A Day at Ruakākā Beach

We spent a weekend at Ruakākā Beach near Marsden Point with two other families—fishing, swimming, and letting the day unfold. The day before, hail had pounded down. By morning, the sky cleared completely. We'd worried about summer heat, but the wind kept blowing. Everyone ended up wearing jackets. New Zealand weather never stays predictable.

The drive took us through roads carved straight through hillsides—no tunnels, just clean cuts through rock. Ruakākā Beach sits in an unusual spot, a long stretch of sand right beside massive oil refinery facilities. This time of year, you'll find people lining the beach with fishing rods, hoping for trevally. We arrived before noon and set up.

The kids moved between sand and water without pause. We planted four fishing rods. The lines danced constantly, but every fish we pulled up was undersized. We released them all except one. A small octopus came up on one line—we checked the regulations and learned that octopus, squid, and all shellfish are protected in this area. Back it went.

The sky stayed blue, the water clear. We ate lunch on the sand—inari sushi, onigiri, cup noodles. The one fish that met size requirements, we filleted right there and ate as sashimi. The kids shared their snacks with seagulls and collected shells. Time moved like light on water.

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