The Bay of Islands consists of 144 separate island masses.  These islands range from a few meters wide to some as large as 500 acres.

Summer is just getting started and there was an influx of travelers and tourists. During the peak of the season the bay will be filled with hundreds of boats.

We stayed in the small city of Pahia for 4 nights and visited the neighboring towns of Russell and Kerikeri. Fortunate to have had absolutely perfect weather.

It was also suggested that we take a cruise out into the bay to get a better appreciation for the islands. We did a 22 hour over night cruise that explored several of the larger islands in the area.

Several activities were included on the cruise. We did night sea kayaking with the phosphorescence, which is a bioluminescent plankton that glows a mysterious green when disturbed in the water. Unfortunately it’s nearly impossible to photograph.

Also tried my luck at snorkeling which went well despite my swimming abilities. There were tons of animal life that was easy to spot in the crystal waters, though it was quite chilly.

Did some fishing too but had no luck. The cruise a few days before caught a 4 foot hammerhead shark. The waters are filled with thousands of sharks but they are all harmless breeds.