On this day we decide to return to Piha to walk a 4 hour trail along the coast recommended by the girl in the Information Office at the Arataki nature reserve a few days ago. We start the trail at an area known as KareKare. We start off in the wrong direction but fortunately our confused expressions draw the assistance of some Kiwis who kindly direct us to the trailhead. I am impressed from my interactions with the locals how they often seem to have a certain stillness and calmness in themselves that it uncommon in most cultures. Perhaps this quality is lost in the rat race typical of over populated cities in developed nations.
From the trailhead we immediately ascend the ridge steadily for a good hour. On the ridge we find ourselves in a low forest where the air is so still is seems we are on a movie set. The weather is perfect. After another hour I pull away from Vivek and allow us our privacy on the trail. It seems surreal. The essence of who I am now walks in my place. I am acutely aware of how perfect the moment is, I have not known peace like this since the Camino. It seems I am walking the Camino again, there is no other place I would rather be. I say out loud "Buen Camino" to no one except the trees, soil, and wind and I grin like a fool. As I pass a slim tree trunk I stop and rest my forehead against it, immediately I feel a surge of emotion strong enough to bring tears, it doesn't last... my mind quickly intervenes with 'why?' and 'what if?' and the emotion dissipates as suddenly as it arrived. I sit on a rock and wait for Vivek.
Together we take the trail that now leads downwards. Eventually the track degrades to a slippery steep rocky mudslide and after some 15 minutes of careful steps we reach the bottom of the hill to find ourselves in a marsh. We trek on a boardwalk built over the water and then step onto large black sandy dunes. The view is quite spectacular. The entire 2 hour trek to arrive here was without human encounter but here on the beach we find a father and his young daughters playfully sliding down the dunes, soon they too are gone leaving behind large scrawled wordings in the sand. I survey my surroundings and I can't stop taking pictures with my camera, on one side the steep verdant slopes of the ridge, at the bottom is the marsh, where I stand the fine black sand and beyond is the ocean with large waves crashing in succession.
We walk in this rather desolate stretch of coastline and the sun shines brightly. The black sand sparkles like stars in the sky. After 45 minutes, the sense of isolation is lost by the presence of surfers braving the cold water to catch a ride on the large untamed surf. At this point we locate the short trail inland to where we parked the car.
The view once you ascend the ridge
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