Gabriele Steindl: Professional Kitesurfer & Freelance Writer - Action, Lifestyle & Travels

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Spoooooky Cape Reinga

Cape Reinga (Te Reinga or Te Rerenga Wairua in Māori) is the northwesternmost tip of the Aupouri Peninsula, at the northern end of the North Island of New Zealand. Having already been at the most southern point of this amazing country I certainly also wanted to inhale fresh Ocean air at the most northern tip.

Cape Reinga with its wild natural sourroundings, roaring Oceans, a lighthouse and above all its ‘story’, is a special place. The name of the cape comes from the Māori word ‘Reinga’, meaning the ‘Underworld’. Another Māori name is ‘Te Rerenga Wairua’, meaning the leaping-off place of spirits. Both refer to the Māori belief that the cape is the point where the spirits of the dead enter the underworld. Wooooow, spoooooky !!!

According to mythology, the spirits of the dead travel to Cape Reinga on their journey to the afterlife in the spiritual homeland of Hawaiki. At Cape Reinga they depart the mainland by leaping off an 800 year old Pōhutukawa tree on the cape.

What makes the atmosphere at Cape Reinga further special are the wild Oceans sourrounding the cape. It’s where the Tasman Sea meets the Pacific Ocean and this clashing of the two seas is unique to watch from high above at the lighthouse: the tidal race as the two seas meet to create wildest unsettled waters just off the coast. Yeah, I’ve seen waves from one point into all directions just like 2 swells of opposite direction meeting…crazy to watch, luved it 🙂