A pilgrimage to a sacred place

Makes a pilgrimage to the Far North, Aotearoa’s most sacred Ma¯ori place, from where our tu¯ puna leave our shores on their final journey.

It is a pilgrimage every Kiwi should make at least once in their lifetime, and every visitor should do their best to include. A slender sand isthmus of shifting dunes and undeveloped beaches so long they are never overcrowded, the Aupo¯ uri Peninsula is also home to the most spiritually significant site in the country to Ma¯ ori.

You don’t have to be Ma¯ ori or religious to recognise that this is hallowed ground.

A land of classic Kiwi camping holidays, epic road trips where adventures lie at the end of every windy gravel road, and journeys to pay respects to family and friends who have died. Here are four sites you won’t want to miss.

Cape Reinga

You don’t have to be religious, or even particularly spiritual, to sense there is something special about Cape Reinga (Te Rerenga Wairua).

Arriving at this most sacred of Ma¯ ori sites after a long, lonely drive down the Far North’s spine, sun-bleached fields stretching towards secluded white-sand beaches on either side, I had the strong sense I had reached some kind of final frontier.

And according to Ma¯ ori oral history, I had. The cape is where spirits last set foot on the Land of the Long White Cloud before making their way to their ancestral homeland of Hawaiki. As thick, white fog rolled in, it was easy to imagine them passing me by – the sea spray rising from the point at which the Tasman Sea and Pacific Ocean collide adding to the effect.

The great Polynesian navigator Kupe is said to have named Te Rerenga Wairua, which translates to ‘‘the leaping place of spirits’’, before returning to Hawaiki after a decades-long voyage of discovery around New Zealand.

He hoped the spirits of descendants who made New Zealand their home would be able to find their way back to Hawaiki by sliding down a root of a gnarled po¯ hutukawa into the sea and swimming underwater to Three Kings Islands, where they would bid their final farewells to wha¯ nau before reaching their final resting place.

From the car park, it is a gentle 1km walk to the historic lighthouse and signpost that form the backdrop to many a visitor photo.

Information boards en route detail the site’s history, ecology and cultural significance.

Spirits Bay

Nearby Kapowairua (Spirits Bay), an unspoiled stretch of dune-backed white sand, is also said to be a porthole to the afterlife. Its Ma¯ ori derives from a story about Nga¯ ti Kahu chief To¯ he¯ , who is said to have told his people to grasp (kapo) his spirit (wairua) at the beach if he died after setting off on a fraught journey to visit his daughter.

A strong contender for most beautiful beach, Spirits Bay remains secluded, in large part because it is at the end of a 16km gravel road. There are no shops or amenities, so visitors stroll along the fine, white sand, fish, surf and boogie board.

The beach forms part of the three- to four-day Te Paki Coastal Track, which rounds Cape Reinga before heading to Ninety Mile Beach via Cape Maria van Diemen and the Te Paki sand dunes.

A basic Department of Conservation campsite between the beach and native bush is a Kiwi classic, and freedom camping is permitted within Te Paki reserves, though not within 500 metres of formed roads or at Cape Reinga.

Te Paki sand dunes

Northland’s answer to the Sahara and the ski slopes, this 10km stretch of giant sand dunes must be the unofficial sandboarding capital of New Zealand.

Heading north to Cape Reinga, a short detour down a gravel road will take you to Te Paki Stream at the base of the dunes, formed over millions of years as a result of volcanic activity in other parts of the country.

Standing up to 150 metres, the dunes are the highest in the southern hemisphere, so be prepared for your calves to complain as you haul your boogie board or other sliding apparatus to the top. Your reward is a free adrenaline rush that will have you hammering those calves again and again.

Most boarders stick to the same dunes, so if you are after a solitary stroll, head in the other direction.

Following shifting ridge lines towards an ocean that glistens mirage-like on the horizon, you will feel like a desert nomad en route to an oasis. Or an astronaut on Mars.

Ninety Mile Beach

It might not live up to its name, but that is the only thing lacking about this famous beach stretching from the small surf town of Ahipara to Scott Point, 5km south of Cape Maria van Diemen.

Its 88km are a swimmer’s, surfcaster’s and beachcomber’s delight – plus, it is said to offer one of the best left-hand surf breaks in the world.

Facing west, its sunsets are spectacular, as are its star-studded night skies.

If a long walk along the beach has you craving kaimoana, dig your fingers into the sand in the shallows in search of tuatua, or cast a line from the beach. Decent-sized snapper can often be found not far from shore.

As an official highway, the beach is also one of New Zealand’s most magnificent ocean drives. Just don’t attempt it without a 4WD or checking the tides. If you would prefer to leave it to the pros, join a coach tour from Kaita¯ ia or Paihia.

There are plenty of accommodation options along the beach if you are keen to stick around, including a holiday park, the historic Endless Summer Lodge, and multiple privately owned baches.