When I first heard about Waiheke Island I thought they were talking about Hawaii.

Many names here, taken over from Māori, have a hawaiian ring to me. I only recently found out that they are indeed all related.

Funnily, all those polynesian micro-islands in the pacific have been discovered and settled way before the two main islands of New Zealand, in the 13th century.

Anyway, back to Waiheke. It was a sunny day, the days of constant change between rain and shine seem to be over for a few days. So I packed a few things and hopped onto the ferry to Waiheke, one of the biggest islands in Hauraki gulf.

The trip took about 50 minutes, with a little stop in Devonport, then across the water along Rangitoto.

It seems to be the island getaway of Aucklanders and Kiwis in general. With a bit over 8000 people living permanently on the island (and another 3500 second homes) it is one of the most densely populated islands of New Zealand.

But before you imagine some Benidorm-like holiday bunkers, let me tell you that the island is absolutely beautiful. The houses are rather small, and cling to the hillsides over the beaches and bays, giving most of them spectacular views I suppose. Some of the richest Kiwis live here.

I rented a bike to hike around and be independent from the busses. I passed along a number of big bays with stretched white sand beaches, and a number of little, hard to access coves.

The island is pretty hilly, something I did not factor in when renting the bike, and I had a couple of severe challenges…

I arrived on Palm beach, and walked over to Little Palm beach, its smaller sister. There, the sand is rather black, volcanic in origin, the water is crystal clear blue and there are only few people sunbathing… It’s clothing optional, you can, but don’t have to, go butt naked…

I was so knocked out from biking up those high hills, that I just stayed there for two, three hours, sleeping in the shadow under a tree…

I really needed that. It also meant that I would not be able to complete my little circle before sundown (not around the full island, that would take around a day)…

So I decided to push the bike up to the highest hilltop and then roll all the way down to Oneroa, where I stopped, first for an ice cream (Joghurt and Lemon curd) and then had the raw energy salad with bean sports, lentils, red beet and fresh greens at the lovely Soular Eatery&Bar with a view over Oenora bay, and the Coromandel peninsula in the far distance…

I think of coming back here, but this time I think I’ll take the bus to the beach. There’s also a number of renowned wineries on the island (you can book a tour) and more beaches, bays, restaurants and art galleries that you can count.

Had I realized how nice it is I might have tried to find a cheap place to stay over night…. I quickly checked prices on booking.com but the hotels were through the roof for next week.

I got the ferry back at sundown, enjoying a great trip back over the bay, and arrived back in Ponsonby around 9 o’clock, totally knackered. No drinks, no bar, just a hot bath and a healthy amount of sleep.

Here are some nice pics of Waiheke Island on flickr.