By candlelight in Cable Bay

Karikari Estate offers spectacular views over the sweep of Northland's Doubtless Bay.

For me, there are two ideal kinds of long weekend away. The first requires endless tropical warmth and a beach within waddling distance of the deck chair and buffet.

The other is ... Well, it's what we got when we went to the Golden Sands Beachfront Apartments at Cable Bay in Northland, one of those many bays which make up the broad arc of the greater Doubtless Bay.

Rain which keeps you indoors is the perfect excuse to curl up with that book, but the weekend we went to the Winterless North, creeks swelled to rivers, cows huddled in paddocks, mist came down from the hills to the edge of the road, and the wipers were constantly on high speed. Ducks were smiling.

As we passed through Kaeo, where a couple from Auckland bought a Lotto ticket with a street value of $18 million, I fancied they were enjoying the tropical version of my ideal weekend as we aquaplaned through torrential rain.

We pulled up outside the Golden Sands - enormous waves thundering just beyond the wind-whipped palm - and Debbie handed me the key, assuring us the view across the otherwise invisible Doubtless Bay was usually spectacular.

I consoled myself with the thought that while we wouldn't be digging for tuatua at low tide, going windsurfing, fishing with Pisces Charters, sailing with Danny and Yvonne of Teddy Bear Charters, or indeed doing any of the possible activities previously supplied by Rosemary Archibald, owner of Golden Sands, that at least plenty of reading would get done.

The Golden Sands apartments - two-bedroom self-contained units with large sun-trap patios - are right on the beach and discreetly tucked in a corner of Cable Bay. Through the ranchsliders on a clear day, as we would discover, there is nothing to see but picture perfect sea and sky.

But on this day of permanent twilight with gun-metal grey sea and sky there was no good reason to venture beyond the couch. So we went to a winery.

I called ahead to Karikari Estate, part of the 1214ha Carrington resort owned by American millionaire Paul Kelly, with the idea of lunch and a glass or two to fill the wet'n'windy hours. The phone was answered by Mark Rose, formerly a co-owner of Cheers on Auckland's Wyndham St, once a restaurant-cum-bar across the road from the Herald. It had been my second home for far too many years.

Mark was now general manager at Carrington and invited us over for a tour of the property which was, apparently, directly opposite us across Doubtless Bay.

Carrington is not only a beautiful piece of headland but, unlike so many other properties snapped up by offshore money, isn't being overdeveloped. Sure, there is a world class 18-hole golf course, and yes there is a skeet and trap shooting area, plus two grass tennis courts, mountain bike trails and all the usual healthy (and spa options) you'd expect in a top-end retreat.

But elsewhere, gorse has been cleared and native trees replanted, scrub turned into grazing land for the Black Angus stud farm, and 364ha of former wetland near the deserted coast is being returned to its original state to attract back native birds and assure the survival of the endangered New Zealand dotterel.

An eco-friendly estate with lodges and villas, Carrington also proves a bumpy adventure as we haul around rugged slushy tracks in a four-wheel drive.

Later, over a platter of locally produced meats and cheeses, and glasses of Karikari's multiple award winning 2004 merlot, malbec and cab-sav blend in the winery's tasting room, Mark explains his plans: open out the frontage to take advantage of the sea view, add more rows to the country's northernmost vineyard, expand the entertainment area inside the wine cellar so people can dine and have weddings among oak barrels imported from France ...

Then the lights go out. The rain has stopped, but so has the power.

We continue our conversation by candlelight then say our goodbyes and drive back through the gloomy dusk as green foam blows across the coastal road and 2m-high waves form well offshore.

It is dark and bleak at 6pm and back in our apartment there is nothing to do - no lights, no television, no way to use the thoughtfully provided stereo - so we go to bed. This weekend of relaxation is working out better than I had thought.

A few hours later we dress by the torchlight from our cellphones. We're hungry but of course, other than books and a change of clothes, have brought nothing with us on our getaway weekend. Tonight we'd planned to go to the Waterfront Cafe in nearby Mangonui, but they don't have power either.

Debbie arrives like an angel bearing candles, a torch, a pot of hot homemade vegetable soup, a loaf of bread, and butter.

We wolf down the soup and play charades by candlelight.

This is fun, but it's late. About 9pm. In Auckland we'd be going out about now but around here there is nowhere - nowhere illuminated - to go. We go back to bed.

Two hours later we are abruptly awoken when the lights come on.

Dawn. A kingfisher on a log, tui in the flax, two surfers riding smooth waves. Beautiful.

There is no rain, it is clear and welcoming, the view is extraordinary. It is still chilly, but I bob around in the surf until my limbs are numb.

There is nothing for it but a big breakfast at The Galley in Mangonui where the free-range eggs, locally made lamb and rosemary sausages, and excellent coffee set us up for a walk around the town.

Mangonui is, like most mid-sized New Zealand towns, rediscovering its history for fun and profit. The tourist office provides brochures by the dozen, but we choose the one about the heritage trail and amble around admiring old kauri buildings, former halls and villas, onetime cottages and schools, and the old wharf store.

It is fascinating, not the least the decor in the office of the Esquire Motel, which betrays someone with an unhealthy Elvis obsession.

In the late afternoon we take photographs of bobbing boats and wading birds, then go to the famous Swamp Palace cinema in the Taipa Hall. We aren't really interested in March of the Penguins, but the eccentric Swamp Palace - locals $10 and Aucklanders $15, a parochial logic which presumes all Aucklanders are property developers - is an experience.

The old riverside hall is enveloped by the warm odour of cattle dung and has a few dozen seats in the mezzanine, an amusingly thin sound system (you don't come here for surround-sound blockbusters), and a large screen hanging in the middle.

Kids in the audience love it, adults remember the time that ...

That night we have our overdue dinner at the Waterfront Cafe where chef Paul conjures up everything from very acceptable Vietnamese prawn salad to bluenose fillets, and pork loin with red cabbage.

Back at the Golden Sands we sit on the patio wrapped in blankets and gaze into the chilly black night at a thousand pinpoints of starlight. The world is utterly silent.

On our final morning in Doubtless Bay, and before we head to the Seabreeze Bakery in Taipa for delicious pecan pies which Rosemary has recommended (she is spot on), we are wandering through Mangonui again.

A guy I once knew bails me up. He looks eerily healthy and says he moved up here from Auckland and is, just lovin' it, mate.

"You come up to buy a Lotto ticket, have you?" he laughs, in reference to the big win at Kaeo.

In fact we have bought a Lotto ticket - and promised ourselves if we have a win we'll happily come back to picturesque Cable Bay and enjoy the view from the Golden Sands deck. When the power is on and the sun is shining, of course.

CHECKLIST

Places of interest
Karikari Estate Vineyard and Winery, Matai Bay, Karikari Peninsula.

The Swamp Palace, Taipa. Seven kilometres down the estuary road. Ph (09) 408 7040

Matthews Vintage Collection. Vintage tractors, domestic memorabilia, moa bones, kauri gum. SH10, Aurere. Ph (09) 406 0203.

Mangonui Fish Shop. World famous fish'n'chips and dining over the water. Ph (09) 406 0478.

* Graham Reid stayed at Cable Bay courtesy of the Golden Sands Beachfront Apartments.