A Hike to the Duke’s Nose (Lane Cove, Rere Bay, Whangaroa Harbour, New Zealand)

March 11, 2013

Now that we were in Lane Cove, it was time for the official kick off of Legacy Boot Camp. All the tasting of the local foods (especially the ice cream and fish and chips) had put some weight on us.  We’d decided that cruising the islands would be a great way to exercise and hopefully take off a few pounds.  The 45-minute hike up to the Duke’s Nose would be a great start!

We did the hike, and while some people might get to the top in the advertised 45 minutes, it took us a good hour.  As we got near the end, the path became very narrow with a cliff on one side and a steep precipice on the other before it faded out completely.  The view was gorgeous, but we were at the bottom of the nose and not the top.  When we headed back, we saw where we had missed the path that went straight up the side of the rocks.  It looked too dangerous to do without a safety line; so we decided were satisfied with sitting under the nostrils.

When we got back to the boat, we went for our first swim of the season, bathing suit optional.  The water in New Zealand is cool, but at the end of the summer it’s really nice. Early in the evening, a small power boat with a few middle-aged guys on a fishing trip came in to anchor, and soon they were enjoying beers and their own bathing suit-optional swim. The cliff behind them became washed in a gold evening light, and now I had a problem.  I really wanted a picture of that cliff, but how would it look with me running to grab a camera and taking pictures in their bathing-suit-optional direction?  I got the camera thinking maybe they wouldn’t notice.  Well, they did notice and had quite a laugh about it, making remarks about how some of the guys would need an extra-powerful lens, etc.  I wondered if I should shout across the bay that really, I’m not taking pictures of them; I’m taking pictures of the mountain behind them, but it sounded lame, and I didn’t feel like doing all that shouting.  They didn’t seem to mind the idea of being in our photo collection anyway. –Cyndi

The Duke's Nose above us. (Whangaroa, Harbour, New Zealand)
The Duke’s Nose above us. (Whangaroa, Harbour, New Zealand)
The beach where we landed our dinghy. (Whangaroa, Harbour, New Zealand)
The beach where we landed our dinghy. (Whangaroa, Harbour, New Zealand)
The beginning of our hike, walking through tree ferns and palms. (Whangaroa, Harbour, New Zealand)
The beginning of our hike, walking through tree ferns and palms. (Whangaroa, Harbour, New Zealand)
A fern forest en route to the Duke's Nose. (Whangaroa, Harbour, New Zealand)
A fern forest en route to the Duke’s Nose. (Whangaroa, Harbour, New Zealand)
Distant peaks became visible a we got higher up the mountain. (Whangaroa, Harbour, New Zealand)
Distant peaks became visible a we got higher up the mountain. (Whangaroa, Harbour, New Zealand)
The path became more narrow as we got closer to the Duke's Nose. (Whangaroa, Harbour, New Zealand)
The path became more narrow as we got closer to the Duke’s Nose. (Whangaroa, Harbour, New Zealand)
The path became even more narrow as we got further out. (Whangaroa, Harbour, New Zealand)
The path became even more narrow as we got further out. (Whangaroa, Harbour, New Zealand)
The path ended completely, but we now had an amazing view. (Whangaroa, Harbour, New Zealand)
The path ended completely, but we now had an amazing view. (Whangaroa, Harbour, New Zealand)
The view from the bottom of the Duke's Nose. (Whangaroa, Harbour, New Zealand)
The view from the bottom of the Duke’s Nose. (Whangaroa, Harbour, New Zealand)
A beautiful mix of tree and fern forest on the hike to the Duke's Nose. (Whangaroa, Harbour, New Zealand)
A beautiful mix of tree and fern forest on the hike to the Duke’s Nose. (Whangaroa, Harbour, New Zealand)

(Somehow, the Duke’s Nose looked familiar: link – Rich)

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