Have a look at an NZ eco-BBQ...and an amusing sign from the Mt John Observatory Cafe!
Sunday 28 February 2010
I lift my eyes to the hills..
The Mt Cook experience is very difficult to top and after a wild night in our little tent, with the wind blowing a gale, I woke up thinking about “Night on a bare mountain”, then went out to tighten up guy lines and to ensure all was in order. The North wind doth blow.. which in NZ means the wind is warm not cold but we still had to hold the tent pegs in with large rocks!
We packed up at day break before breakfast and got on the road to Lake Wanaka by 9am. The scenery is still spectacular, but...... it really is difficult to stop your senses going into overload mode and becoming complacent and switching off to what is all around. There was a quote from Sir Edmund Hillary that we saw yesterday which really struck a chord with us both “It is an act of worship just to sit and look at a high mountain”. We’ve been doing a lot of that over the last few days and although the pictures never do the scenery justice, here are a few sights and wonders from around Mt Cook. For the non- geographers among you, the icy one is crevasses on a hanging glacier on Mt Sefton – height approx 10,000’. We’ll probably have to do 2 entries to get them all in, but hopefully it’ll be worth it.
We were brought back to earth with a bump on the news of the Chilean Earthquake which has devastated so many families lives and so soon after the Haiti earthquake. The tsunami warning for NZ’s east coast predicted a 1 metre high pressure wave on top of normal swell and we think about low lying South Pacific islands such as those in the Cook Islands group where we have stayed close to the beach.
We must strive harder to see all around us and not become blinded to the normal everyday things in this fragile world.
To cheer you up therefore and to remind us of the high points of our trip we have included some more pictures covering recent events.
We packed up at day break before breakfast and got on the road to Lake Wanaka by 9am. The scenery is still spectacular, but...... it really is difficult to stop your senses going into overload mode and becoming complacent and switching off to what is all around. There was a quote from Sir Edmund Hillary that we saw yesterday which really struck a chord with us both “It is an act of worship just to sit and look at a high mountain”. We’ve been doing a lot of that over the last few days and although the pictures never do the scenery justice, here are a few sights and wonders from around Mt Cook. For the non- geographers among you, the icy one is crevasses on a hanging glacier on Mt Sefton – height approx 10,000’. We’ll probably have to do 2 entries to get them all in, but hopefully it’ll be worth it.
We were brought back to earth with a bump on the news of the Chilean Earthquake which has devastated so many families lives and so soon after the Haiti earthquake. The tsunami warning for NZ’s east coast predicted a 1 metre high pressure wave on top of normal swell and we think about low lying South Pacific islands such as those in the Cook Islands group where we have stayed close to the beach.
We must strive harder to see all around us and not become blinded to the normal everyday things in this fragile world.
To cheer you up therefore and to remind us of the high points of our trip we have included some more pictures covering recent events.
Saturday 27 February 2010
River deep, mountain high...
I’ve decided I have a very devious husband!
Ok, I should have known that anyway, and to a large extent I do. However, the extent of his previous deviousness has been exceeded 10 fold this holiday. Let me explain. When we were planning the trip, we decided that Ron needed a nice new digital camera to do the scenery justice. No problem, that was his birthday present for Jan 09. Along with the camera came a good case, as it would have a very long way to travel. I suggested getting a rucksack type camera bag, where the camera and lenses are in the bottom, the top compartment being available for other things. “Oh no”, says Ron, “I only need the small case, just for the lenses and camera itself”. So dutifully I get him the case he has chosen.
Why is this devious? Well, when we go out for the day, guess who’s got the back pack with her camera, our lunch, 2 water bottles, sunscreen, bug spray, hats , sunglasses and sometimes the laptop as well? And guess who’s only carrying his camera? You have it in one! Hmmm, I think Father Christmas might have to do something about that!!
Anyway, back to the rivers and mountains! Same mountain as yesterday, but a lot closer as we were in Mt Cook Village today. Rivers? Rivers of ice! I’d really wanted to see glaciers –we had planned to get to the west coast and see either Fox or Franz Joseph – but the driving to get there would be ridiculous if we are to fit in everything else we want to do. So we decided to ‘do’ the Tasman glacier instead, by boat.
It was another first for both of us as we saw icebergs – loads of them. They were enormous and, being fresh water, only 10% is above the waterline! They keep breaking off the face of the lowest part of the glacier, and float off into the glacial lake where they very gradually melt away. The ice in the glacier is the deepest turquoise blue you can imagine – because the snow at the top of the glacier gets so compressed that there is no air in it at all and the ice becomes very dense indeed – if you put a piece of iceberg ice in your whiskey, it would take 10 times as long to melt as ordinary ice – according to the guide, it’s a good excuse to keep topping up the whiskey!
Philias was getting restless again – waiting for all these silly people to put on life jackets, so he jumped into the boat and picked his seat – unfortunately it was the one meant for the driver! When we told him he couldn’t sit there, he decided he’d try driving instead – bears!
We were able to get close enough to touch the icebergs – their crystal structure changes once the compacted ice is exposed to air, and the most beautiful patterns form in them. They also become very brittle, so you can easily break off pieces of the ice – as it’s so pure, it’s also safe to drink. Imagine drinking 300 year old snow – that’s what we did this morning. Before anyone asks, it was NOT yellow snow!
After lunch we decided to explore the Sir Edmund Hillary Alpine exhibition. As M’s always been fascinated by mountains (Everest in particular – she must have read “The Ascent of Everest about 5 times”!) so this was really rather a “must”. Sir Edmund is a real hero to New Zealanders and the Nepalese people, not surprisingly; the exhibition was really good and informative. Part of it was as you would expect a museum to be, part very different – a Planetarium showing 3 different presentations and a 3D cinema showing highlights of the Mt Cook Mountains.
So, off again tomorrow – need to be really as there’s “not a lot” here and the foods getting very low. (I’d be very worried if the food was getting very high) ok, thee and me both, but you know what I mean...or do you want to have plain pasta for tea tomorrow?
Off to Wanaka and another beautiful lake on our way to Te Anau, where we need to be by Tuesday evening..we have a special boat to catch on Wednesday for a 2 day cruise on Doubtful Sound.
Silence is golden, but my eyes still see....
Today’s POETS day...Push off early, tomorrows Saturday.
Firstly, a change of plan for our camp site from yesterdays blog. Instead of our original itinerary (yes we do have one; its a bit rough but flexibility maintains the excitement, or puts M’s blood pressure up depending on how she is feeling!), we are at a campsite 5 km from Mt Cook Village and the famous Hermitage hotel, and yet we haven’t seen a soul until 5 minutes ago.
The weather is again very hot with cloudless blue skies and there is so little wind that everything is quiet. There are no cicadas as we are over 2000ft above sea level and very much out of the rainforest area, being in the rain shadow of the Southern Alps. OK, I know its below the belt but I couldn’t help getting in the dig about the weather! Blame Gill and Malcolm. It was them who said “it never snows in Dorset!”
The lake in front of where we are sitting is pale blue with suspended, powdered rock. Those who remember Blue Water before it was a shopping centre or the lake at Holborough near Cuxton , in Kent will know the colour. These lakes derived their colour from suspended cement residues. The same thing really, but the lakes around here are not the making of man, but natures awesome work. Glacial erosion done over millions of years produced these beauties, and continue to do so.
We couldn’t have picked a better day to see Mt Cook, although the NZ $350 each opportunity to experience a landing on snow was a bit much when we can do it at home when slipping on your posterior whilst walking Simba. Seriously, a helicopter landing on snow on this mountain range is what I am talking about. Yes, the thrill of that high a mountain view is going to be special, but 700 dollars buys a lot of fuel to travel around with, and is hardly Eco-Tourism. My black carbon footprint is big enough already!
We passed through a town called Twizel – pronounced twy-zel to pick up essential supplies as everything owned by the Hermitage group who own practically everything in MT Cook Village, costs much more than in town. Sort of a captive market, and making the most out of the tourism trade, I suppose.
We noted the town petrol prices are now much higher as well. But we wouldn’t have missed the views which are stunning.
We have booked a walk and boat trip on a glacial lake tomorrow. We are expecting to see icebergs and the edge of the glacier. M really wanted to stand on a glacier, but we have reluctantly decided to give Franz Joseph Glacier and Fox Glacier (yes it really is called this and was used as the advert for a certain company’s mints) a miss as the drive up the west coast was too much out of our way. We will have to do it next time we come!
Regarding the advert, there aren’t any foxes in NZ, so the advertising men were trying to brainwash us yet again. But, could you imagine them being called Possum’s Glacier Mints. They wouldn’t have sold any as possums are regarded a vermin with a capital V!
Yesterday, we went to The Church of the Good Shepherd which has a plain set of windows behind the altar. The thing is this stone church has the most magnificent view over Lake Tekapo, and it can be seen by the congregation during the service. There are some pretty grand stained glass windows which attempt to tell of God’s glory but once again man made is definitely second best to this view. And, it changes with the time of day, and the weather. Maybe it doesn’t look too much during an evening service, in the winter.
This tiny church is very much on the tourist map as a succession of coaches pulled up to off load their cargo to get the obligatory photograph. The church only seats 40 people at the most and is shared by the Anglican, Presbyterian and Catholic churches in the area. We picked up a musical souvenir from the organist which we will run past John and the music group when we get home.
Well, I don’t know about you M, but I’m sure I heard the cups rattling. Maybe it’s time for a cup of tea. Philias says “I’m not fussed about tea, I want my dinner. That picnic yesterday seems a long time ago!”
Firstly, a change of plan for our camp site from yesterdays blog. Instead of our original itinerary (yes we do have one; its a bit rough but flexibility maintains the excitement, or puts M’s blood pressure up depending on how she is feeling!), we are at a campsite 5 km from Mt Cook Village and the famous Hermitage hotel, and yet we haven’t seen a soul until 5 minutes ago.
The weather is again very hot with cloudless blue skies and there is so little wind that everything is quiet. There are no cicadas as we are over 2000ft above sea level and very much out of the rainforest area, being in the rain shadow of the Southern Alps. OK, I know its below the belt but I couldn’t help getting in the dig about the weather! Blame Gill and Malcolm. It was them who said “it never snows in Dorset!”
The lake in front of where we are sitting is pale blue with suspended, powdered rock. Those who remember Blue Water before it was a shopping centre or the lake at Holborough near Cuxton , in Kent will know the colour. These lakes derived their colour from suspended cement residues. The same thing really, but the lakes around here are not the making of man, but natures awesome work. Glacial erosion done over millions of years produced these beauties, and continue to do so.
We couldn’t have picked a better day to see Mt Cook, although the NZ $350 each opportunity to experience a landing on snow was a bit much when we can do it at home when slipping on your posterior whilst walking Simba. Seriously, a helicopter landing on snow on this mountain range is what I am talking about. Yes, the thrill of that high a mountain view is going to be special, but 700 dollars buys a lot of fuel to travel around with, and is hardly Eco-Tourism. My black carbon footprint is big enough already!
We passed through a town called Twizel – pronounced twy-zel to pick up essential supplies as everything owned by the Hermitage group who own practically everything in MT Cook Village, costs much more than in town. Sort of a captive market, and making the most out of the tourism trade, I suppose.
We noted the town petrol prices are now much higher as well. But we wouldn’t have missed the views which are stunning.
We have booked a walk and boat trip on a glacial lake tomorrow. We are expecting to see icebergs and the edge of the glacier. M really wanted to stand on a glacier, but we have reluctantly decided to give Franz Joseph Glacier and Fox Glacier (yes it really is called this and was used as the advert for a certain company’s mints) a miss as the drive up the west coast was too much out of our way. We will have to do it next time we come!
Regarding the advert, there aren’t any foxes in NZ, so the advertising men were trying to brainwash us yet again. But, could you imagine them being called Possum’s Glacier Mints. They wouldn’t have sold any as possums are regarded a vermin with a capital V!
Yesterday, we went to The Church of the Good Shepherd which has a plain set of windows behind the altar. The thing is this stone church has the most magnificent view over Lake Tekapo, and it can be seen by the congregation during the service. There are some pretty grand stained glass windows which attempt to tell of God’s glory but once again man made is definitely second best to this view. And, it changes with the time of day, and the weather. Maybe it doesn’t look too much during an evening service, in the winter.
This tiny church is very much on the tourist map as a succession of coaches pulled up to off load their cargo to get the obligatory photograph. The church only seats 40 people at the most and is shared by the Anglican, Presbyterian and Catholic churches in the area. We picked up a musical souvenir from the organist which we will run past John and the music group when we get home.
Well, I don’t know about you M, but I’m sure I heard the cups rattling. Maybe it’s time for a cup of tea. Philias says “I’m not fussed about tea, I want my dinner. That picnic yesterday seems a long time ago!”
Wednesday 24 February 2010
Today’s the day the teddy bear had his picnic...
Among other things!
We’re in Mckenzie Country – not the clan, but named after a certain James Mckenzie, who was caught “in the company of” over 1000 rustled sheep! He had come by them with the aid of his collie, Friday. This is very much sheep country, with huge ranges up here as the land is not particularly good at grass growing, being so high up. They are run with sheep dogs (and quad bikes!) but until recently the sheep dog has been an essential tool. So much so that they have erected a monument in tribute to the collie and it’s amazing abilities with sheep.
So, Mt John...the Observatory of Canterbury Uni, a very nice cafe, and uninterrupted 360⁰ views of the most amazing mountains we’ve ever seen. I was privileged to see mountains in Switzerland and Austria as a teenager, and have walked (slogged!) my way up many a Scottish glen. But I have never seen anything as beautiful as this. Beauty in God’s creation doesn’t usually reduce me to tears, but this did. The grandeur, the sheer scale of these ranges left me utterly speechless (and that doesn’t happen very often!)
Philias was getting a bit fidgety. He was in just his sort of country but was stuck in the rucksack. He decided to revolt and wanted to be fully part of the action. First he demanded a leg stretch on Mt John to look at the interpretation board about the wildlife in the area, then he went stomping off to have his picnic following the peninsular circular walk so that he wouldn’t get lost or left behind. When we finally caught up with him he was just about to consume his, and our, food! Bears! Wot will you do with them?
We carried on eating and there he was.... gawn! Where did we find him? Like most small boys, half way up a tree. Bears are really good climbers as can be seen from the picture taken 710m above sea level.
We were today seriously in wow overload mode. Mt Cook cleared during the afternoon and the camera just had to come out again. Wot do you mean again! It’s never really been to bed since we got here! Was it 4100, or 4200 photos?
We saw the sad news that the fires are still raging in Dunedin area, and we think of all those volunteers that are trying to deal with it. Yes, that’s right, all the local fire services and ambulances are run by volunteers. St John Ambulance runs paramedic style ambulances everywhere, there being apparently no obvious state provision.
Today we met a Dutch couple of similar age to ourselves. This was their second visit to NZ, and this is the only place they have ever visited for a second time. Well, there’s a surprise, or not as the case may be!
I also met a young couple from Bromley, recently married, who were finishing their holiday after 3 weeks and going home tomorrow. They were really envious of our three months trip. They were cooking up all their food so that they didn’t have to throw any away. The red Thai curry smelt wonderful as I was cooking Cauliflower and broccoli cheese, with pesto, toasted pine nuts, hardboiled egg and couscous. I got a really strange look from a lady in the kitchen as I proceeded to make my own cheese sauce from scratch in a trangia pan.
We also met a family celebrating their son’s 30th birthday. They all had white t shirts with his picture on. And guess what? They came from Wisbech, a town we had visited last year on our East Anglian holiday. They were really surprised we knew of it, and even more about the fact that we had visited the Elwood Brewery. We are e-mailing them a picture I took as a joke!
So, tomorrow. We ‘re moving a short distance this time, a bit nearer Mt Cook. We have intended to stay a couple of nights at the Hermitage Hotel...but not at over £500 a night!!! We’re going to be camping about 50kms down the valley at Twizel and we’ll just drive up for the day.
Rocky Mountain High..
Ok it’s not Colorado, but we’ve ended up in high rocky mountains, about 1 ½ hours drive from Mt Cook.
We were thinking of using “ The hills are alight..with the sound of...” but this seemed rather inappropriate as, sadly, they are alight near Dunedin at the moment, and the Fire Fighters are having great difficulty containing the blaze with the dry weather and strong winds.
So, how did we get here? It was a day of “sorting things out”! First we needed to get to the airport to collect our car.. that was easily solved with a bus from almost outside our hotel that turned up within 2 mins of us getting to the bus stop! Result! Then we got the shuttle to the hire company, and there was our nice shiny Subarau Legacy waiting for us.
Next, collect the luggage from the hotel – easy as the depot for the car was half way back to the hotel! Slight technical hitch – the car is all loaded, lights on the dashboard come on, but the engine stubbornly refused to even turn over, let alone start. Hmmm – immobiliser? Maybe, so we phone the car hire company...no immobiliser, just you need to have your foot on the clutch to start the engine – presumably so that our American friends, being largely used to automatics, don’t start with the car in gear! Hey ho, all sorted .
Ok, into town to sort out misbehaving tent poles (there is a branch of the same store that we bought it from, and M still has the receipt - phew!) Not so easy, as they want to send the poles back while we wait three days for them to be returned. We explain patiently that we can’t wait three days – the tent is our accommodation. They seem to want to send them off regardless, when M comments that it’s a pity the shops here don’t operate the same way that they do under English law, where the shop itself is liable for faulty goods, and is required to provide a refund or replacement. At this point, the young man serving us goes off to talk to his manager..we get the impression that the shops here should work that way too as suddenly a replacement tent is offered!
The only drawback was, being the end of the season, they don’t have an exact replacement, so we now have a little more room, as we’re in a brand new 4 man version of little tent. It did cost us NZ$ 70 extra, but that’s far cheaper than even one night in a motel, and the extra space is good – we just hope we don’t get cold!
It’s now Thursday morning – we didn’t get cold – although the thermals did get used for the first time last night (well, we are over 2000’ up in the mountains!) . It’s a gloriously sunny morning and we sat there having our breakfast enjoying this wonderful view. we could be in a fancy motel...but I'm sure I'd ratherbe here, in the sun seeing all this - there's nothing like it. There is talk of coffee at the Mt St John Observatory – 300m higher than we are now – sounds cool to me.
Train Whistle Blowin...
Oh Yes.. the tentavan. Did anyone get close to the one we saw in Kaikora?
Tuesday 6:00am. Woken by the early morning alarm call and the mobile phone in unison. Get up and do what is necessary. A dash to see who can put the kettle on fastest. I lost! I couldn’t get the kettle over my head!
The day is dawning its early morn, the taxis waiting... its taking us to the station to travel what is said by some to be one of the greatest railway journeys in the world. The TranzAlpine train traverses the Southern Alps from Christchurch on the East Coast to Greymouth on the West Coast of the South Island.
We left for the train at 7am. The station is about 20 minutes drive away and for operational reasons we have to be there at least 30 minutes before departure. You are allocated your seat and the luggage, if you have any, is tagged and stored in a “guards van”. Once aboard, you find your seat and hope you have enough leg room. Generally you don’t as the train is always full and the seating is “economy class minus”. We were fortunate as we had front facing seats without the obstruction of a table as we have had previously!
A long blow of the whistle warns everyone to get aboard the 17 passenger carriages, an observation car, cafe car and the luggage van. This is being hauled by two diesel locos generating enough kWatts to power Greymouth with electricity. Our trip will take us across the Canterbury plains and to a height of over 2000ft at Arthur’s Pass. Here the train descends 300m at 1 in 30 gradient. This is through a special tunnel 8.5km long which has doors on so that the air can be purged of diesel fumes, and so that there is enough fresh air to keep the engines running, and the passengers alive!
The scenery was truly spectacular and the rock formations need to be seen to be believed. The ice river run offs so wide that you can only imagine the awesome force of the winter/spring snow melt and the colossal power of a river in flood carrying scree and boulders in the maelstrom of churning water.
Then we had lunch.
On the reverse journey it is amazing how different the views when travelling in the opposite direction. Margery saw much more as she was awake on the return journey. I got plastered in grimy diesel smuts from spending the whole journey (except the tunnel when the observation car is closed) standing in the” fully air conditioned” observation car. It took one paper hanky, two washes with soap and water and a motel face towel to remove the grime. I get less dirty when Andy and I take the traction engine out!
One fella in our carriage (G) got off the train at Arthur’s Pass along with half the passengers, it seemed. He decided to go to the engine end to take photos. When the one minute warning whistle was sounded he was at the wrong end of the train. He did get on but couldn’t get back to his seat as there is no corridor through the observation car.
His wife didn’t know what had happened to him! Was he still on the station? (There is only one train a day in each direction!) When he did eventually get back to his wife, after she send out a distress message to the staff, and the train had stopped at Moana to let passengers off, he was escorted back to his seat to much ribaldry from fellow passengers and the train staff! At least I knew where my husband was!! Apparently people do regularly get left at stations along the route there are several stops for passengers, but these are necessarily brief. Over enthusiastic photographers, people using the station toilets or just train buffs who get off when they shouldn’t pay the price and end up looking for a hotel room for the night after they see the train disappear!
The thrills and spills don’t end there! The platform at all the stations is far too short for the train. So alighting can be a somewhat interesting challenge. Fortunately most of the carriages have a set of steps going down to the track. The challenge arises if you happen to be in one of the ones without said steps! We were always, thank goodness, in one with them! This carry on would never happen in England, of course, they just shuffle the train along to get you onto the platform instead!
At the end of a long day, M said, “Thank goodness for that, no more trains” ...unfortunately Ron had already picked up a leaflet for the next one – a gorge railway near Dunedin!!
Sunday 21 February 2010
So bye bye Miss American Pie...
Drove..us mad for the last two days! An explanation of the blog title..For the last two days, all the cabins on the site have been taken by a large group of American Dancers (our age +) who were on a combined holiday dance tour complete with large coach. They also had a catering crew who were determined to commandeer the entire communal kitchen – every fridge, freezer, sink, cooker and flat surface from 6am onwards! The volume of conversation was also a total noise pollution anywhere near the kitchen or pool! The pool here shuts at 8.30 – not unreasonable, but they wanted it open an extra hour, “as they’d rented so many cabins”. Also Americans supposedly having in common, the English language, there should have been no excuse for them ignoring the clear signs saying no eating, drinking in the pool area. Being the worst sort of Americans, they ignored the lot, with glass beer bottles by the spa and Irish Cream disguised in a milk shake carton.
Ugh! We’re just so glad we decided to eat out, and didn’t have to battle for kitchen space. We felt really sorry for the remaining campers who were having to do so as the site was full of families and people like us. But they’ve gone – and they’re on their way home, thank goodness – so we shouldn’t bump into them again.
Enough of the moans – I’m very happy as I can now see again..having just had my hair cut (Ron thought I was going to the sheep shearers) for the first time since late December! Pot luck from the 7 hairdressers in Kaikoura – rather too many for the 1500 population in my opinion! But it worked well, and I don’t look like a shorn sheep! Phew! We’ve just had a lazy lunch at the campsite having packed up as required by 10 and stored our rucksacks in the office until we go for the train at 3ish.
Your challenge for today (Ron’s idea NOT mine!) is to design a tentavan...complete with solar power – we’ll show you one tomorrow, as we have limited time left to load this blog, so the pics will have to wait!!
Ugh! We’re just so glad we decided to eat out, and didn’t have to battle for kitchen space. We felt really sorry for the remaining campers who were having to do so as the site was full of families and people like us. But they’ve gone – and they’re on their way home, thank goodness – so we shouldn’t bump into them again.
Enough of the moans – I’m very happy as I can now see again..having just had my hair cut (Ron thought I was going to the sheep shearers) for the first time since late December! Pot luck from the 7 hairdressers in Kaikoura – rather too many for the 1500 population in my opinion! But it worked well, and I don’t look like a shorn sheep! Phew! We’ve just had a lazy lunch at the campsite having packed up as required by 10 and stored our rucksacks in the office until we go for the train at 3ish.
Your challenge for today (Ron’s idea NOT mine!) is to design a tentavan...complete with solar power – we’ll show you one tomorrow, as we have limited time left to load this blog, so the pics will have to wait!!
Saturday 20 February 2010
Sounding, sounding, sounding away...
Kaikoura, apart from being known for crayfish, is world renowned for its sperm whales.
We knew little of the crayfish (bonus for us) but did know about the whales, which was our main reason for coming here. It still didn’t make it any easier to get out of bed at 6.15 though! This is supposed to be a holiday! However, the thought of seeing our cetacean friends “up close and personal” was compensation enough for leaving our nice warm beds! Ron also took the opportunity of getting some lovely early morning shots of the mountain range – bathed in pink dawn light – hope they look good on the to you – they look great on the tiny lappie!
Margery’s well known lack of sea legs is by now well known..I thought things were improving, until I saw and heard the “sea sickness” warnings on the departure board, and from the staff at the briefing. When I saw the size of the boat (much smaller than anything else we’ve been on) I was much more apprehensive. We knew the boats had to go at least 6 miles out to get to the Kaikoura Canyon – undersea trench over 3000 feet deep, as this is where the whales are ( they regularly dive to 1000m for their food). Then came the call for anyone with neck injuries, who was pregnant, or who suffered with sea sickness to board first and sit at the stern, as this was more stable. Oooo er...what have I let myself in for? Just to put your mind at rest, the boat goes so fast, they insist on everyone being seated inside during fast passages, and that children wear life jackets at all times....Errr? Help!
It was very bouncy – and I just managed to hold onto my very frugal breakfast! There were others who not so fortunate. (One of the recommendation for sea sickness suffers is to eat a hearty breakfast, a good fry up for example! I’ve never found that works! Or to keep your eye on the horizon or the mainland...a little difficult when the captain, with the boat already slewing in two dimensions, decides to do a speedy pirouette off in the opposite direction after yet another whale! My insides have calmed down, but my head’s still spinning! Ron, of course, is pretty well bomb proof in a boat and feels fine! Grrrrr! Not fair!
A bit about whales that you can Google of course, but here it is anyway! The main whale generally found here is the male sperm whale, which grows to 18meters in length – the ladies apparently prefer warmer water, so stay up in the tropics. It was therefore inappropriate for the cry “There SHE blows!” to be heard – we didn’t want to upset the fellas feelings!
These specific whales main diet is giant squid, bottom feeding sharks, and other large fish. They are known by their dorsal fin and tail markings, and they stay submerged the longest of any whale species ( up to 2hr 35mins), but normally more like 30 -45 minutes. The sonar sensing is done by 2.5 tonne of spermaceti, inside the whales head and its brain weighs 10 pounds (about the size of a basketball).
This species is now the greatest in number being around 4000 in the world. We saw 5 today. The other species each number 400 maximum!
It’s hard to describe the feeling you get, sitting alongside such enormous creatures. It’s almost like looking at the monsters from “Jurassic Park”, they are so huge – and yet only 2/3 of their length is above the water at any one time – the tail section being submerged until they dive. Just a very small amount of their draught is above the water – we estimate about 1/10. Even their eyes are underwater all the time. Their sonar sensing, however, is so sensitive, that we could only approach from the rear or side, or they would dive away from us.
Unlike the dolphin, who gave no warning of dive or jump, the whales gave a very clear indication that they were about to dive. On the surface, they look a bit like a very large floating log in shape. As they prepare to dive, they arch their bodies, driving their enormous heads down into the water, and bringing their tail section up, to give the very characteristic picture that we were, fortunately, able to catch! And of course, being so very large, it almost seems to happen in slow motion. We felt very privileged to see 5 of these marvellous creatures in 2 ½ hours...M was very glad it was only 2 ½ hours, not the whole day we spent with the dolphin!
We have retired to the inside because it is too hot to sit in the sun, and far too bright to see the photos on the cameras and computer....so feel especially lucky that you have got a blog today as the pool and spas are beckoning!
Think I’ll have NZ lamb for dinner today. It will be the first lot I’ve tried living on pulses and lentil and lettuce and.....
We knew little of the crayfish (bonus for us) but did know about the whales, which was our main reason for coming here. It still didn’t make it any easier to get out of bed at 6.15 though! This is supposed to be a holiday! However, the thought of seeing our cetacean friends “up close and personal” was compensation enough for leaving our nice warm beds! Ron also took the opportunity of getting some lovely early morning shots of the mountain range – bathed in pink dawn light – hope they look good on the to you – they look great on the tiny lappie!
Margery’s well known lack of sea legs is by now well known..I thought things were improving, until I saw and heard the “sea sickness” warnings on the departure board, and from the staff at the briefing. When I saw the size of the boat (much smaller than anything else we’ve been on) I was much more apprehensive. We knew the boats had to go at least 6 miles out to get to the Kaikoura Canyon – undersea trench over 3000 feet deep, as this is where the whales are ( they regularly dive to 1000m for their food). Then came the call for anyone with neck injuries, who was pregnant, or who suffered with sea sickness to board first and sit at the stern, as this was more stable. Oooo er...what have I let myself in for? Just to put your mind at rest, the boat goes so fast, they insist on everyone being seated inside during fast passages, and that children wear life jackets at all times....Errr? Help!
It was very bouncy – and I just managed to hold onto my very frugal breakfast! There were others who not so fortunate. (One of the recommendation for sea sickness suffers is to eat a hearty breakfast, a good fry up for example! I’ve never found that works! Or to keep your eye on the horizon or the mainland...a little difficult when the captain, with the boat already slewing in two dimensions, decides to do a speedy pirouette off in the opposite direction after yet another whale! My insides have calmed down, but my head’s still spinning! Ron, of course, is pretty well bomb proof in a boat and feels fine! Grrrrr! Not fair!
A bit about whales that you can Google of course, but here it is anyway! The main whale generally found here is the male sperm whale, which grows to 18meters in length – the ladies apparently prefer warmer water, so stay up in the tropics. It was therefore inappropriate for the cry “There SHE blows!” to be heard – we didn’t want to upset the fellas feelings!
These specific whales main diet is giant squid, bottom feeding sharks, and other large fish. They are known by their dorsal fin and tail markings, and they stay submerged the longest of any whale species ( up to 2hr 35mins), but normally more like 30 -45 minutes. The sonar sensing is done by 2.5 tonne of spermaceti, inside the whales head and its brain weighs 10 pounds (about the size of a basketball).
This species is now the greatest in number being around 4000 in the world. We saw 5 today. The other species each number 400 maximum!
It’s hard to describe the feeling you get, sitting alongside such enormous creatures. It’s almost like looking at the monsters from “Jurassic Park”, they are so huge – and yet only 2/3 of their length is above the water at any one time – the tail section being submerged until they dive. Just a very small amount of their draught is above the water – we estimate about 1/10. Even their eyes are underwater all the time. Their sonar sensing, however, is so sensitive, that we could only approach from the rear or side, or they would dive away from us.
Unlike the dolphin, who gave no warning of dive or jump, the whales gave a very clear indication that they were about to dive. On the surface, they look a bit like a very large floating log in shape. As they prepare to dive, they arch their bodies, driving their enormous heads down into the water, and bringing their tail section up, to give the very characteristic picture that we were, fortunately, able to catch! And of course, being so very large, it almost seems to happen in slow motion. We felt very privileged to see 5 of these marvellous creatures in 2 ½ hours...M was very glad it was only 2 ½ hours, not the whole day we spent with the dolphin!
We have retired to the inside because it is too hot to sit in the sun, and far too bright to see the photos on the cameras and computer....so feel especially lucky that you have got a blog today as the pool and spas are beckoning!
Think I’ll have NZ lamb for dinner today. It will be the first lot I’ve tried living on pulses and lentil and lettuce and.....
Oooo YOU GIT!! You have been, quite happily eating veggie with me while we’ve been camping - OUT OF CHOICE! And it’s far from lentils and pulses....prawns, marlin, mussels..etc! Cheeky!
Last night’s Indian meal was very veggie and very nice dear!
Yep, but you forgot the prawns malabari and fish marsala!
Friday 19 February 2010
The Boys are back in town, boys are back in town...
I can’t believe we saw dolphins this morning from the train; and only 200 metres off shore.
We arrived in Kaikoura to find the high street full of the most amazing Harley Davidsons – including this gorgeous purple one (ridden by a lady of about my age – that’s taste!) She’s just taken off – Jen, you think Scooby’s loud!!!! So we’re sat on the beach front having our breakfast (well, the alarm did go off at 5.30 this morning – on purpose, as the free shuttle to catch the train was arriving just after 6!) The Harleys are on their way to a big convention in Christchurch this w/e – which explains why we found it hard to get a hotel room for yesterday. We ended up in a backpackers lodge in the very centre of the city, Cathedral Square. The accommodation was surprisingly good, and there was another of our “Guardian angels” who agreed to store out two big cases for the w/e! That made our trip this morning a great deal easier than it might otherwise have been.
We had a “chill out” day today – all this travelling takes it out of you! So, apart from a wander round the town to find some cheap shorts and a tshirt for me to swim in (I managed to get my swim suit out of my case and somehow put it back again rather than putting it in my rucksack!) we’ve just been lazing around the pool and the two spa pools. Hmm that’s the way to do it.
We found a really good restaurant for supper – having decided we weren’t bringing all the cooking stuff up here for three nights. So good in fact, that we’re going back again on Sunday evening! Only this time, Tricia and Jacques, the meal’s on you!! – our friends T and J were kind enough to give us some NZ$ for Christmas – we’re spending them on Sunday!
Kaikoura is Maori for Kai – food and Koura – Crayfish. So no prizes for guessing what we had for supper! We shared half a crayfish – so not the tiny ones you have in the freezers at home either!
NZ cuisine generally leaves a little to be desired. They are very good at cakes, pastries and sweet things, and they have amazingly good fresh ingredients – meat, fish ,seafood, vege. But rather like Scotland 15 years ago, pretty well everything is fried and often in breadcrumbs or batter! So you have to be a bit selective on your menu choices – we don’t help ourselves, both being such foodies and into healthy eating! Not that we’ve ever had anything badly cooked, it’s just the style of cooking that generally went out in the UK a while ago.
It was good to get the wet tent up and the glorious weather we had today got it dry very quickly. It was a good job we elected to find a site early as the site is full, possibly on the promise of a great weekend, weatherwise.
The quirky Whaleweigh Station next to the railway station was very busy today with people going whale watching. We shall be joining the crowd on Sunday, and we might even see an albatross. (No Monty Python jokes, please).
Now, you know when you are in the southern hemisphere as the moon starts high in the sky and then sets as night falls. True, or I’ve had too much to drink. It’s quite weird seeing it set in an anticlockwise direction. Kiakoura is also one of those places that everyone says you must visit to look at the night sky. Tonight the weather is so clear, the temperature has dropped as the wind blows down off the Kiakoura range (over 2500m high in places), and there is not a cloud in the sky. Should be good for mountain photos early tomorrow.
Thursday 18 February 2010
The run away train went over the hill, and she blew...
Well, not really a runaway, but a very good trip down to Christchurch. Longer blog later, but we're up at 5.30 :-( tomorrow to catch train to Kaikoura for the w/e. Back on Monday. Lappie is coming with us, and we'll blog if we can, but don't worry if we're out of touch for a few days.
Gone to see the whales!
Managed to leave big cases in Christchurch Wahoo! that makes life easier!
Gone to see the whales!
Managed to leave big cases in Christchurch Wahoo! that makes life easier!
Tuesday 16 February 2010
Bottle of wine, fruit of the vine, when you gonna let me get sober?
Today’s priority was to get the tent pole replaced, if possible. Nelson is one of the larger South island cities and so we had more chance getting a fix here than anywhere else other than Christchurch, but that is a days drive away. We went into the first shop the i-site recommended and got nowhere. Then we got a steer from some helpful guys in the next shop which eventually ended up with us getting a replacement pole. We then needed to cut the pole and refit the bungy so went into another shop where the guy said he would do it for us. So together we made up the new pole set. Two happy bunnies!! We now have a “spare” pole as the jury rig we did yesterday is holding up well. We will try and recoup some satisfaction when we get to a “Bivoac” store in CC.
That done we were at a point where we were thinking about lunch. So wineries map in hand we set off to do kill two birds with one stone wine tasting and lunch. Unfortunately, the ones we had chosen were closed. So Plan B; visit the oldest pub in NZ which has had a continuous licence since 1850. Bonus, they had microbrewery beers to sample at an attractive price for 7oz glasses, and decent country pub bar food. M’s Ploughmans had two large wedges of brie, olives, salad, pickles, gherkins, tomato and fresh farmhouse bread. I had nachos which were equally good. At $NZ12 each the pub was a very good choice.
We staggered out (full of food, not beer) and visited Seifield Winery where M sampled some very good white wines and brought one for tomorrow - a Savblanc. Much to our delight we discovered that 2 of their wines are available through M&S! So Claire, we won’t have to worry about shipping charges.
We then went to the centre of Nelson to the rather drab exterior of Christ Church Cathedral which inside had some stunning modern stained glass windows. They also had a copy of the Chartre labyrinth. What really caught our eye was a tribute stone to the plucky Londoners who did so much to raise the morale of Kiwis in Nelson despite the blitz in the early stages of WWll.
It was good to see a nice Scout and Guide display with the NZ version of the Promise, with the change of emphasis from “keep the Scout Law” to “live by the Scout Law”. I suspect this is much more what BP intended.
It’s interesting how many provincial museums there are. Something about the NZ realisation that unless the limited history is preserved for posterity then its own identity will be lost. Nelson is no exception and they had some very well exhibited objects, but the social history was a little disjointed in how it was presented. Nelson as a city is very attractive, with modern and older properties side by side, each with their special character adding to the enjoyment of the city. I’ve never had such an easy drive around Trafalgar Square!
No visit to Nelson would be complete without a visit to the geographic centre of NZ. You just have to do it especially since very close to this is where the first rugby match was played in NZ between two Nelson college teams. The sign said “NZ Centre – 50 mtrs”. What it didn’t say was that the start of the track was 50 metres away and that the trig point was on the summit of Botanic Hill 147metres high. Wow, what a view from the top, but the 3 repeater signs saying 15 minutes to centre were a bit disheartening.
Fresh tuna and Marlin steaks in hand (well in a bag actually) I had a date with some garlic, and olive oil, whilst M made a very passable couscous salad with fresh coleslaw. Gourmet night tonight. As I was the chauffeur today I’m sampling another RedHead (medium in body with a slight sweetness!) courtesy of the Duncan family.
Wednesday (tomorrow) we are on our way back to Picton and so hopefully we will get the blogs up to date as the current site has no internet access at all. We understand that all connections go via Hawaii, so that explains the bottleneck we sometimes experience on internet speed.
We’ve just found out that Starbucks has free internet access for patrons. Looks like it may be coffee and a sticky bun for elevenses tomorrow before Lunch in Havelock and a date with some green-lipped mussels!
That done we were at a point where we were thinking about lunch. So wineries map in hand we set off to do kill two birds with one stone wine tasting and lunch. Unfortunately, the ones we had chosen were closed. So Plan B; visit the oldest pub in NZ which has had a continuous licence since 1850. Bonus, they had microbrewery beers to sample at an attractive price for 7oz glasses, and decent country pub bar food. M’s Ploughmans had two large wedges of brie, olives, salad, pickles, gherkins, tomato and fresh farmhouse bread. I had nachos which were equally good. At $NZ12 each the pub was a very good choice.
We staggered out (full of food, not beer) and visited Seifield Winery where M sampled some very good white wines and brought one for tomorrow - a Savblanc. Much to our delight we discovered that 2 of their wines are available through M&S! So Claire, we won’t have to worry about shipping charges.
We then went to the centre of Nelson to the rather drab exterior of Christ Church Cathedral which inside had some stunning modern stained glass windows. They also had a copy of the Chartre labyrinth. What really caught our eye was a tribute stone to the plucky Londoners who did so much to raise the morale of Kiwis in Nelson despite the blitz in the early stages of WWll.
It was good to see a nice Scout and Guide display with the NZ version of the Promise, with the change of emphasis from “keep the Scout Law” to “live by the Scout Law”. I suspect this is much more what BP intended.
It’s interesting how many provincial museums there are. Something about the NZ realisation that unless the limited history is preserved for posterity then its own identity will be lost. Nelson is no exception and they had some very well exhibited objects, but the social history was a little disjointed in how it was presented. Nelson as a city is very attractive, with modern and older properties side by side, each with their special character adding to the enjoyment of the city. I’ve never had such an easy drive around Trafalgar Square!
No visit to Nelson would be complete without a visit to the geographic centre of NZ. You just have to do it especially since very close to this is where the first rugby match was played in NZ between two Nelson college teams. The sign said “NZ Centre – 50 mtrs”. What it didn’t say was that the start of the track was 50 metres away and that the trig point was on the summit of Botanic Hill 147metres high. Wow, what a view from the top, but the 3 repeater signs saying 15 minutes to centre were a bit disheartening.
Fresh tuna and Marlin steaks in hand (well in a bag actually) I had a date with some garlic, and olive oil, whilst M made a very passable couscous salad with fresh coleslaw. Gourmet night tonight. As I was the chauffeur today I’m sampling another RedHead (medium in body with a slight sweetness!) courtesy of the Duncan family.
Wednesday (tomorrow) we are on our way back to Picton and so hopefully we will get the blogs up to date as the current site has no internet access at all. We understand that all connections go via Hawaii, so that explains the bottleneck we sometimes experience on internet speed.
We’ve just found out that Starbucks has free internet access for patrons. Looks like it may be coffee and a sticky bun for elevenses tomorrow before Lunch in Havelock and a date with some green-lipped mussels!
Dm..dm..dm..dm.. another one bites the dust!
We thought we’d got away with only one casualty so far – M’s sunglasses after she fell asleep on the inter island ferry, leant on them and broke part of the frame –oops! But when we got back from Nelson this afternoon, our little tent, which should have had a nice rounded dome shape, was looking distinctly more angular than expected.
One of the flexi poles had decided not to flex, but to break instead. Now I can hear all the wry laughter from the Scout contingent..yes it does happen without the intervention of a careless, rowdy or even drunken Scout – or Guide, for that matter! But we were a bit annoyed as 21 nights use is not really what we had in mind.
Still, being the resourceful types we sat down and cried!! It was 6pm and as you will know by now NZ was closed. Another guardian angel in the form of the site owner came to our rescue and had a set of poles the correct diameter but the wrong length. He’d had them for a while and was about to throw them away after a recent clear out! Phew! Suffering withdrawal symptoms I decided to do my quartermaster bit and cobbled together a pole of the correct length and so far as I can see its holding up. Lord, why don’t you send me a....fully equipped workshop or at least a camping supply shop tomorrow? Don’t be so ungrateful – he gave you the poles, a broken mole wrench and a hacksaw; we had the tent peg and the mallet and before you could say flysheet, we had a fully functional tent again! And if we ask nicely, there may even be a camping shop tomorrow!
As you may have gathered, we’re now in Nelson for a couple of nights. We still have to go back to Picton on Wednesday ready to return the Nasty Nissan, and catch our train to Christchurch, but it seemed a good idea to explore a bit more of this area. It’s another wine area, but also near Havelock, the green lipped mussel capital of the world! Not surprising after what we saw yesterday, although I was a bit surprised to find out that in 2000 they shipped out 24,000 tonnes of them!!!! No wonder they weren’t worried about the few we “scrumped”!
For such an isolated part of the world it was surprising to discover that not only did Ernest Rutherford come from this area, but also William Pickering. Who were these people? Well, both were renowned scientists and were involved in significant sub-atomic physics and in space travel.
We went into Nelson intending to visit the “i site” (tourist info) but were waylaid by this sign saying “Brewery”!
It was actually the Foundation Park, a museum of sorts. Being only a very young country and being plagued by earthquakes, there are very few “old” buildings. What they’ve done in Foundation Park is to “rescue” or reconstruct replicas of this area’s important buildings. Some were important for who owned them, others because they were “of a type” – an apothecary’s, a cottage hospital, a dentist, a cobbler etc. These were fitted out and open for you to walk inside. It reminded us of Beamish or Amberley working museums.
This one had the added attraction of a restored railway and modern craftspeople including a potter from Allington! (Maidstone) who used to have a studio at Cobtree Museum near where we used to live! There was also a furniture maker, baker and a micro brewery which was still being run by the family who started it 6 generations ago. Needless to say, their wares had to be sampled! Ron had 5!!!! To be fair they were taster samples of each of the beers they made, but 5 sounds better!
We spent ages talking to a Swiss Cooper who had his workshop here. Once he realised Ron was very much into working wood, he stopped work and chatted happily about all sorts of different aspects of woodwork. Ron was a very happy bunny!
For those interested in fashion, we interrupted, inadvertently, a photo shoot of a girl dressed in 30’s art deco style costume with an aircraft theme. The dress was made from plastic upholstery fabrics so it looked like leather. Her handbag was in the shape of an aircraft nose cone and propeller. You can see the sort of thing if you look up “wearable art” on the net. We were inside the Bristol cargo plane at the time.
More on Nelson tomorrow, as I have a date with a red head to deal with. What he’s talking about is a bottle of Redhead beer from the Foundation Park Brewery!! Honestly Ron!! I suppose it could have been a Tall Blonde (another beer!)
One of the flexi poles had decided not to flex, but to break instead. Now I can hear all the wry laughter from the Scout contingent..yes it does happen without the intervention of a careless, rowdy or even drunken Scout – or Guide, for that matter! But we were a bit annoyed as 21 nights use is not really what we had in mind.
Still, being the resourceful types we sat down and cried!! It was 6pm and as you will know by now NZ was closed. Another guardian angel in the form of the site owner came to our rescue and had a set of poles the correct diameter but the wrong length. He’d had them for a while and was about to throw them away after a recent clear out! Phew! Suffering withdrawal symptoms I decided to do my quartermaster bit and cobbled together a pole of the correct length and so far as I can see its holding up. Lord, why don’t you send me a....fully equipped workshop or at least a camping supply shop tomorrow? Don’t be so ungrateful – he gave you the poles, a broken mole wrench and a hacksaw; we had the tent peg and the mallet and before you could say flysheet, we had a fully functional tent again! And if we ask nicely, there may even be a camping shop tomorrow!
As you may have gathered, we’re now in Nelson for a couple of nights. We still have to go back to Picton on Wednesday ready to return the Nasty Nissan, and catch our train to Christchurch, but it seemed a good idea to explore a bit more of this area. It’s another wine area, but also near Havelock, the green lipped mussel capital of the world! Not surprising after what we saw yesterday, although I was a bit surprised to find out that in 2000 they shipped out 24,000 tonnes of them!!!! No wonder they weren’t worried about the few we “scrumped”!
For such an isolated part of the world it was surprising to discover that not only did Ernest Rutherford come from this area, but also William Pickering. Who were these people? Well, both were renowned scientists and were involved in significant sub-atomic physics and in space travel.
We went into Nelson intending to visit the “i site” (tourist info) but were waylaid by this sign saying “Brewery”!
It was actually the Foundation Park, a museum of sorts. Being only a very young country and being plagued by earthquakes, there are very few “old” buildings. What they’ve done in Foundation Park is to “rescue” or reconstruct replicas of this area’s important buildings. Some were important for who owned them, others because they were “of a type” – an apothecary’s, a cottage hospital, a dentist, a cobbler etc. These were fitted out and open for you to walk inside. It reminded us of Beamish or Amberley working museums.
This one had the added attraction of a restored railway and modern craftspeople including a potter from Allington! (Maidstone) who used to have a studio at Cobtree Museum near where we used to live! There was also a furniture maker, baker and a micro brewery which was still being run by the family who started it 6 generations ago. Needless to say, their wares had to be sampled! Ron had 5!!!! To be fair they were taster samples of each of the beers they made, but 5 sounds better!
We spent ages talking to a Swiss Cooper who had his workshop here. Once he realised Ron was very much into working wood, he stopped work and chatted happily about all sorts of different aspects of woodwork. Ron was a very happy bunny!
For those interested in fashion, we interrupted, inadvertently, a photo shoot of a girl dressed in 30’s art deco style costume with an aircraft theme. The dress was made from plastic upholstery fabrics so it looked like leather. Her handbag was in the shape of an aircraft nose cone and propeller. You can see the sort of thing if you look up “wearable art” on the net. We were inside the Bristol cargo plane at the time.
More on Nelson tomorrow, as I have a date with a red head to deal with. What he’s talking about is a bottle of Redhead beer from the Foundation Park Brewery!! Honestly Ron!! I suppose it could have been a Tall Blonde (another beer!)
Sunday 14 February 2010
Didn’t we have a luverly time, the day we went to...
Portage!
Early start this morning as we had to be at the quayside in Picton by 7.45 So, alarm goes off at 6.30, we pile out of the tent into the car and drive across to the kitchen for breakfast! That’s not as lazy as it sounds, it just means that we’re a bit further away from the other campers as we open doors etc to get ready! We’ve found that it’s easiest to work the camping part of this trip as if we were backpacking – nothing comes out of the rucksack or case unless absolutely necessary – so far it’s worked like the proverbial dream! We were actually at the pier by 7.30, ready to meet our NZ guide, Richard, who was taking us and another couple out for the day.
We caught the mail boat across the sound, and then transferred to a Disco (sorry J & D, forgot to take a pic!) to cross the very narrow ridge between Queen Charlotte and Kenepuru sounds. The ridge might be very narrow at this point, but it was very steep – apparently the name “Portage” came from the fact that the Maori used to carry their waka across here from one sound to another – I don’t think I’d have liked to try it – carrying a solid tree trunk canoe up over a 300’ ridge! Richard was a little surprised that we knew what portage meant, until we explained that any section of river in the UK where you have to carry your canoe rather than paddle it is referred to as a “portage” – you can tell he wasn’t a Scout!
The other couple Anthony and Sarah were similarly aged to us and came from Windermere. This area could be the Lake District it is so similar and there is even a place called Skiddaw. Of course the water is sea water and not fresh but scenically very similar.
After a coffee before getting into spraydeck and buoyancy aid, we were off. Our first “target” was a mussel farm right across the sound and into another bay. Richard then proceeded to “scrump” about 24 very large green lipped mussels from the lines, leaning out of his kayak to do so. After the first handful, he passed them across to us on our paddle, so that they didn’t slide off his spraydeck, while he got some more. So now we’re “aiding and abetting”! To be serious, they obviously had an arrangement with the mussel farm and he was both very careful and restrained in what he took!
So, booty in the bag, so to speak, we crossed to the other side of the bay, to a tiny beach (it was high tide) where Richard produced “elevenses” – a beautiful home-made tray bake with loads of nuts and spices in it (yum! – trying for the recipe tomorrow!), tea and freshly cooked (scrumped) mussels! Oh boy, we’ve never tasted anything like them!
Elevenses consumed, we set off again to explore more of the sound. When we left Portage, it was almost flat calm. By now the wind had got up a bit, there were quite a few waves, and some interesting bouncing as we paddled through them. Unfortunately both Ron’s and my spraydecks were a little worn..result = soggy people from waist down! Thank heavens we weren’t at home, we’d have frozen!
Perhaps we should say that the sun was out and the temperature in the mid 20’s with a water temperature similar. Being so far from the open sea, the sounds, although very deep, get very warm.
Lunch, including a oil-cloth table cloth was produced from inside Richards kayak. Very little was left, it being of similar standard to elevenses.
We paddled back to another (low!) portage, which we used to circumvent a long paddle around a now quite windy point, and then back to Portage bay. A sting ray swam underneath us but we couldn’t see a huge amount as the water was greenish and slightly cloudy. Kenepuru is Maori for muddy waters and aptly named as some of the other places the visibility through the water has been at least 10’ (3 metres). Further searching for mussels produced giants the size of Ms hand, as well as oysters.
After all our exertions well, it was time to mosey on down to the bar of the Portage Resort for a swift half. Well, two pints to be honest. It did seem to slip down easily. Yours may have done, Ron - I had to make do with one, I was driving!
Phew, managed to get away with not mentioning St Valentine in the blog. Truth is I hadn’t got a card, but I also knew that neither had Margery. We mutually agreed that this trip would be more than enough; when we arrived at the start of the day on Portage beach there was a special valentine made from rocks on the water’s edge.
We are sitting in the Jolly Roger typing this blog having had a rather luxurious seafood platter for two, with, of all things, battered oysters!!!! Oh dear, what a waste!
Early start this morning as we had to be at the quayside in Picton by 7.45 So, alarm goes off at 6.30, we pile out of the tent into the car and drive across to the kitchen for breakfast! That’s not as lazy as it sounds, it just means that we’re a bit further away from the other campers as we open doors etc to get ready! We’ve found that it’s easiest to work the camping part of this trip as if we were backpacking – nothing comes out of the rucksack or case unless absolutely necessary – so far it’s worked like the proverbial dream! We were actually at the pier by 7.30, ready to meet our NZ guide, Richard, who was taking us and another couple out for the day.
We caught the mail boat across the sound, and then transferred to a Disco (sorry J & D, forgot to take a pic!) to cross the very narrow ridge between Queen Charlotte and Kenepuru sounds. The ridge might be very narrow at this point, but it was very steep – apparently the name “Portage” came from the fact that the Maori used to carry their waka across here from one sound to another – I don’t think I’d have liked to try it – carrying a solid tree trunk canoe up over a 300’ ridge! Richard was a little surprised that we knew what portage meant, until we explained that any section of river in the UK where you have to carry your canoe rather than paddle it is referred to as a “portage” – you can tell he wasn’t a Scout!
The other couple Anthony and Sarah were similarly aged to us and came from Windermere. This area could be the Lake District it is so similar and there is even a place called Skiddaw. Of course the water is sea water and not fresh but scenically very similar.
After a coffee before getting into spraydeck and buoyancy aid, we were off. Our first “target” was a mussel farm right across the sound and into another bay. Richard then proceeded to “scrump” about 24 very large green lipped mussels from the lines, leaning out of his kayak to do so. After the first handful, he passed them across to us on our paddle, so that they didn’t slide off his spraydeck, while he got some more. So now we’re “aiding and abetting”! To be serious, they obviously had an arrangement with the mussel farm and he was both very careful and restrained in what he took!
So, booty in the bag, so to speak, we crossed to the other side of the bay, to a tiny beach (it was high tide) where Richard produced “elevenses” – a beautiful home-made tray bake with loads of nuts and spices in it (yum! – trying for the recipe tomorrow!), tea and freshly cooked (scrumped) mussels! Oh boy, we’ve never tasted anything like them!
Elevenses consumed, we set off again to explore more of the sound. When we left Portage, it was almost flat calm. By now the wind had got up a bit, there were quite a few waves, and some interesting bouncing as we paddled through them. Unfortunately both Ron’s and my spraydecks were a little worn..result = soggy people from waist down! Thank heavens we weren’t at home, we’d have frozen!
Perhaps we should say that the sun was out and the temperature in the mid 20’s with a water temperature similar. Being so far from the open sea, the sounds, although very deep, get very warm.
Lunch, including a oil-cloth table cloth was produced from inside Richards kayak. Very little was left, it being of similar standard to elevenses.
We paddled back to another (low!) portage, which we used to circumvent a long paddle around a now quite windy point, and then back to Portage bay. A sting ray swam underneath us but we couldn’t see a huge amount as the water was greenish and slightly cloudy. Kenepuru is Maori for muddy waters and aptly named as some of the other places the visibility through the water has been at least 10’ (3 metres). Further searching for mussels produced giants the size of Ms hand, as well as oysters.
After all our exertions well, it was time to mosey on down to the bar of the Portage Resort for a swift half. Well, two pints to be honest. It did seem to slip down easily. Yours may have done, Ron - I had to make do with one, I was driving!
Phew, managed to get away with not mentioning St Valentine in the blog. Truth is I hadn’t got a card, but I also knew that neither had Margery. We mutually agreed that this trip would be more than enough; when we arrived at the start of the day on Portage beach there was a special valentine made from rocks on the water’s edge.
We are sitting in the Jolly Roger typing this blog having had a rather luxurious seafood platter for two, with, of all things, battered oysters!!!! Oh dear, what a waste!
Friday 12 February 2010
These boots are made for walking.....
Well, Margery’s boots are but her feet aren’t at the moment. Too much driving and flip flops has made her feet soft as she found out today. We were going to call todays blog “A bear went over the mountain” or even “I love to go a wandering along a mountain track...” but the pressure blisters on both her feet at the end of our 4 ½ hr walk means that she was struggling towards the end of the walk. The problem is I’m “going native” – getting used to bare feet or flip flops is just part of it!
But, we did it and arrived at our destination in time for a drink and a chance to put feet up before the water taxi picked us up from Anakawa.
When we set off this morning our taxi was a fast cabin cruiser which M clocked at 25 knots in spite of the wind and the waves banging on the hull. We were the only passengers and so sat alongside the pilot. These guys also do Mail runs to outlying properties around the Sounds and so the speed these craft travel at reflects the distances they are required to travel, as well.
We were supposed to be picked up at our destination at 4:30 allowing us 20-30 minutes of stops for photos and lunch, but when we were waiting on the jetty well after the agreed time we wondered if they had forgotten us!
In fact, we were collected by a fast craft named Exhilarator, 20 seater open top speed boat where the donning of buoyancy aids was compulsory with instruction to pull the orange tab ONLY in an Emergency!
As we were motoring out of the bay a speed boat towing a water skier raced us to the point before turning back to the bay. Why are we mentioning this? Well the skier was only wearing a smile and so we hope he didn’t ditch suddenly!
Much of the first part of the walk was up hill on a narrow (2ft wide) track over slippery roots. I joked to some people travelling down in the opposite direction that I had half expected to see signs “Slippery when wet” posted every few feet! There is a culture of elf and safety gone mad according to Kiwis, but frankly its nothing like in the UK.
The path rapidly deteriorated into a scramble as we climbed to the ridge. The rest of the walk was less testing with great views where the bush was cleared sufficiently to see. It was interesting being dive bombed by cicadas (tropical crickets) because we didn’t know they were that territorial. Or maybe it was own back on Margery for removing one from the kitchen this morning whilst we were preparing breakfast. It made a lot of protestation noises as she picked it up and “....bunged it out the window, the window,” as the campfire song goes. The constant noise level from these 3cm long insects must be above 70dB. There are times when you feel you need ear defenders.
The walk reminded me of the second day of the West Highland Way walk I did 11 years ago. It wasn’t as challenging as the cross island walk we did on Rarotonga, but rather longer and so requiring more endurance. The section we walked was accessible for mountain bikers, but frankly where they had cycled in the wet had made for some very muddy sections and steeply eroded paths. Not wishing to be a kill joy, after all I enjoy mountain biking as much as the next person, but narrow bike tyres with a point load of say 7 stone will do more damage than a walking boot with a far higher surface area! OK, rant over, sorry guys, we did see quite a lot of bikers.
Yesterday, M was shopping for some embroidery threads for the Afghan shawl she is making for “beanette”. The proprietor of the “Dog Box” (yes, this really is the name of the shop!) wanted to see what M was making and the proceeded to parade it round the shop for all to see. She was obviously very taken with it. M is sitting here busily sewing away as I blog. Well, she says it’s too early for supper (6:50pm) as she needed a frozen strawberry yoghurt ice cream in a waffle cone to cool her feet down when we got back to Picton. Needless to say it would have been rude to let her walk along the street with her ice cream and me carrying the boots etc, so I forced myself to have a berry berry (isn’t that some disease) sorbet. Well it should count as part of my 5-a-day shouldn’t it! Not a hope, sunshine!
But, we did it and arrived at our destination in time for a drink and a chance to put feet up before the water taxi picked us up from Anakawa.
When we set off this morning our taxi was a fast cabin cruiser which M clocked at 25 knots in spite of the wind and the waves banging on the hull. We were the only passengers and so sat alongside the pilot. These guys also do Mail runs to outlying properties around the Sounds and so the speed these craft travel at reflects the distances they are required to travel, as well.
We were supposed to be picked up at our destination at 4:30 allowing us 20-30 minutes of stops for photos and lunch, but when we were waiting on the jetty well after the agreed time we wondered if they had forgotten us!
In fact, we were collected by a fast craft named Exhilarator, 20 seater open top speed boat where the donning of buoyancy aids was compulsory with instruction to pull the orange tab ONLY in an Emergency!
As we were motoring out of the bay a speed boat towing a water skier raced us to the point before turning back to the bay. Why are we mentioning this? Well the skier was only wearing a smile and so we hope he didn’t ditch suddenly!
Much of the first part of the walk was up hill on a narrow (2ft wide) track over slippery roots. I joked to some people travelling down in the opposite direction that I had half expected to see signs “Slippery when wet” posted every few feet! There is a culture of elf and safety gone mad according to Kiwis, but frankly its nothing like in the UK.
The path rapidly deteriorated into a scramble as we climbed to the ridge. The rest of the walk was less testing with great views where the bush was cleared sufficiently to see. It was interesting being dive bombed by cicadas (tropical crickets) because we didn’t know they were that territorial. Or maybe it was own back on Margery for removing one from the kitchen this morning whilst we were preparing breakfast. It made a lot of protestation noises as she picked it up and “....bunged it out the window, the window,” as the campfire song goes. The constant noise level from these 3cm long insects must be above 70dB. There are times when you feel you need ear defenders.
The walk reminded me of the second day of the West Highland Way walk I did 11 years ago. It wasn’t as challenging as the cross island walk we did on Rarotonga, but rather longer and so requiring more endurance. The section we walked was accessible for mountain bikers, but frankly where they had cycled in the wet had made for some very muddy sections and steeply eroded paths. Not wishing to be a kill joy, after all I enjoy mountain biking as much as the next person, but narrow bike tyres with a point load of say 7 stone will do more damage than a walking boot with a far higher surface area! OK, rant over, sorry guys, we did see quite a lot of bikers.
Yesterday, M was shopping for some embroidery threads for the Afghan shawl she is making for “beanette”. The proprietor of the “Dog Box” (yes, this really is the name of the shop!) wanted to see what M was making and the proceeded to parade it round the shop for all to see. She was obviously very taken with it. M is sitting here busily sewing away as I blog. Well, she says it’s too early for supper (6:50pm) as she needed a frozen strawberry yoghurt ice cream in a waffle cone to cool her feet down when we got back to Picton. Needless to say it would have been rude to let her walk along the street with her ice cream and me carrying the boots etc, so I forced myself to have a berry berry (isn’t that some disease) sorbet. Well it should count as part of my 5-a-day shouldn’t it! Not a hope, sunshine!
Listen to the rhythm of the driving rain
Listen to the rhythm of the falling rain....
Question: What do Kiwis do when it’s raining?
Answer: a) take off thongs (flip flops to the English) to prevent them getting wet.
b) put on a North Cape anorak and press on regardless.
c) go to the pub and socialise.
What is your answer? If you answered (a) then award yourself 5 points; if you answered (b) award yourself 5 points; if you answered (c) award yourself zero points as the Kiwis don’t need any excuses to go to the pub!
Being British, our stiff upper lip and resolve meant that having made our plans we stuck to them and got very wet. So we repaired to the pub as any sensible person would have done in the first place. What did Margery order? A lemon tea – I was soooo embarrassed, so I ordered a “handle” (McGreiths Black ale) and for good measure some chips.
A “handle” is what Kiwis call a tankard and probably about 2/3 pint, and beer is relatively expensive.
We booked to go walking tomorrow (part of the Queen Charlotte Track) and Kayaking on Kenepuru Sound, on Sunday. Both are relatively expensive expeditions as the water taxis takes you across to the starting point, and then you walk to the finish, where, providing you don’t get lost or dawdle too long, you get picked up for the return boat trip to your base.
Before anyone gets too worried, the kayaking is a guided expedition so we won’t get lost and the worst we can do is capsize the thing and get wet. What a joint St Valentines pressy! A romantic cruise around some secluded bays with (probably) 20 other people. Oh what the heck; we’re on holiday! Don’t be such a pessimist! It might just be you and I and the guide playing gooseberry!
Picton, Nelson and the Marlborough area is a mass of Sounds. These are sunken valleys and often you have vast distances to cover before getting into open water. During our crossing yesterday from Wellington we were out of site of land for only about an hour of a 3 1/2hr crossing. The ferry (a la CalMac in Scotland) weaves its way through the islands and along the Tory Channel into Queen Charlotte Sound. This is the deepest Sound (averaging around 60 metres deep) in the area, and is an area that Capt. James Cook frequented and was the site of the last whaling station operating in NZ when it closed in 1964.
Many of the roads in this area are unsealed making it necessary to have an AWD vehicle or better a boat to explore and then plenty of time. We are here for a week and so will only touch a very small proportion of what scenery is on offer. Unfortunately we don’t have Billy Connolly’s budget or his film crew to do full justice to what’s available and so it might be necessary to plan 6 months here as some of the residents do and live the other 6 in the summer in UK! Only kidding!
We explored an old Maori Pa site this afternoon and saw a family of NZ quail on our travels. The iwi (tribal) wars meant that this site was last occupied around the early 1800’s and the attacking tribe used muskets (supplied by the Europeans in trading) to win the battle. By the way most pa sites are surrounded on 3 sides by water being on a steep cliff headland or similar making the landward side the only side that needed real fortification and earthworks for protection. The Maori only had hand weapons and spears until the Pakeha arrived of course.
Oh yes, the new wheels! It has central locking, a cassette player, 1497cc twin-cam 16 valve engine BUT IT’S A NISSAN – I LOATHE NISSANS ALMOST AS MUCH AS I DETEST FORDS! – ok, I know it’s pure prejudice, but the Nasty Nissan is living up to - or rather down to – my expectations – Bigger body, ugly shape and less useable space inside! But it is called Sunny! That’s just another SAD thing about it! Give me our little Slug any day!
Question: What do Kiwis do when it’s raining?
Answer: a) take off thongs (flip flops to the English) to prevent them getting wet.
b) put on a North Cape anorak and press on regardless.
c) go to the pub and socialise.
What is your answer? If you answered (a) then award yourself 5 points; if you answered (b) award yourself 5 points; if you answered (c) award yourself zero points as the Kiwis don’t need any excuses to go to the pub!
Being British, our stiff upper lip and resolve meant that having made our plans we stuck to them and got very wet. So we repaired to the pub as any sensible person would have done in the first place. What did Margery order? A lemon tea – I was soooo embarrassed, so I ordered a “handle” (McGreiths Black ale) and for good measure some chips.
A “handle” is what Kiwis call a tankard and probably about 2/3 pint, and beer is relatively expensive.
We booked to go walking tomorrow (part of the Queen Charlotte Track) and Kayaking on Kenepuru Sound, on Sunday. Both are relatively expensive expeditions as the water taxis takes you across to the starting point, and then you walk to the finish, where, providing you don’t get lost or dawdle too long, you get picked up for the return boat trip to your base.
Before anyone gets too worried, the kayaking is a guided expedition so we won’t get lost and the worst we can do is capsize the thing and get wet. What a joint St Valentines pressy! A romantic cruise around some secluded bays with (probably) 20 other people. Oh what the heck; we’re on holiday! Don’t be such a pessimist! It might just be you and I and the guide playing gooseberry!
Picton, Nelson and the Marlborough area is a mass of Sounds. These are sunken valleys and often you have vast distances to cover before getting into open water. During our crossing yesterday from Wellington we were out of site of land for only about an hour of a 3 1/2hr crossing. The ferry (a la CalMac in Scotland) weaves its way through the islands and along the Tory Channel into Queen Charlotte Sound. This is the deepest Sound (averaging around 60 metres deep) in the area, and is an area that Capt. James Cook frequented and was the site of the last whaling station operating in NZ when it closed in 1964.
Many of the roads in this area are unsealed making it necessary to have an AWD vehicle or better a boat to explore and then plenty of time. We are here for a week and so will only touch a very small proportion of what scenery is on offer. Unfortunately we don’t have Billy Connolly’s budget or his film crew to do full justice to what’s available and so it might be necessary to plan 6 months here as some of the residents do and live the other 6 in the summer in UK! Only kidding!
We explored an old Maori Pa site this afternoon and saw a family of NZ quail on our travels. The iwi (tribal) wars meant that this site was last occupied around the early 1800’s and the attacking tribe used muskets (supplied by the Europeans in trading) to win the battle. By the way most pa sites are surrounded on 3 sides by water being on a steep cliff headland or similar making the landward side the only side that needed real fortification and earthworks for protection. The Maori only had hand weapons and spears until the Pakeha arrived of course.
Oh yes, the new wheels! It has central locking, a cassette player, 1497cc twin-cam 16 valve engine BUT IT’S A NISSAN – I LOATHE NISSANS ALMOST AS MUCH AS I DETEST FORDS! – ok, I know it’s pure prejudice, but the Nasty Nissan is living up to - or rather down to – my expectations – Bigger body, ugly shape and less useable space inside! But it is called Sunny! That’s just another SAD thing about it! Give me our little Slug any day!
The wooden dolphin is the brother to the ones that are on their way home via Jenny! We found Ron's birthday present yesterday - and a beautiful reminder of this fantastic trip. Carved by a guy in Picton, who only packs them himself - he won't let his shop staff do it! So all being well. ours should arrive home a bit before us in mid March.
Thursday 11 February 2010
From distant lands...one woman one man..let the four winds blow..
The song’s John Lennon’s “you are here”, Wellington, in case we’ve got you guessing!
We’re changing islands today – don’t know where the time went, it’s flown by. But we have packed masses in, we’re sure you’ll agree.
We spent part of Wednesday evening getting the gear sorted. As we were due to give “Slug” back at 10am on Thursday, we needed to get all our camping stuff into our two big rucksacks that we’d bought over inside our cases. And guess what – it all fitted!! Miracle of miracles! No mean feat when you think M’s is only a 60 Litre one, and we also had to fit M’s trekking poles, R’s tripod, and R’s cushion he’s using as an extra pillow in!
Oooh yes, speaking of tripods..we did borrow Jen’s thinking it was lighter than the one Dad had given us some time ago..when we got it home, Dad’s was actually significantly lighter..so we took Dad’s, nicked Jen’s case., and left your tripod on the side board in the hall, Jen! Cheeky or what?
So, bright and early Thursday morning we’re off in search of “cafe net” (the local free high speed internet which is supposed to be in most cafes in Wellington) and some much needed breakfast! We failed miserably at finding any cafe with internet access, but we did find an interesting place for breakfast – “the Loft” a cafe above Whitcoulls (NZ’s W H Smith) While waiting for breakfast to arrive, Philias did some blogging! He was also fascinated by the “egg timer” that arrived with our tea. Nothing to do with eggs..just to let you know when you tea “went live” (was ready to drink!)
Then it was a case of load up Slug, drive to Ace Rental to drop him off (after filling him up – we’re not getting stung with a NZ$30 refuelling charge!) So, drop off Slug, and the Hire Company took us down to the Blue Bridge Ferry Terminal. That’s where we are now. We didn’t have to wait for our lift down, so we’re a bit earlier that we’d anticipated. Never mind, time to do some blogging...oh heck, hang on a minute, I’ve just been told they’re going to do a routine fire drill! So, going off line for a min – not leaving the lappie in the waiting area while we’re outside!
Back in a mo’!
That was a bit of a bore! And rather drizzly too! Never mind. At least the wind’s dropped, which bodes well for a 4 hour crossing M’s not the best of sailors, although judging from her experience on cat in the swells in the Bay of Islands, her sea legs are definitely improving!
Ron’s just worked out how far slug travelled while we had him – not too bad – 3584km or 2240 miles in 21 days! Or for those who like stats 106.66666666 miles a day. But, that was only when we were driving of course. Phew!
The trip across looks like it’s going to be easier than we anticipated too. We thought we’d be carrying everything on a la cross channel ferries at home, with luggage racks to leave stuff on when we got on board. Nope! Check in as on a aircraft, don’t see cases or rucksacks til we get to Picton – Result! Just hope they unload fast – we’ve got 42mins from when the boat docks to when the car hire place (fortunately on the quayside) closes! On well, if we don’t get the car tonight, we’ll find somewhere to stay and pick it up in the morning –no worries – be happy!
I’ve been driving in my car, but it’s not a Jaguar.....
Southbound, again... this time via Waveley, and Wanganui, into Wellington. Its a good job I’m not struggling with my W’s like Jonathan Ross as so many NZ names start that way unless the W is followed by and h and then it’s a soft F. Confusing although the pronunciation of the Maori names is getting easier.
It was a long old drive but a few NZ querks (a new NZ mammal?) appeared on the way. The first was a football spectator stand in the middle of a farmers field. There were large round bales of hay in front of it. We didn’t understand whether this is new form of football/rugby with NZ rules, or whether the players were expected to pick these up and pass them. It turns out it’s the local rugby ground and they cut the pitch for hay in the summer.
The second was a solution to daughter Jen’s workload problems. For those who aren’t on the same page, Jen works for Hants CC trying to sort and improve roads etc. after serious RTA’s. Use the NZ solution.
1. Get 6ft (1.83m) high bright yellow road signs with “HIGH CRASH AREA” written in bright red (which apparently doesn’t fade in NZ like our red roundel so often do)!
2. Erect at site of road accident.
NB these are usually on unmarked very severe bends, appalling road surfaces with no warning, or horrific adverse cambers! Derrr...
The third was wooden power supply poles, with signs of exactly where the branches were cut off, for the local tram line in Hutt. These were being replaced by steel ones!
Little things please little minds! So, Wellington – interesting! Part very much like the city of London, part like a New England Suburb – old-style wooden faced houses hugging the shore – part a busy container port, and all within a two mile stretch of harbour front! And, guess what? They have trolley buses. Yeaaaa! Oh dear,it doesn’t take much to amuse Ron, does it?!!!
Margery got a little out of hand. She kept finding strangers to hold hands with. Sorry Sims, she even found a strange dog...They were all rather bronzed characters so there’s nothing to worry about Mr Sims!
So with a rather brassed off Ron (oh dear, the puns get worse!) Here’s a few pics to give you a feel of Wellington.
It was a long old drive but a few NZ querks (a new NZ mammal?) appeared on the way. The first was a football spectator stand in the middle of a farmers field. There were large round bales of hay in front of it. We didn’t understand whether this is new form of football/rugby with NZ rules, or whether the players were expected to pick these up and pass them. It turns out it’s the local rugby ground and they cut the pitch for hay in the summer.
The second was a solution to daughter Jen’s workload problems. For those who aren’t on the same page, Jen works for Hants CC trying to sort and improve roads etc. after serious RTA’s. Use the NZ solution.
1. Get 6ft (1.83m) high bright yellow road signs with “HIGH CRASH AREA” written in bright red (which apparently doesn’t fade in NZ like our red roundel so often do)!
2. Erect at site of road accident.
NB these are usually on unmarked very severe bends, appalling road surfaces with no warning, or horrific adverse cambers! Derrr...
The third was wooden power supply poles, with signs of exactly where the branches were cut off, for the local tram line in Hutt. These were being replaced by steel ones!
Little things please little minds! So, Wellington – interesting! Part very much like the city of London, part like a New England Suburb – old-style wooden faced houses hugging the shore – part a busy container port, and all within a two mile stretch of harbour front! And, guess what? They have trolley buses. Yeaaaa! Oh dear,it doesn’t take much to amuse Ron, does it?!!!
Margery got a little out of hand. She kept finding strangers to hold hands with. Sorry Sims, she even found a strange dog...They were all rather bronzed characters so there’s nothing to worry about Mr Sims!
So with a rather brassed off Ron (oh dear, the puns get worse!) Here’s a few pics to give you a feel of Wellington.
Wednesday 10 February 2010
Hot town, summer in the city....
Did you know out tent moves all by itself? No? Well at about 4am (dark and pre-dawn anyway) Ron woke me up, “ Margery will you check the shoes are still there, the tent’s just moved about 4 feet”. Trying very hard not to laugh, I asked him why.. “Because of the water”. “What water?”...at that point I gave up, checked the shoes outside the door, reassured him that the tent hadn’t moved 4 feet...and finally persuaded him to go back to sleep! Now Ron says he doesn’t often dream..I know he does because he holds conversations with himself! The problem is you only ever get half a sentence, so you haven’t a clue what he’s dreaming about! Whatever it was this time, it must have been serious!! Maybe he’s heard too much about earthquakes and volcanoes...or maybe it was the sound of the waterfall! Whatever it was, I hope he doesn’t dream again tonight, goodness knows where the tent will end up!
Maybe it was the cheese we had for our Carbonara supper. Our German neighbours this morning decided to move to another site because the sound of the waves crashing and the waterfall kept them awake so maybe it was a..........Please tune in for our next exciting episode of On the Waterfront. Ron.
You silly sausage! There won’t be one - any chance of a recurrence and you’re wearing ear plugs!
Better than sleeping in the car!
Well, we are in New Plymouth and the weather is hot, hot, hot! So, what do you do? Well we decided to find a cool spot out of the sun as much as possible and visited Pukeiti Gardens situated on a hill above the city. The main entrance was closed as there was a one day cricket match taking place between two local teams. We immediately came across some bizarre luminous boulders, and spheres hung above the path which were part of their Festival of Lights which ran from Dec 23rd until 7th Feb. Also the evening free music concerts finished on Sunday, as well. The park had a good children’s playground with a very ingenious (and very NZ) way of stopping small rear ends from being burnt! Sadly there were also “Big Brother” type cameras there as well.
This didn’t spoil our visit though as there was a bazaar of colours, shapes and to cap it a perfect sighting of Mt Taranaki (Mt Egmont) after which this area of NZ is known. As you will have seen this is a volcano 2500 metres high which last erupted in the 18th Century, and so there is no real knowing if or when it will erupt again, especially in NZ where the “Ring of Fire” runs through both islands. The park covers 120 acres and included a very large and well stocked display house and fernery – we found it on the way out – it made us an hour and a half late for lunch!
Tricia, Cliff and the Shadows are playing at the Brooklands Bowl on 24th Feb. I’s a fantastic natural amphitheatre and the acoustics should be phenomenal. if you want tickets they’re available via Ticketmaster or we can enter on your behalf via Taranaki local paper. The music scene in NZ seems very good albeit a bit retro. Thankfully we will be in South Island!! Oi-!!! Cheeky!
Philias was getting a bit browned off not being let into the park, and the zoo we also went to, but we were considerate of NZ laws prohibiting the introduction of new species! He was allowed to eat with us at lunch time, but he was having trouble with the brightness so needed to use my sunglasses!
We then visited an excellent museum which gave the history of the area. (Telegraph Road; Dire Straits) “Built a cabin and a winter store, then came the churches, then came the war......”. In particular the on going development of the city amenities. Whilst farming (mainly dairy), and its associated butter and cheese businesses was the mainstay until the early 60’s, the discovery of petroleum in the 19th centuary by the Maori was soon capitalised upon by the Pakeha who took all the revenue until the oil dried up in 1910. The economic situation collapsed and then came the First World War!
This has left its mark on the area and the city and it still has a “frontier town” feel about it although oil was re discovered in the 70’s and has brought the prosperity that we all know about. But with no passenger rail connection any longer with Wellington or Auckland this place has become a bit of a law unto its self, but with a very progressive local government which wants to give the best to its inhabitants. Hence, all the places we went to today were free admission. This made up for the price of the caves yesterday.
Read in the local paper that they have a cheese rolling championship this Saturday.
Something about the area appealed and that’s why we changed our original plans to move on to Wellington today.
Monday 8 February 2010
This little light of mine, I’m gonna let it shine..
I don’t think the glow worms were singing, but there were thousands and thousands of them shining in the roof of the glow worm caves we visited at Waitomo on our way south today. It was one of the places M had really wanted to go to. Stopping short of our intended destination yesterday put it in doubt, but a good run down on much better roads (in spite of road works and a very big accident to a huge truck and trailer at the bottom of a steep hill and road bends) meant we had time to visit and get to New Plymouth in time to set up camp, and get a swim in the “Ditch” (otherwise know to us as the Tasman sea !) before supper.
The caves were astounding – a much more porous type of limestone giving the normal stalagtites and stalagmites, but some incredible “cauliflower” and “Broccoli” shaped deposits as well. Then the glowworms...Ron did make the comment that it’s amazing what they can do with LEDs these days..but I’ve never seen an insect eating LED!
Unfortunately we did not have any photos as they were not allowed in the caves...we have bought a few postcard to show interested parties, but we weren’t paying $40 for their photopack! I wonder why!
So where are we now? We’re just outside New Plymouth, near Mt Egmont, at a seaside place called Oakura. The site is right on the beach, our pitch sheltered by small trees and flax plants, with a beautiful waterfall directly behind us. Don’t worry, no danger of it flooding us out, it’s in a culvert under the site!! Our tent door is facing the sea. I hope the waves don’t keep me awake! R They normally lull you off quite nicely, if not, you’ll just have to put your ear plugs in!
So what next, well, over breakfast we have to decide whether to go walking or exploring tomorrow, then have a 5/6 hour drive to Wellington on Wednesday, or whether to forgo the walking, get down to Whanganhui tomorrow, have a shorter run to Wellington, and some time there. Difficult choice, especially after a local recommended a nice walk! Oh well, “Rough Guide” will, as usual be the answer!
The caves were astounding – a much more porous type of limestone giving the normal stalagtites and stalagmites, but some incredible “cauliflower” and “Broccoli” shaped deposits as well. Then the glowworms...Ron did make the comment that it’s amazing what they can do with LEDs these days..but I’ve never seen an insect eating LED!
Unfortunately we did not have any photos as they were not allowed in the caves...we have bought a few postcard to show interested parties, but we weren’t paying $40 for their photopack! I wonder why!
So where are we now? We’re just outside New Plymouth, near Mt Egmont, at a seaside place called Oakura. The site is right on the beach, our pitch sheltered by small trees and flax plants, with a beautiful waterfall directly behind us. Don’t worry, no danger of it flooding us out, it’s in a culvert under the site!! Our tent door is facing the sea. I hope the waves don’t keep me awake! R They normally lull you off quite nicely, if not, you’ll just have to put your ear plugs in!
So what next, well, over breakfast we have to decide whether to go walking or exploring tomorrow, then have a 5/6 hour drive to Wellington on Wednesday, or whether to forgo the walking, get down to Whanganhui tomorrow, have a shorter run to Wellington, and some time there. Difficult choice, especially after a local recommended a nice walk! Oh well, “Rough Guide” will, as usual be the answer!
We’re riding along on the crest of a wave...
(or, we’re banging a gong on the chest of a slave, if you know the very old joke!)
Now that’s not what I thought we’d be doing today. I thought we’d only come up to the Bay of Islands to go to Waitangi, and that we’d be heading off southwards Sunday morning. My scheming husband had other ideas! His fiendish plan was to head south on Sunday, but only after we’d done a trip around the Bay of Islands known as the “cream” trip, as it was the one followed in days of yore, when the supplies were delivered.
So, another early start (via the Bakery for lunch supplies!) and a glorious day exploring around on a mini version of the Condor! (Jet powered catamaran, for those not in the know) The Captain was a rather eccentric Dutchman cum New Zealander who obviously knew and loved these islands. He did have a route he was supposed to follow, but because he knew the waters so well, and wanted to give us the best possible trip, he forgot the route and took as to all the places, but in a different order to suit the tide, and we got to travel through a natural rock arch known as The Hole in the Rock. It was the first time for weeks that the sea conditions had been suitable to go through, and we felt it was a terrific feat of seamanship in view of the 10-12’ swell that was running – there wasn’t a lot of clearance either! You can see how close it was!
We also got to see some more dolphin – these were the real “Flipper” soft grey bottle-nosed ones! There were not as many in the pod as we saw the first time, and with rough seas it was much more difficult to see them underwater. However, we heard their characteristic song! Just like on the wildlife films. That was very special. There were also a couple of “performance artists” – doing leaps right out of the sea! Aka Flipper!
We got back to Russell at about 4, dived in the car and hit the road. Our intention was to get to a campsite in Raglan, west of Hamilton and about 80 miles south of Auckland. We could have got there, but we’d have been putting the tent up about 10.30, in the dark and without having had any supper (everything shutting down by about 9pm). Not a good idea! So, plan B; get just south of Auckland and find a motel! We did – and it even had a Gengy’s (the Mongolian BBQ restaurant we found in Hamilton) next door! So there wasn’t really an option!! We checked in at 8.10 and were in the restaurant by 8.20 – tee hee!!!
Claire, it was rather frustrating seeing the France/Scotland score, and the football results coming through on the news, but being a day ahead, we haven’t had a chance to catch up on how England got on. Yes I know we can watch it on I player, but not with the NZ connection speed, let alone the cost! Being a good pal, we’re sure you’re recording them all for us! LOL!
It is good to stay at a motel occasionally as we can get at least some free internet and also the laundry done whilst we are having breakfast. By the way it still seems strange to go into Woolworths to get your food shopping; that or Countdown!
One thing we have noticed as we have travelled around is that the price of fuel is the same where ever we have been, except Thames. Everywhere has been $1.719 or $1.729 per litre (76p for unleaded and 49p for diesel) not the variation we have at home. Sorry guys! – we know it’s ridiculously cheap, but this has helped our budget when travelling long distances.
Now that’s not what I thought we’d be doing today. I thought we’d only come up to the Bay of Islands to go to Waitangi, and that we’d be heading off southwards Sunday morning. My scheming husband had other ideas! His fiendish plan was to head south on Sunday, but only after we’d done a trip around the Bay of Islands known as the “cream” trip, as it was the one followed in days of yore, when the supplies were delivered.
So, another early start (via the Bakery for lunch supplies!) and a glorious day exploring around on a mini version of the Condor! (Jet powered catamaran, for those not in the know) The Captain was a rather eccentric Dutchman cum New Zealander who obviously knew and loved these islands. He did have a route he was supposed to follow, but because he knew the waters so well, and wanted to give us the best possible trip, he forgot the route and took as to all the places, but in a different order to suit the tide, and we got to travel through a natural rock arch known as The Hole in the Rock. It was the first time for weeks that the sea conditions had been suitable to go through, and we felt it was a terrific feat of seamanship in view of the 10-12’ swell that was running – there wasn’t a lot of clearance either! You can see how close it was!
We also got to see some more dolphin – these were the real “Flipper” soft grey bottle-nosed ones! There were not as many in the pod as we saw the first time, and with rough seas it was much more difficult to see them underwater. However, we heard their characteristic song! Just like on the wildlife films. That was very special. There were also a couple of “performance artists” – doing leaps right out of the sea! Aka Flipper!
We got back to Russell at about 4, dived in the car and hit the road. Our intention was to get to a campsite in Raglan, west of Hamilton and about 80 miles south of Auckland. We could have got there, but we’d have been putting the tent up about 10.30, in the dark and without having had any supper (everything shutting down by about 9pm). Not a good idea! So, plan B; get just south of Auckland and find a motel! We did – and it even had a Gengy’s (the Mongolian BBQ restaurant we found in Hamilton) next door! So there wasn’t really an option!! We checked in at 8.10 and were in the restaurant by 8.20 – tee hee!!!
Claire, it was rather frustrating seeing the France/Scotland score, and the football results coming through on the news, but being a day ahead, we haven’t had a chance to catch up on how England got on. Yes I know we can watch it on I player, but not with the NZ connection speed, let alone the cost! Being a good pal, we’re sure you’re recording them all for us! LOL!
It is good to stay at a motel occasionally as we can get at least some free internet and also the laundry done whilst we are having breakfast. By the way it still seems strange to go into Woolworths to get your food shopping; that or Countdown!
One thing we have noticed as we have travelled around is that the price of fuel is the same where ever we have been, except Thames. Everywhere has been $1.719 or $1.729 per litre (76p for unleaded and 49p for diesel) not the variation we have at home. Sorry guys! – we know it’s ridiculously cheap, but this has helped our budget when travelling long distances.
Sunday 7 February 2010
Pretty amazing Grace...
We made the 7.45 ferry! Oooof that was a bit early!
It was worth it tho’ – we walked from Waitangi quay to the beach we could see 6 waka (war canoes) already on shore. They’d paddled over from Russell at 5am, but we thought that was a bit early to start our day. As we stood and watched (and took loads of photos!) more and more waka appeared either from the river, where they were being unloaded from huge trailers, or from the Treaty grounds, where they’d been overnight. Each of the waka rely on ”paddler power” only – in the form of between 20 and 80 hefty Maori guys – some tattooed from head to foot, most in native costume (albeit with the addition of black underwear for modern decency’s sake!) The friendly raucous encouragement/rivalry between the different teams was great to see, as were the traditional prayers chanted by the tribe’s ladies as each waka prepared to row out into the bay, and their songs calling them back in. As each crew boarded, their own individual haka was bellowed with great gusto – the smaller teams doing their best to create the same amount noise as the larger crews!
By just after 9 most of the waka had arrived and were waiting for NGO , the waka built for the centenary of the signing of the Treaty in 1940. This is the largest built in modern times – it’s over 70’ long, took three huge Kauri trees to create it’s hull, and takes 80 men to paddle it. (it can also take a further 70 people if necessary!) There were cheers and songs to greet it as it arrived,and the guys paddling it demonstrated how manouverable it was by doing “three point turns” virtually in its own length just off shore. It was an amazing sight.
There were thousands of people along the beachfront, along with stalls selling waka team t shirts, flags, and every kind of food and drink you can imagine. It was a real party/carnival atmosphere. The one sight that was unexpected was the formal dress of the women with the waka crews who were entirely dressed in black traditional costume pieces over the top. A great mixture of very formal and great informality and banter!
We moved on to the formal ecumenical service which had all denominations involved and was held in Maori and in English. The sung response in the intercessions to the tune of “Amazing Grace” and the Lord’s Prayer sung beautifully by a Maori choir to a setting composed by the Principal of the Northlands College.
In true church style all the white chairs had been set out in to blocks of rows facing the podium. In true Kiwi fashion the majority of these were then removed to the shelter of the waka house out of the sun. Only those who needed a sun fix, and representatives of the NZ navy, braved it out in the heat, a comment made by the Maori President of the service!
We were then entertained by a variety of local artists including one group named “Connections” who played similar material to the Kent “Connections”- how bizarre!
We felt in need of some historic insight and so took a guided tour of the Treaty Grounds to get a feel for the native viewpoint of the recent history since 1200! This was well worth the $15 as there was so much that we gleaned especially since we got free entry (normally $20 each) it being Waitangi Day!
We then rather late in the day need to refuel so we patronised the food stalls and had some excellent seafood chowder, fry bread (a non sweet donut), and crepe with the English traditional lemon and sugar. We did do a lot of walking that day so felt that the calories were balanced to our personal needs –so no comments about “pig outs” please! You forgot the cream scones, Ron! OK, well we did have a 3 Km walk back to Paiha to catch the ferry, and so it was worth it!
The evening concluded for us with Beating Retreat which was very well done by 100 sailors from two ships (Canterbury and Philimore) from the NZ Navy, NZ Navy band and the Maori Choir previously seen at the service.
We had a Fish supper back at the campsite with the compulsory salad and of course a bottle of red wine! It was only ½ a bottle – we’d drunk the rest the day before! Well, you wouldn’t have wanted a warm white, would you!
It was worth it tho’ – we walked from Waitangi quay to the beach we could see 6 waka (war canoes) already on shore. They’d paddled over from Russell at 5am, but we thought that was a bit early to start our day. As we stood and watched (and took loads of photos!) more and more waka appeared either from the river, where they were being unloaded from huge trailers, or from the Treaty grounds, where they’d been overnight. Each of the waka rely on ”paddler power” only – in the form of between 20 and 80 hefty Maori guys – some tattooed from head to foot, most in native costume (albeit with the addition of black underwear for modern decency’s sake!) The friendly raucous encouragement/rivalry between the different teams was great to see, as were the traditional prayers chanted by the tribe’s ladies as each waka prepared to row out into the bay, and their songs calling them back in. As each crew boarded, their own individual haka was bellowed with great gusto – the smaller teams doing their best to create the same amount noise as the larger crews!
By just after 9 most of the waka had arrived and were waiting for NGO , the waka built for the centenary of the signing of the Treaty in 1940. This is the largest built in modern times – it’s over 70’ long, took three huge Kauri trees to create it’s hull, and takes 80 men to paddle it. (it can also take a further 70 people if necessary!) There were cheers and songs to greet it as it arrived,and the guys paddling it demonstrated how manouverable it was by doing “three point turns” virtually in its own length just off shore. It was an amazing sight.
There were thousands of people along the beachfront, along with stalls selling waka team t shirts, flags, and every kind of food and drink you can imagine. It was a real party/carnival atmosphere. The one sight that was unexpected was the formal dress of the women with the waka crews who were entirely dressed in black traditional costume pieces over the top. A great mixture of very formal and great informality and banter!
We moved on to the formal ecumenical service which had all denominations involved and was held in Maori and in English. The sung response in the intercessions to the tune of “Amazing Grace” and the Lord’s Prayer sung beautifully by a Maori choir to a setting composed by the Principal of the Northlands College.
In true church style all the white chairs had been set out in to blocks of rows facing the podium. In true Kiwi fashion the majority of these were then removed to the shelter of the waka house out of the sun. Only those who needed a sun fix, and representatives of the NZ navy, braved it out in the heat, a comment made by the Maori President of the service!
We were then entertained by a variety of local artists including one group named “Connections” who played similar material to the Kent “Connections”- how bizarre!
We felt in need of some historic insight and so took a guided tour of the Treaty Grounds to get a feel for the native viewpoint of the recent history since 1200! This was well worth the $15 as there was so much that we gleaned especially since we got free entry (normally $20 each) it being Waitangi Day!
We then rather late in the day need to refuel so we patronised the food stalls and had some excellent seafood chowder, fry bread (a non sweet donut), and crepe with the English traditional lemon and sugar. We did do a lot of walking that day so felt that the calories were balanced to our personal needs –so no comments about “pig outs” please! You forgot the cream scones, Ron! OK, well we did have a 3 Km walk back to Paiha to catch the ferry, and so it was worth it!
The evening concluded for us with Beating Retreat which was very well done by 100 sailors from two ships (Canterbury and Philimore) from the NZ Navy, NZ Navy band and the Maori Choir previously seen at the service.
We had a Fish supper back at the campsite with the compulsory salad and of course a bottle of red wine! It was only ½ a bottle – we’d drunk the rest the day before! Well, you wouldn’t have wanted a warm white, would you!
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