Friday, April 24, 2026

Blogging from A to Z 2026 - U is for Urupukapuka Island and Neighbours


As I travel the world I take many photos that pique my interest. During the year April 2025 to March 2026 our travels included visits to many islands large and small. My theme for 2026 Island Hopping will give precedence to Islands visited in the past year but for those difficult letters like X and Z I will dig into my photo archives for content.

While staying in Pahia on the Bay of Islands in the North Island of New Zealand we visited several of the local tourist sites. A cruise around the Bay of Islands provided us with an opportunity to see several of the Islands and to land on a couple. 

Captain James Cook anchored in the Bay of Islands, New Zealand, in 1769 and landed near Motuarohia Island (also known as Roberton Island). This was the first Island at which our cruise made a stop. 

Arrival of Captain Cook
Kennett Watkins, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons


A plaque on the rocks commemorates the landing of Cook in 1769

While I rested on the boat Robert hiked up to a vantage point to take the following photos.

That's me sitting at the aft of our cruise boat

Roberton Island

Roberton Island

The most distant Island we reached was "Piercy Island, also known as "The Hole In The Rock" (and by its Māori-language name Motu Kōkako),which I wrote about in my K post. 

"Urupukapuka Island is the largest island in the Bay of Islands of New Zealand, located about 7.3 km (4.5 mi) from Paihia. The island is a popular stopover point for tour boats to the Hole in the Rock and is also serviced by ferries for day trips from Paihia and Russell." https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Urupukapuka_Island.

It was on Urupukapuka, one of the most accessible in the Bay of Islands, that we stopped off for lunch at Otehei Bay and had an opportunity to walk around and take some pics.

Approaching



Area outside the Cafe

The Cafe was busy

Space to play

Space to relax



Space for everyone

Fish to feed - or catch?

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