December 7, 2013
One notable outing we did while in Opua this year was taking a drive along a back road that goes from Russell to the lovely Gallery and Cafe at Helena Bay Hill.
The trip started from Opua with the car ferry ride to the Russell area, then the road wound through rolling green hills before following the coast, giving us views of some very pretty bays. Near Helena Bay the road turned inland and wound uphill to the famous cafe. In all, it was a lovely drive through beautiful countryside scenery, and we even spotted wekas, a flightless, kiwi-like bird native to New Zealand. (You can click to enlarge and scroll through any photo galleries that follow.)
Once we arrived at the Gallery and Cafe at Helena Bay, the first noticeable feature was the beautiful subtropical sculpture garden surrounding a large pond, giving the place an Eden-like feeling. Two huge Great Pyrenees came out to greet us before we walked into the sky-lit wooden structure that housed the art gallery and cafe.
The gallery was full of lovely artwork, but it was the cafe that left us awestruck. The views of the hillsides and coast from its overhanging deck were amazing!
We snagged a table at the edge of the deck and enjoyed coffee drinks, very good quiche and croissants that would win the approval of any French native.
After lunch, we took the path through the garden filled with large tree ferns surrounding a pond, admiring the sculptures while being serenaded by many bellowing frogs. Well, I guess those males weren’t serenading us so much as the lovely lady frogs in the pond, but they were fun to listen to and watch. This was all enchanting and magical!
After our stroll, we returned to the the car and continued on to Whangarei for one of our visits there, but this Helena Bay outing had been good for us. We’d been feeling a little jaded this time around in Opua, somewhat immune to the beauty of the area after spending so much time there last season, but this experience totally revived us. It was terrific to feel awakened and awestruck once again at the beauty of Northland’s scenery, and a confirmation that it was time to change our home base and experience some new surroundings this season. –Cyndi
