It turned out that a significant proportion of the beach accompanied me into bed after the previous night's activities, which did not improve the sleep quality when the bedding was already a little damp.

We rose early and headed into Whitianga to stock up before heading off the beaten track to the northern tip of Coromandel. We drove for a bit before diving off the state highway and winding our way along coast roads to explore one of New Zealand's best hidden beaches. Having parked up, half an hour of rock hopping followed by a quick scramble over the headland brought us to a stunningly beautiful white sand crescent of New Chum Bay, ringed by forested mountain reserve and completely unspoilt.

There were only a handful of people in this section of paradise, including a small pooch with its own tent, so we made camp and soaked it up. We spent an hour or so enjoying doing nothing very much, and after an exhilarating dip in the waves I had to persuade Bob to head back the car as we still had a fairway to drive.

We crawled over the spine of the peninsula taking in the breathtaking views of both coastlines, including a spectacular shot of the intimidating 'Pinnacles' which we were planning to climb a few days later. We had a brief lunch in Coromandel and then continued North passing signs which warned us that the next 20km of gravel track were going to be significantly less comfortable!

We shuddered, juddered and bounced along the single lane coastal track, passing plenty of utes towing boats but the quality of the road became irrelevant as we gawped at the stunning scenery. Ancient windswept pines arched over our narrow passageway which clung to the edge of the beach before climbing up the cliffs to get rolling onwards views of the 'road' snaking ahead.

After nearly an hour the road turned a headland and we were overlooking a stunning gold sand beach nestled between towering rocky bastions. We cruised alongside a gliding falcon for a short way as we descended before finally pulling off the gravel at Port Jackson. We set up camp right on the beach front in the sunshine, sheltered by a small puhutakawa grove very smug indeed.

Feeling like I had some energy to burn I went for an exploratory run whilst Bob settled in. My run took me along the beach, up to the rugged northern clifftop path and along, returning along the high water mark as the sun dipped. I was very much in need of a quick swim to cool down when I got back and Bob provided crisps and dips before we wandered along the beach to watch the sun set over the sea. It was another Spirit Bay moment and it gave us a chance to take in the real beauty of where we had landed.

Neither of us felt hungry, so supper consisted of cereal and a peanut butter sandwich. Bob braved the composting toilets only to be attacked by moths and we settled in for a very early night, falling asleep listening to the waves on the foreshore.