Coromandel

We left Auckland white-knuckled on a freeway and finally made our way to the windy road up the Coromandel Peninsula. Mike is taking a friend/client to the east side of the Peninsula. But first we will spend the night at the Mana Retreat Centre ( maybe a NZ Esalen???) on the west side.
The Coromandel is a place of breathtaking beaches, giant Kauri trees and lush fern forests. It was also the site of a gold rush that took place during the 19th C. The storm is still with us, but all this rain makes the green even greener. We lunch in the town of Thames and pick up items to make dinner at the Centre. After mutiple turnoffs for photos , we turn off on a one lane road and climb thru a fern-filled forest. We are the ONLY guests tonight- except for the Woofers!