Travel Notes: Bay of Islands, New Zealand

The Bay of Islands was named by Captain James Cook in 1769. The Maori called it Ipipiri, meaning many places to fish, swim, settle and enjoy the beauty. There are many tales, and many islands; 144 apparently. The best way to see it all is by boat. There are two main sites to see while in the bay: Brett Point Lighthouse and The Hole in the Rock.

I could have titled this post, “The Trials of Traveling.” Sadly, you simply have days when nothing seems to go your way. This was one such day. If you ever visit the regions, learn from my mistakes and hopefully, you will have a much better time than I did and capture some truly stunning photos.

Cruising the bay

We drove to Paihia, which is pronounced “Paheeha.” Our plan for the day was to go on a cruise from the Bay to see some dolphins, the Hole in the Rock (Percy Island), and the Cape Brett Lighthouse. While we were waiting to board our cruise, we explored the harbor.

Sadly we made a BIG rookie mistake by not doing enough research beforehand. The cruise we booked through our hotel, Fuller Great Sights Dolphins and Hole in the Rock Cruise, was very well-regarded. But unfortunately, it was a larger catamaran that held up to 180 people. This meant that we couldn’t get great photos, as most people were using iPads and selfie sticks and refused to share the view. I barely saw any of the dolphins, and in the end, I had to push my way through. Don’t get me wrong I am sure people would love this cruise, but we did not.

As photographers, we usually prefer much smaller, more personal tours, especially on smaller craft (like the ones we saw above). So many people on board vying for a glimpse of dolphins, seals and more. I barely saw any of the dolphins, and in the end, I had to push my way through. Still lovely to be out on the water, feeling the wind, sun, and surf in my hair, and we had lovely weather.

During the cruise, we saw the Brett Point Lighthouse and the Hole in the Rock. The smaller craft could delight in sailing right through the hole, but our skipper deemed it too choppy to go through in our much larger vessel. Seals were spotted on the way back, but I didn’t get a good look at them. Sadly way too many people made for a largely unpleasant day. Even though I paid a lot of money for the cruise, we did not get the service we were used to with much smaller tours.

Paihia

After the cruise, we had lunch at Jimmy Jacks, which had the best burger and ribs in town. For dessert, we stopped at a nearby fudge shop before wandering through the arts and crafts market. Paihia was such a delightful little tourist town.

Visit the waterfalls

On our way back, we stopped at Haruru Falls, a beautiful little spot just outside of town. Unfortunately, it was quite dry and needed more water to truly be a sight to see. We realized that the height of summer may not be the best time to view waterfalls. But still, it was lovely to visit, as was nearby Rainbow Falls. All areas of these falls are easily accessible and many people were swimming in the lake at the base of the waterfalls.

All in all, it wasn’t our best day, The choppy waters made it difficult to take sharp pictures, even with a higher ISO and shutter speed. To be honest thinking back on it now, I could have gone much higher than ISO 3200 and taken a faster shutter speed than 1/500 seconds to avoid any camera shake. Most modern digital cameras can easily handle ISO 640 — 800 without adding too much grain. Aperture Priority Mode, with Auto ISO and a minimum shutter speed of 1/1000, could have saved me a lot of grief later on. Add to that summer isn’t always the best time to view waterfalls. Lessons learned for later travel.

Tips:

• Do your own research. I have been caught out by people telling me an attraction or activity, location, etc. was fabulous. But it was a different time of year, or not suitable for my needs, or suitable for tourists more than photographers
• Don’t be too disappointed in yourself if you get it wrong. Enjoy the experience (as much as possible) and put it all down as an adventure.
• Don’t be afraid of higher ISO. You are much better off with high ISO than poorly exposed images.
• When photographing from a boat, try to stabilize yourself — feet apart and keep an arm or hand on a railing for support.
• If you don’t do well with water, remember to pack ginger or seasickness tablets.
• Even on cloudy days, don’t forget sunscreen, a hat and sunglasses. If you need sunglass perhaps your lens needs a CPL (circular polarizing filter)?