Fishing at 'The Mount'

The bay of plenty - early morning stroll on the beach.

Captain cook christened the bay of plenty as he sailed into the harbor in 1769, and plentiful it is with heaps of sunshine and sandy beaches. These days the 'mount' is hugely popular among kiwi holiday makers. We were lucky to find vacancy at any of the hostels. The campsite books up four years in advance for some school holidays.

Although Steph did not share my desire for joining the fishermen on the pier, she did appreciate the opportunity to try a free activity since we were a little exasperated from the menu of expensive at each port of call. Fishing requires a lot of patience. I knew this was regularly depleted for Steph. Luckly the other guys had much better luck. When a boy would catch his first fish, she would join in his celebration. When a man caught an octopus, her fascination levels spiked. But soon enough, we packed up our tackle and rod.

Our only catch from the pier was a rare species of street food - the battered sausage! These are wieners battered in a wheat-based coating then deep fried in the chippy oil.