the day. 👇

The final rest stop was the Cable Bay vineyard. Very fancy and very busy. Lots of partiers…

Gorgeous place though, and excellent wine.

From here we hiked down a ‘bush trail’ to the Matiatia Ferry Terminal for the boat ride back to central Auckland.

A LOT of people drank A LOT of wine. There were multiple groups of young women partying like crazy. Not sure what the occasions were. We thought at least one was a bridal shower, but who knows?

I can say without reservation that Kiwi’s are every bit as loud as Americans! 🤣