It was a lovely day so we headed west to Piha beach renowned for its black sand [which hurts bare feet] and rough surf. It takes about an hour to get there with the last 20 minutes drive being through pretty rainforest. We went to the main beach first [like everywhere in NZ you can park right next to everything for free] and gave Charlie a run around and a splash... that is when we could prise her away from her favourite hobby of sand eating. Harry and I wanted something a bit more appetizing for lunch so went to the very nice Piha Cafe where Charlie produced her first artwork. Once satisfied we headed back to the beach to a little inlet by the big outcrop called Lion Rock it was great for Charlie as she could splash around without us holding her hand[this seriously offends her now!]. It was so hot I thought we better get back to the shade of the car so we drove back across to our side of the harbour while Charlie snoozed. It was only 4 o'clock by then so we squeezed a pint in at nearby Northcote Pub, a very popular place with a massive beer garden.