Muriwai

There are a ton of nice beaches around Auckland, but one of the more famous ones is called Murawai Beach which is only about a 40 minute drive from town. I went there a few weekends ago with friends and spent the morning exploring the area. It has black volcanic sand and is very picturesque. This beach is really popular and crowded in the summer time but was pretty empty in late July / early August when we went.

It's also famous for its gannet colonies which just look like slightly nicer looking seagulls (still annoying though) to me.

We had a nice time at the beach hiking around and exploring some of the caves. I was able to drive out on part of the beach so I took the "Beast" off-roading again. It was a beautiful day, especially considering it was still actually winter.

The Beast on the black sand beach

Me and Michelle enjoying the views

Maria, Brian, Fi, Paul, Me, Karen, Michelle, Chi

Paul and Me

Exploring the beaches

More exploring the beaches and caves

Me at Muriwai

A large rock with one of the gannet colonies on top

Gannets

Closer view of the gannets

Me with a nice view of the beach

Fi, Paul, Michelle, Chi, Karen, Maria, Brian

Chi being a hippie