Miranda Shellbank Earthcache (Waikato) Miranda, North Island, New Zealand
By TheWonderStuff on 11-Feb-08. Waypoint GC19A9X

Stopping overnight here after another couple of nights in the close vicinity. Lovely break and wonderful scenery. Bit cool today with showers, but still managed to get out and about and enjoy the fresh air. Thanks for placing this earth cache.. first time here

This Earth cache is worth a visit, as I didn't know this is quite rare, having lived in the coromandel, this is just part of the world. Rays rest is an excellent place for camper and the bird watching is good at the right time. The has been some digging here, but the shell bank can still be see at the river entrance, and of course the build up to shells along the shore.Tftc. I have many photos

Thanks for your amazing cache TheWonderStuff. I really appreciate the time you took to set up your cache. Found with Fisha1288 Earned a favorite from me Cheers, Cympull.

Found with Cympull. Very interesting area that we visit often. Staying at motorcamp so went for a bikeride. TFC

Swamp ocean monsters found.Managed to get them to walk from holiday park to here mmm see how fast they go going back

TFTC

After years on our bucket list and three cancellations due to Covid, we are thrilled to finally be here. Following several cruises we flew from Sydney, Australia to Wellington, New Zealand to begin our next adventure. Picked up our rental vehicle and will be driving, exploring, hiking, and caching both islands for 3.5 weeks. This was an interesting stop to see all the amazing piles of shells, plus read the explanation of why they're here. Unfortunately, our visit was disrupted by a lady & her dog at her car, who was hanging wash out on the nearby fencing, despite all the "No Camping" signs posted. She kept shouting at us to leave and not report her. We had NO intention of reporting her to anyone, but she made us feel very uncomfortable. Even though we would have liked to spend more time there viewing the shells and shorebirds, we hurried off after taking a few pics. Our answers have been sent via the message system and we appreciate the CO developing this geological lesson. Thanks for adding to our adventure today, Nukeworker and Racquetball Girl, Arkansas, USA

Thanks! Here with a muggle bird group.

Working in this area for the first time on this coast. Of course had to pick up a few caches and great to see an Eathcache here too.Its was a beautifully calm day and although I had my kayak with me, I was itching to get across the other coast with it for a fishing trip with friends over the long weekend, so I resisted the temptation to launch from the beach. Thanks for the Earthcache.

Out to collect an Earth Cache this weekend. Been here before getting Traditionals. Good to tick this one off the list. TFTC

Going through some older caches and we obviously logged this accidentally as a DNF back in march this year. Double checked and yes we did send the answers and added the photo to our log. Rectifying this now to a found.

Visited last weekend while on a family visit to this super interesting area. So glad we came here, and nearby hot pools to boot. Today I managed to pull my answers together and get them sent off. Thank you for a great earth cache we certainly visited the shorebird centre, walks and explored the beach. Photo attached.

I'm returning from a Geocaching tour of the South Island when I stopped over at one of the top freedom camping locations in NZ. I have been here many times and always marvel at the privilege of being able to park overnight on the waters edge.

Very nice location on a daytrip from Waiuku to Miranda

TFTC!

Very windswept today with dark clouds adding to the atmosphere.
I can't help but be amazed at the migrations of these birds.
Thanks for setting this.

We stayed here tonight after leaving our paid campground in Thames as it was too noisy!
Lovely here ! Walked along to do this Earthcache. Thanks

We stay on this freedom camp tonight. So I walked up to this cache to find the answers. Thanks for showing me this place.

It clouded over for a bit so a bit cooler to come for a walk. Thanks for the interesting information.

Very interesting cache.

GeohoundandI has been waiting to see some of the shore birds here, so we finally got around to bringing Granddad along. The weather when we set off from the North Shore wasn't the best and just went worse as we came along SH2, but by the time we got here the sun was out and showing the birds off.
We've been here a couple of times before, and each time the wildlife has been impressive.

Visiting the Miranda tidal flats looking for godwits and dotterels, took the opportunity to get this Earthcache at the same time. An amazing spot for birds! Answers sent to CO. Sorry, I failed to get a selfie to work, and didn't have GPS on hand, so just a simple photo of the shell bank. Tftc!

Answers sent to CO. Stayed in a freedom camping spot further north as we have a little dog on board our motorhome so can't stop right here.
Interesting information gathering, thanks for bringing us here.

Will send answers when finished driving for the day, very excited for our first Earthcache on Earthcache Day
Not in this specific area (there's a sign) but def wishing we had brought the pups along for a run!
Thanks for the geo lesson here very interesting

We're parked up in this beautiful spot for a couple of nights, so wandered down here to do this earthcache and so mr rattll could look for cockles.
Hopefully the answers are all good.
Thanks for setting this up here

The shell bank has been flattened - no mound like there was back in January when I was previously here - see photo attached

On a drive with Tinytree to Thames we took the coastal road back to Auckland to pick up a few caches along the way. This was the first, managed to park quite close to the posted coordinates, at first look the bank almost looked like it had been scooped into a large pile when they had craved out the driveway but soon realised it was not man made once exploring the other side where the stream is.

Managed to scrape up (pardon the pun) a few answers for the CO and took the required photo. Thanks for the cache.

Out geocaching along the coast line as we head to see the godwits at Miranda. Great place for an earthcache. First one we have completed on a shell bank. Saw some interesting birds while answering the questions. Thanks TheWonderStuff.

Deep in coastal motor home central & probably off the official beaten track a bit.
Not the most inspiring section of the rail trail but a good day out with Vamber & our bikes. Some strange paths disappearing into the beach but, a good time anyway
Thanks

Annual camping trip with Kirstim and out for a biked from Kaiaua. Good day out with Kirstim & our bikes. Some strange paths disappearing into the beach but, a good time anywaySigned log as KKKT

This was a nice spot to stop for the night. Plenty of motorhomes here. TFTC.

So beautiful here tonight. Pink & blue sky. Lots of birds happily doing there thing. Answers sent.

On my way to Thames via the scenic route at stopped off at a few caches along the way. It was a beautiful day along the coast today. Answers have been sent to CO, TFTC!

Visited on the way home from the Hauraki Rail Trail.

A great camp spot with the kids for a quick overnighter. Clear weather and abundant caches.

After a long day cycling the waitakaruru to kopu leg of the HRT we decided to do a couple more caches as dusk fell. Keylev has sent the relevant info.
Enjoyed this cache and the info on the geology of the area. TFTEC

Out for a bit of cycling along the HRT trail. The Kopu to Waitakaruru leg, kindly arranged by Keylev, joined also by NZTravellers, and HeMaLuDy, Purply, and Darthcacher1.
Signed in as 'SEAC' to save logbook space. Stopped in for lunch at Pipiroa, and then back on the trail, before the rain came....not quite...got a little damp towards the end. (luckily it's not too cold today)

Have sent the CO the required intel, (hopefully) for logging.
Thanks for the lesson.

A great day, and a great group of people.

TFTC.

An adventure was planned with some of the Team SEAC crew to explore a part of the country that we had not visited before now that lockdown has lifted and we are allowed to travel a little further from home.

There were laughs, groans and muscle pains but it was, as always, heaps of fun.

After finishing the bike trail we decided to get 'just a few more' on the way home (ok full disclosure....slight detour).

It was amazing how far along the beach you can drive here. It was also good the rain had slowed a little which gave us time to explore. Answers sent through and photo uploaded by the other Team SEAC members.

Thanks for the cache.

After cycling the HRT from Waitakaruru to Kopu, we headed down this road to find a few more caches that some in the group had not yet found. Here with NZTravellers, keylev, Stik-a-crane. After much discussion about how to answer each question, keylev has sent through our response on behalf of the group. Another geological feature we would never have learnt about if it wasn't for geocaching.

Found with MrsC on our NZ travels frm the UK. Thanks. Answers sent to co.

This is an amazing place well worth visiting and some lovely birds too. Found with mr c on our travels from the uk thank you

Having finished with my work commitments for the week I had some spare time today to go out and find a few caches. I headed off in a south - east - north - west kind of loop. Had a good time with a variety of caches found along the way.

Logging answers emailed to CO.

A nice short walk from the parking area to the shell bank. Found the information required and took a photo before heading back to my car.

TFTEC, Biggles.

Such an amazing view, peaceful and full of life, many birds to see. Me and Line_Moh really enjoyed do this Earth Geocache.
TFTC

Beautiful place ️
TFTC

During our vacation in New Zealand we did some geocaching. We saw a lots of amazing places and say thank you to everyone who shared his geocache with us.

Greetings from Germany!
Rote Teufel

This was the closest unfound Earthcache to our place and so we decided to make a day of it, grab this cache and then enjoy a late afternoon soak at the Miranda hot pools. We were surprised by the large number of freedom campers parked up nearby, about 30 or so. We appreciated being able to drive up to within 10m of GZ. We had a little walk around, grabbed the info needed and were soon on our way. Thanks for bringing us to this unique spot.

Will send info, we stay here at times, interesting area

After a nice night at the Kaiaua Boat Club freecamp I had a lovely morning walk along the shore to log a cache there before we continued our journey. Today is our second day traveling south after we left Dargaville yesterday. On our way to the Hunua Falls we stopped at this beach to take a look at the shellbank and to complete this cache. Answers are sent to the CO. Tftc.

Beautiful spot and so calm waters here indeed! Will send my answers to CO. Thanks for bringing me here.

Questions all good here again

Fabulous spot to come to. Unfortunately, I left my binoculars at home but I'm enough of a birdwatcher to recognise Oystercatchers - just by the calls. Will send answers later. TFTC.

Added wrong photo to log. Ooops!

19425Dec 31, 20188:40:46 AM
I will send the answers as soon as I get back home to Canada.
Drove this way on the way back up to Oakland. Lane Highway’s
What a strange beach with all those seashells.
Going to give this one a FP

Thanks TheWonderStuff for another cool find.
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Some say geocaching at night is geocaching done right

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.TFTC . ((__)
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School holiday trip to Auckland/Coromandel with the family. After a couple nights at Hot Water, a few at Tauranga, time to head for Miranda for our last night before flying home to Christchurch. Settled into the camp ground we popped out for a look at the shellbank and shorebirds. What a fantastic bizzare spot! Thanks for a fantastic earthcache and a reason to investigate this area...

Its been a while since I visited this place ...I can see the big storm has given some of the areas a new lease of life...but the rest is much the same ..it is always so restful here and a unique atmosphere no matter what the weather conditions are thanks wonderstuff for the cache

It's been several years since we last came here and "nothing has changed, but everything has changed". Every storm is a mere heartbeat in time with the formation of this area. We stayed the night at "Ray's Rest", but as we arrived late afternoon decided to leave it until morning - wrong idea! We woke to miserable rain, so donned our coats and walked to gz. We didn't linger as no information board there. Very interesting and pretty cool to realise how rare this phenomenum is. Thanks for setting up this earth cache TheWonderStuff.

Visited the Mianda Seabird Coast and did a few more caches...weather a bit rainy but still managed!
Was pleased to do this Earthcache...have sent the information to the C.O.
Had a lovely time at the Pukorukoru Bird Centre ...bought some amazing books...
Keen to return and visit the nearby regional parks.
Finished up with a hot soak in the Hot Pools!!!!
Thanks TWS!

We were out and about with our camper and ended up here at Miranda after several days. We walked along the foreshore with a couple of muggle friends to do this Earthcache. We have passed this way many times but never wondered about the shell banks. They were just there, being what they were, shell banks. We camped overnight at " Ray's Rest " and there were heaps of others as well. There were guys fishing, people digging on the tidal flats, families walking along the beach, children exploring the shallows and naturally thousands of birds.

Thanks Wonderstuff for making us take a closer look at what was actually happening here. More than just "shellbanks". A whole Geology of New Zealand lesson. We know a lot more about rocks now than we used to.

What a fascinating place! A nice place to stop and enjoy some lunch. I wish I had a campervan to camp here the night. There seems to be a few people who are doing that today.

Sadly I am now back in a chilly UK after a fabulous trip t NZ. WE stopped to walk along this really interesting beach not long after a huge storm. Although a couple of the hides had been damaged and had extra shells along their walls and a length of boardwalk had moved 70 metres the structure of the bank generally seemed to have survived the onslaught. Thanks for the cache.

We parked at the nearby camping ground and made the short walk to GZ enjoying the views as we went.
What a fantastic and amazing place, the shellbanks are quite a landmark and we had a lot of fun both learning about and climbing them. Thanks for bringing us here and increasing our knowledge.

Found while doing a road trip with my Grandson (Mrcleverclogs) unlike Auckland it had stopped raining so we got to enjoy a nice walk along the beach. Alot of campervans to fuel my campervan envy. Answers sent to CO for both of us, as previous logs needed to google.

Found with Granny (urbangypsynz) I enjoyed the walk to the shellbank learning to skim shells on the way. Answers for both of us sent to CO.

Visited here on a wet but humid summer morning as you can tell by the pictures. Have been here lots of times but wasn't really aware of the geology as i am into natural history, particularly birds.

Made a small detour here since I am picking up earthcaches here and there these days. Wasn't expecting such a beautiful place. Thanks for bringing me here! Sorry for the funny photo, looks like I just swallowed some of those shells! TFTC

I was working today in Maraetai and so since I was already a long way from home, I might as well extend my driving to down the Kaiaua coastline to pick up a few caches and this cache was one of them. Heaps of camper vans here at sunset, took a nice photo I think of that. Interesting place for a visit alright.

Beautiful area, enjoyed learning how this Chenier plain was formed. TFTC

On the way back to Auckland I made a stop here enjoying a walk around. Beautiful place. Thank you for this memory and the cache!

visited today

We have found this one during our geotrip to China and New Zealand. We have enjoyed our 10 day stay in New Zealand a lot, especially its beautiful nature and atmosphere. Many thanks for the cache and also for showing us this nice place. Greetings from the Czech Republic.

Lovely walk along the front before the rain came in. Thank you for bringing me here

After our road trip to Waterworks in Coromandel we came up to Kaiaua for fush & chups. I'm slowly ticking off the caches around this area on my trips to NZ to visit my family.
No sign here anymore and the Google search was hard work for my poor brain that is on holiday. But I think I managed to scrape together some half decent answers to the questions.
The colours of the water and shell banks make for a rather striking scene here. The kids enjoyed spotted an eel in the stream.

Photo taken at the shellbank - just have to figure out how to post it! Answers sent to CO. TFTC - sure is an interesting area

Found just on dusk with my phone so my stubbed toe is being my gps!!!

My final full day in New Zealand after 2 weeks from Australia, visiting my sister in New Plymouth, then the mega event in Turangi, and some touristy stuff through the Bay of Plenty on the way back to Auckland. Today's final leg was the short hop from Thames to Auckland, mainly going up the East Coast Road to spend as much time in the country as possible. I think I actually wrote all logs today accidentally with 29/10/16 however. Oh well.

Made my way here and have done my best to answer the questions, attached is the photo of me with the iPhone (GPS) in front of the shell pile. Thanks TheWonderStuff.

Arrived as the weather was taking a turn for the worse on our way home from whitianga to Auckland. We were really keen to get an earthcache for today's souvenir but also to help us with one of our current GIO licence challenges so we detoured and took the scenic route home. The shell banks are an interesting sight! TFTC

I would say there is no sign here anymore, but lots of people have already mentioned this. I was happy to be able to drive right to GZ and had fun looking at the shells. TFTeC.

2095 Called today Took the photo but no information available there. So had to research on line. Think I was able to find the answers sufficient enough

Got to GZ to find no sign so took a photo & researched the rest online. Answers sent to CO. Nice area. TFTC

We had just spent a wonderful four day long weekend in the Miranda area and were heading back to the big smoke. We had to pick up the last few caches in the area before we departed. This one was a nice one so close to the sea and this shellbank

As others have mentioned the info board has gone, but the answers are all obtainable online.
A lovely day today for a drive along the Seabird Coast. Answers have been emailed to the CO and photo taken at GZ to prove our visit. Not many birds spotted today, tide a long way out when we visited. TFTEC!

the infobord is missed!

found it with The_KC on our trip to Auckland. i loved this place - so thanks for showing!

On my way from Thames to Auckland I took the coastal route, also to stop for this EarthCache. I have somehow gotten in love with this type of cache during my travels through New Zealand, because very often they lead you to beautiful and interesting places you would otherwise probably miss completely. And there is always something interesting to learn.
Same with this Shellbank. The amount of shells is just unbelievable. Unfortunately the sign still is gone, so I hope my answers - that I derived from a wild websearch - do count.
Thank you very much for another nice place shown by this EarthCache.

Gorgeous day and low tide coincided with our walk along the shore to GZ so we were able to go a long way out onto the spit. Still no sign at GZ but using observation and the info boards by the hides which we visited the following day at high tide we have sent our answers to the CO. We had missed the masses migrating further north but the wrybills have arrived for the winter and the enormous flocks were amazing to watch. NINO TFTC TFTEC

found it with mffk50 on our trip to Auckland. what a beautiful place! so many Shells!! thanks for showing! greetings from Austria

We stayed overnight at Rays Rest on our way north, and picked up a couple of the local caches while there.

I wasn't able to find the info board either, and have had this on my watch list since to see if anyone else had the same problem.

Unfortunately it seems the board is no longer there, so have researched the answers and sent to the CO.

I was using my phone as GPS, so heres a selfie pic from the GZ location, TFTC

Drove to this beach on our way north. Amazed by the number of camper vans. Email sent to CO. Photo attached

#11558. It was a sunny day, and the shellbank created a lot of glare. It's an interesting spot; well worth a vist. Troodles emailed info on behalf of both of us. TFTC.

We had a 50th birthday party to attend in Auckland, so took the scenic route from Waihi via Thames, Miranda, Clevedon and Whitford. An interesting drive, with the bonus of minimising exposure to Auckland traffic as we then had a short distance to drive to our destination in Cockle Bay.
This is one popular place for camper vans especially. An amazing location, mind boggling how many shellfish would have died to create the miles of beautiful white beach. And so much nicer than the ubiquitous mangrove mudflats. Pity the sign board is still missing, though. Answers emailed. TFTC.

Auf unserem Weg von Auckland auf die Coromandel Halbinsel haben wir an diesem Earthcache einen kleinen Zwischenstop eingelegt. Da - wie bereits in den Vorlogs erwähnt - die Infotafel nicht mehr vorhanden ist, haben auch wir die benötigten Informationen im Internet recherchiert.

Thank you for the nice and interesting earthcache.

Many greetings from Germany, Nariza & Korshi

# 2.720 - 11:40 Uhr

INfo board missing so answers to CO are from Dr Google. What a neat place, and the camper vans love it too.

TIme to head home to Christchurch, the slow way!

Thanks to all the CO's for their hides.

English :
After a few days in Auckland, Ninalila and I were going to Whangamata and decided to stop by to do this earthcache. Sadly, no information board so we tried to do our best to find the correct answers.

Nice place, specially with the sun

Thank you for this earthcache and the discovery.

Français :
Après quelques jours à Auckland, nous prenons la route pour Whangamata et décidons de nous arrêter ici pour faire cette earthcache. Malheureusement il n'y a plus de panneau d'information, du coup nous ferons de notre mieux pour trouver les bonnes réponses.

Super endroit, surtout avec le soleil

Merci pour la earthcache et la découverte.

English:
on the road between from Auckland to Whangamata, we stopped along the bay in order to find few caches.
In the absence of the panel on the spot, we observe the area, then and we looked for more information on internet.
It was the opportunity to see landscapes, the river mouth and bird colonies.

Replies are sent to the owner, thank you for discovery.
TFTEC

Français:
sur le trajet entre Auckland et Whangamata, fefe.adrien et moi nous arrêtons le long de la baie pour y faire quelques caches.
En l'absence du panneau sur place, nous observons bien les lieux puis nous cherchons plus d'informations sur internet.
Nous en profitons pour admirer le paysage, l'embouchure de cette rivière et les colonies d'oiseaux.

Les réponses sont envoyées à l'owner, merci pour la découverte.

It was quite a pleasant day to be here. As the info board is missing we have done our best with the answers.

There is no board on GZ.

On our travel through New-Zealand we visited some really nice places.

Thanks to all Owner to show us all this places.


Greetings from Cologne /Germany

Gitschel

We loved this earthcache because we wouldn't have stopped or even known about this untouristy but fascinating spot otherwise. A very scenic location with the long beach of white shells and a great cache description of the formation of the area. TFTEC TheWonderStuff.

A very interesting spot. As others have noted, the sign is no longer there, but we did take the photo and searched for similar information elsewhere, which we have sent. Thanks for marking another interesting bit of nature's work.

lovely spot

found great spot

Why - Earth cache day - Took the photo, sign no more but visited the Miranda Shorebird Centre where we found some very informative displays and friendly enthusiasts who gave us lots of information probably more than the sign did. Will worth a visit.