Baylys Beach is on the west coast of New Zealand, straight out from Dargaville. It’s a pretty, hilly seaside village that caters to holiday-makers and is very quiet at this time of year. We found the locals friendly and the surf wild. However, as with Mahuta Gap further south, the main attraction for us is the large sandstone hills that front the beach, providing a rugged playground for children and parents alike!

On Wednesday, we joined our friends at the beach where the kids could run around together. Katrina brought along home-made kites that the kids were flying to commemorate the death of James’ younger brother Charlie three years ago. It was a fun and special way to mark the day in this young boy’s mind.

Yesterday was a poignant day for James, and Katrina made a special effort to mark the occasion of his brother's death.

We made easy-peasy kites from string tied to the handles of garbage bags. Kept on a short leash, they work really well in the brisk sea air.

Delaney loves to play at the beach.

A new, fun activity for Dell — removing her boots and filling them with wet sand.

This great sandhill is a terrific playground for the children.

It wasn't long before our girls were up the mountain-side.

The kids were well-entertained by climbing up and down.

While tied to the kites, our kids were easy to spot.

We spent the night parked on the roadside close to the beach and drove back down onto the sand the next morning where David took the girls up the sandhills again for more adventures at the top.

A little creek crosses over the beach and empties into the ocean, providing another fun diversion for kids at Baylys Beach.

Gaining access to the beach is easy via the hard-packed sandy track that leads from the main road. I've seen cars drive *in* the creek that runs alongside the road in order to clean their undercarriage of any salty residue.

It won't be long before Delaney will be fast enough to keep up with her three older sisters!

David loves to explore more difficult terrain with our girls — and they are certainly eager for all adventures!

At the top, the girls found a little cave carved out of the sandstone into which they could all fit.

From the top of the sand-mountain you can see our horse-truck parked on the beach, safely out of the way of the waves.

At the end of the day, the girls were worn out and quite dirty from the sand, so we sought hot showers from the camping ground at the top of the hill. The manager expressed surprise that we only wanted hot showers (and not accommodation) but let us pay for the showers only — at $3 each we think it was a bargain!

Baylys Beach has a nice vibe. The locals are friendly — there’s a cheerful pub that was still ticking along nicely, even in the middle of the week in the off-season. When we’re next back in this area, I know we’ll be making this a stop on our itinerary.