Ben's Dad and his family had spent a lot of time in Mahia and they always talk about the area. So if it's good enough for Rocketlab and the Firman family then it's good enough for me!
We stocked up on carsick pills for the kids and myself and after winding our way through some stunning scenery we got to stretch our legs at Wairoa.
The irony is that after a very windy road, and a dodgy tummy, the thing that everyone tells you to do in Wairoa is head straight to Oslers bakery! A pie and a cream bun should fix that!
What we didn't know is that Oslers is so popular that generally sell out of everything! We did manage to snaffle some hot chips though, so after eating those on the beautiful banks of the Wairoa River, we continued our journey.
After approximately 70 more questions of "are we there yet" from the back seat, finally we were there!
We had an epic weekend in Mahia. Highlights were booking a kitchen cabin at the camping ground so we didn't have to put up a tent and get divorced in the playground; winning a bonus Lotto ticket at their diary/hardware store/liquor store/fried chicken store/Lotto shop and contemplating swimming in their beautiful beaches. There didn't seem to be any human-eating fish there, so maybe next time I will swim.
Downsides to Mahia…. well there aren't many, but do heed this advice. If you send the kids and the Dads up to the Mokotahi lookout, in the hope you will get a couple of hours to yourself to read a book and drink coffee. Think again.
The walk takes 10 mins up there. 5 mins back, so you've hardly boiled the camp jug before the whole family is back again. Please work on making that walk a day affair thank you Mahia, to give us Mums a chance to get caffeinated in peace. - Megan Banks
