Paradise found

Packing up our tent, we slowly cruised up the gravel road to the top of the peninsula, singing along to Dido. And suddenly, DJ gets all excited, stops the car and orders me to put Trinity Roots on. Looking out, Tali realises the reason. Below us is Port Jackson, the remote beauty spot where DJ spent many of his childhood summers and has a major spiritual connection with. As Trinity Root's Aotearoa played, he sat down on the hill in silent reverie. This was his first time back in about 14 years.



Driving to the DOC camp, Tali could see a thousand memories circling around his head as we passed a pristine beach, surrounded by crimson pohutakawa trees, known as the New Zealand Xmas tree because they only bloom for a few weeks a year, usually in December. The most prolific pohutakawa blooms can be seen in the Coromandel, especially at the tip of the peninsula, referred to as the Pohutakawa Coast.



Because the roads to Port Jackson are so terrible, the more obnoxious elements that can be seen camping (the pissheads, wankers and yuppies with their shiny deluxe campervans with Sky digital ariels) tend to stay away, so those that endure are the ones who really love the nature camping experience. Having tried proper camping for the first time this trip, Tali can say that the wilderness type, she could slowly get used to. And to sum up commercial holiday parks in city parks and domains in one word? "Dumb".



However, Port Jackson was very much the cool sort of camp, if not a tad on the basic side. We didn't mind the long drop loos (hey, they were way better than the disgusting portaloos at The Gathering) but cold showers weren't really our idea of fun and everything was such a mission - boiling water, brushing teeth, you name it.



Still, that hot, sunny day at Port Jackson was really magic. We slept closer to the ocean than I've ever slept, with the sound of crashing waves the only noise.



That day was spent walking along the sand, dipping our toes in the river, wading in the sea, sharing moments from DJ's childhood and eating cookies 'n' cream ice cream from the tub before it totally melted! When the wind got up and the sky threatened to rain, we headed into the tent with cards and M&Ms. It was mucho fun, even when Tali couldn't sleep that night because of the wind and crashing waves. Getting up to go to the loo, she spent a few moments gazing in awe at the moonlit ocean, illuminated by a full moon, and thought about waking DJ to share in its beauty.