paulineanddicknz

Tramping continues to be one of our favourite activities since it affords us an opportunity to experience great vistas and to get off the beaten track. The most challenging tramp we have done so far was the Kauaeranga Track located on the southern part of the Coromandel Peninsula, southeast of Auckland. The origins of this track go back to the 1860s when it was used to bring in supplies by pack horse to those logging large Kauri trees high up and deep in the bush. This tramp proved to be the longest in terms of time - about 8.5 hours - as well as the steepest. There were sections requiring ladders, clambering up and over boulders, and to reach the top of the pinnacles, pulling ourselves up by iron rungs embedded in the rock. The effort ... read more

After 6 1/2 weeks on the South Island we have crossed Cook's Strait and are now sitting on the docks in Wellington. Since our last blog we visited Hanmer Springs - a small alpine village whose origins go back to the late 1800's when the benefits of the natural hot springs drew people 'to take the waters'. Shortly thereafter, a sanitorium was built and its main feature was to provide therapy and convalescence for emotionally stressed returning soldiers starting with the Crimean war, up to and including World War II. It is now a tourist destination where the hot springs have been commercialized, but are not lavish. We enjoyed soaking in the various hot pools and sulphur springs, especially the private pools that people can rent for 30 minutes at a time (sorry no photos!). Continuing ... read more

This country is truly one of many contrasts. In this blog will talk about our experiences with the sea from very different perspectives. At the beginning of the week we spent 1.5 days on an overnight cruise of Doubtful Sound on a small charter boat. To begin with the weather was phenomenal - bright sunshine in an area that sees about 280 days of rain per year; and clear skies at night revealing stars and the milky way so close it felt like you could almost reach out and touch them. Not only were we treated to unbelievable scenery, wildlife (dolphins, seals, albatross and shearwaters) and excellent meals; but were also able to kayak in the fiord, catch numerous species of salt water fish, including blue cod and spiny lobster which ended up on the dinner ... read more

Hello from New Zealand, We continue to be fascinated by the variety of landscapes we experience as we head from the South Island's (SI) northern tip south along to the west coast of the South Island - from the expansive sand dunes that constitute Farewell Spit (the SI's most northerly section), to the high altitude pasture land where we saw sheep grazing, to the forests up to the treeline, and the changes as you move down to the coastal regions. In this country if you want to see the various corners, it involves some backtracking due to the limited number of highways that cross the moutainous terrain. We are now just beginning our trip along the South Island's west coast. Here are a few highlights of our trip since we last blogged: - Farewell Spit: 35 ... read more

Hi Folks, We’ve been in NZ for 5 days and have a few observations to share with you: ‘give way’ means ‘yield’; ‘way out’ means ‘exit; ‘long black’ means an espresso coffee with hot water on the side – the only way to get what we consider a regular black coffee; ‘white tea’ means regular tea frothed with milk; people thank the drivers when exiting the bus; residential mail is delivered via bicycle to mail boxes located at the edges of sidewalks; speed limits are 100 km/hr on narrow, hilly, curvy highways – we would be used to limits of 70 – 80 km/hr in these situations; Auckland ambulances are Mercedes; there are few flower gardens adorning residential homes – mostly green shrubbery; gas is $2.12/litre – yikes!!! We are currently in Napier – completely destroyed ... read more