Blogs from Otago, South Island, New Zealand, Oceania - page 4

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Oceania » New Zealand » South Island » Otago » Queenstown February 10th 2014

Geo: -45.0311, 168.663We dragged ourselves away from the spectacular mountain views of the Mount Cook range to drive to Queenstown and picked up a German girl hitch hiker to entertain us and give us the back packer experience. We dropped her 4 hrs later on a hot afternoon at the Lake shore at Wanaka, where she was hoping to pick up some paid work and finally found our hotel well out of town. We were pleased not to linger in town with all its tourists and Extreme sports Combo excitements. We spent evenings hanging out in our quirky old hotel in a magnificent upgraded suite with views way down below of a beautiful peaceful river entertering a canyon, only broken periodically by the red jet boating engines and screams of adrenalin rush from excited customers zooming ... read more
the countryside around - from the ski centre
that view of Fox Glacier

Oceania » New Zealand » South Island » Otago December 17th 2013

So, left Moeraki & went to see the 'world famous' Moeraki Boulders. Never heard of them? Neither had we, but reckoned if they charged $2 to get through the fence to see them, they must be good. Well, we were underwhelmed. Round...yes. Interesting patterns..OK, but compared to, say, the Devils Marbles in Oz..they were little pebbles. If there is anything worth seeing in NZ, the kiwis find a way of making you pay for it. Eg, we went to the tip of the Otago peninsula to walk along the headland to the lighthouse to see if we could see Albatross, only to find the whole headland fenced off and asking $45 (£25) each to get in. Thank goodness for 'lonely planet'.....they said that you sometimes see them from the car park for free..and we did! Stayed ... read more
A Moeraki Boulder
Dunedin from Otego
Fur seals

Oceania » New Zealand » South Island » Otago » Dunedin December 9th 2013

Monday 9th December, 2013. Dunedin and Penguins Dunedin is Gaelic for "Edinburgh of the South" and was originally setlled by the Scots in 1848. It is the furthest city away from London in the world - 19,100 km (11,870 miles). It has a population of about 120,00 people. Apologies for this longer than normal blog - we did a hell of a lot today. After breakfast we set off an a self-guided city tour of the city. Our first stop was St Paul's Anglican Cathedral. The cathedral is built in a West to East direction instead of the traditional East to West due to the lie of the hill. The building has many beautiful stained glass windows but the largest is The War Memorial Window which is located above the Great Door. This window honours all ... read more
27. . Dunedin Railway Station
29. Railway Station Interior
44. M on a Penny Farthing, Settlers Museum

Oceania » New Zealand » South Island » Otago » Dunedin December 8th 2013

Sunday 8th December, 2013. Southern Scenic Route and Otago Peninsula We left the hospital (Youth Hostel) and started on our way to Dunedin. Our first stop was the Historic Railway Tunnel Walk which we were unable to do yesterday because of the dreadful weather. It was a bit muddy but at least it wasn't raining. The tunnel was excavated under what was then named "McDonald's Saddle". It is the southernmost railway tunnel in NZ. It was begun in 1891 and took nearly 2 years to complete. It is 246 metres long and the construction involved up to 70 men. All the bricks were made nearby. It cost £9316 in total. Construction of the entire line was done using pick, shovel and barrow. The line was closed in 1971. The walk was fairly pleasant. The notice at ... read more
16 Fishing Boats Taieri Mouth
19. Brighton Beach
28. Fletcher House Master Bedroom and  Our Guide

Oceania » New Zealand » South Island » Otago » Catlins December 7th 2013

Saturday 7th December, 2013. The Catlins - Day 2 We woke up after the best night's sleep in a hospital bed either of us had ever had! After breakfast we made our way to the Okawa Museum which Nigel (the Warden) had told us was excellent and would also be able to advise on when it was best to try to see the Yellow-Eyed Penguins (YEP's). The museum was a very modern building for such a small town. Here we discovered that the Catlins were first inhabited by the Maori from around 900 to 1700 AD. It is believed that moa hunting drew them here. The first Europeans to see this coast were the crew of Captain Cook's endeavour in 1770. Whalers and Sealers arrived between 1800 and 1880. Vast areas of the Catlins were covered ... read more
25. M and D at Purakaunui Falls
28. Penguin Footprints on Helena Falls Beach
35. Long Point

Oceania » New Zealand » South Island » Otago » Catlins December 6th 2013

Friday 6th December, 2013. The Catlins - Day 1 The whole of the Catlins was an important area for Maori. Forest birds, cabbage tree sugar, fish cockles, eels and lamprey (which were caught o the first full moon in spring) were important food sources. Waikawa harbour was a seasonal campsite. The first Europeans in the area were sealers and whalers. A short-lived whaling station was established just inside Waikawa Harbour entrance in 1838 - it was abandoned by 1844. Waikawa developed as a timber port in the 1880's and in 1889 had a pub, a couple of stores and a smithy. The main communication with the outside was by coastal steamer which shipped timber to Dunedin. Today the main activities are based around fishing, farming, and tourism. M wanted to come here to see the rare ... read more
18. M at Slope Point
23. The Lighthouse at Waipapa Point
28. Cathedral Caves Looking Out

Oceania » New Zealand » South Island » Otago December 5th 2013

Thursday 5th December, 2013. Southern Scenic Route Te Anau to The Catlins Today had been largely set aside as a travelling day. We were going to continue driving some more of the Southern Scenic Route (SSR). However, we first went back to the wildlife park to watch the Takahe feeding at 9.15 am. M chatted to the conservation woman (a different one from yesterday). She told us that the fertile eggs that were being incubated by the Takahe in the next pen were not, in fact, eggs belonging to that Takahe couple. The couple were infertile but their eggs had been removed and replaced with two eggs taken from clutches belonging to wild birds. Apparently they won't know the difference. We continued on our drive along the SSR, retracing our steps to Manapouri. After this it ... read more
20.  Rakatu Wetlands
28.  Clifden Suspension Bridge
50. M at McCracken's Rest Lookout

Oceania » New Zealand » South Island » Otago December 1st 2013

Sunday 1st December, 2013. Central Otago, South Island, New Zealand. We hadn't made any plans for today but had to be in Te Anau this evening as we had reserved the youth hostel there. D fancied looking at the Kawarau Gorge and visiting the wine areas of the Gibbston valley. So after loading up the car off we went. We first retraced our tracks to Arrowtown but used an alternative, more scenic route to get there. We crossed the Edith Cavell Bridge and pulled in to the visitor centre just the other side. Here it is possible to go jet boating up the Dart River. The graceful bridge is famous in its own right and is a tribute to a WW1 nurse (and also the miner who refused to give up on honouring her memory). Edith ... read more
16. Bunge Jumping Kawarau Suspension Bridge - Retrieving the Jumper
29. D on the Kawarau Suspension Bridge
42. M with our Guide Aaron -  Gibbston Valley Vineyard Tour

Oceania » New Zealand » South Island » Otago » Queenstown September 19th 2013

Geo: -45.0311, 168.663Day 11 - Queenstown to WanakaGiven the fact that the Haast Pass was still not open and bad weather was expected on the West Coast for the weekend we decided to blow Queenstown and spend the day in Wanaka at the junction of State Highway 6 and 8. One highway will take us to the West Coast the other to Lake Tekapo and up the centre of the Canterbury Region to our destination of Hanmer Springs.There were to ways we could reach Wanaka, a windy trek over the infamous Crown Ranges and a flatter route through Cromwell and the Gibson Valley. With Debi very nervous about high windy roads we took the route through the Gibson Valley home to many fine wineries. Temped to stop for a tipple we kept driving as we would ... read more
Lake Wanaka
Lake Wanaka
Puzzling World - Wanaka

Oceania » New Zealand » South Island » Otago » Dunedin September 14th 2013

Geo: -45.8746, 170.503After some overnight rain we woke to a cold but clear morning. We ordered some room service breakfast as we had an early start, needing to be in Te Anau by 12.00 pm to catch a trip to the Glow Worm Caves. We refuelled the car for the first time and I was pleasantly surprised at both the price of fuel and the low amount of diesel that the Santa Fe had actually used. The trip down highway 1 was pleasing on the eyes but Debi complained of a headache because she saw two many sheep.Our first stop was Gore, the Brown Trout capital of the South Island, here we found the Hokonui Moonshine Museum and the home of the south's illicit whiskey making. This was well worth a stop and we even tried ... read more
On the road to Te Anau
Boarding for the Te Anau Glow Worm Cave Tour
Lake Te Anau - the second largest lake in NZ




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