My husband and I did the Coromandel Tour with guides Brad and Gloria just prior to “high season” and had a most amazing time. Both were friendly, thoughtful and accommodating. We had a fun time and challenged ourselves the first day at Wairere Falls (old Māori pack trail), the North Island’s highest waterfall, climbing up to the source stream above, which was amazing! Both guides gave us free rein in our hiking pace but checked in with us often. Our lunches were delicious and healthy, with essential chocolate thrown in, a much appreciated surprise. At the end of the hike, we headed to Hush, a lovely cluster of luxury cabins adjacent to a creek. We met the owner and were lucky to get a view of a large native eel in the creek below. We enjoyed tasty cheese, crackers, etc. before dinner, which was prepared on site in the al fresco kitchen by amazing Charmaine, who would make our delicious meals (including pack lunch) every day and also supplied excellent choice in music!
The cabins were delightful - lots of privacy, a lovely wet room shower and bidet, a plus. Brad wisely juggled our itinerary to accommodate potential rainy weather and we spent our second day hiking the challenging Pinnacles/Kauaeranga Kauri trail. All during our hikes with Brad & Gloria, they identified trees, flowers, birds and other wildlife and were patient with our repeat questions. The ladders to the top of the pinnacles was a highlight for me. At the same time, Brad respected that the ladder part is not for everyone.
Day 3, the Coromandel Coastal Walkway, an old bridle path adjacent to a working farm, was a nice break after the challenge of the first two days. My husband, who loves birding, was able to score some wonderful photos every day of totouiwai, fantail, dotterel, kereru, etc. we walked down to a lovely beach with crashing surf and enjoyed the serenity of just taking it in with all senses.
Later that night we all had dinner at a local restaurant that served excellent fare. The grain salad followed by berry crisp was amazing, as was my husband’s clam chowder and cheesecake dessert. Gloria’s gluten and dairy dietary restrictions were accommodated with her fish dinner and dessert and Brad confirmed that the fish and chips were great.
On our last day, which followed a rainy night that thankfully held off during our hike, we visited a grove enormous Kauri trees and tried to imagine what Aotearoa looked like prior to logging. These trees deserve the utmost respect, whose sacred journey to maturing can span thousands of years. It boggles the mind. We also visited the historic mining area to educate ourselves on the extraction industry’s impact on the area, which included old mining tunnels.
We are so thankful for our guides’ respect for all inhabitants of this island, including human, flora and fauna. We really lucked out with trip and we plan to come again on another adventure. We highly recommend them!