Blogs from Te Anau, Fiordland National Park, South Island, New Zealand, Oceania - page 9

Eating before boating - damned if you do, damned if you don't

Oceania » New Zealand » South Island » Fiordland National Park » Te Anau October 5th 2005

Greetings from Te Anau, the gateway to the largest national park in New Zealand. We're about to go on an overnight cruise on Milford Sound. Te Anau is a town of about 3,000, on pictureque Lake Te Anau. Last night we took a boat across Lake Te Anau, to the Te Ana-Au caves. With a guide and about 10 other people, we toured through the caves, mostly by way of a small boat. The caves house thousands of glow worms, and in most parts of the pitch-black caves, they are the only source of light. The caves are filled with gushing waterfalls and swirling pools. The tour was at 6:45, and we had eaten a late lunch, so we decided that we'd eat dinner after the glowworm caves. Based on our last experience of eating before ... read more

Dunedin, Queenstown a Kepler Trek

Oceania » New Zealand » South Island » Fiordland National Park » Te Anau September 23rd 2005

zapad slnka

pajka

19.9.2005 - z Dunedinu do Queenstownu pise Miro Kym predosly den bolo letne pocasie a uzivali sme si slnecne prechadzky na plazi, toto rano nas prekvapil vonku sneh. Riadne sa ochladilo. Zvlastnostou je ze Zealandania kuria velmi minimalne, doma nemaju ziadne klasicke riadiatory ani ustredne kurenie. Ak vobec kuria, tak len malymi prenosnymi elektrickymi radiatormi. V to rano u Johna som nameral na izbe teplotu 12 stupnov Celzia. Nechapeme ako to tu vsetci zvladaju. Nam dodavaju nadhlad nad vecou a usmev na tvari nase paperove spacaky do -40 stupnov, ktore vzdy nasadime do akcie proti chladu. V to rano bol sneh potom aj na pastvinach za mestom smerom na zapad uz vo vyske 300 m.n.m. Cestou do Queenstownu sme prechadzali takmer opustenymi zlatokopeckymi mesteckami ktore mali kedysi tisicky obyvatelov, ale teraz uz tam byva len hrstka ... read more

Queenstown to te anau

Oceania » New Zealand » South Island » Fiordland National Park » Te Anau August 16th 2005

Ice Bar

PHYSIO DAVE

Gem here, Yes okay it's beena few days since our last blog, but have been fitting so much into days and finding internet outlets that allow you to put on photos is a bit tricky. Queenstown was fab, went up the Gondola, hint don't do this if you are petrified of heights, or at least take some valium before hand, or like me close your eyes all the way up there and ask other passenger when you get to the top. Amazing views from the top, when I eventually opened my eyes long enough. Went on the luge, buggy thing down a track right at the top of big hill overlooking queenstown. Well recommended, this is so much fun. Had to get another chairlift up to the start, put on the dodgy looking helmets and then ... read more

Across the 45th Parallel

Oceania » New Zealand » South Island » Fiordland National Park » Te Anau June 21st 2005

Mini Chuck

EDAF 2005

It was a beautiful morning to cross the sounds, although I felt decidedly dodgy, which was compounded by the twistyness of Queen Charlotte Drive - but what a drive. The view from the road was spectacular. We arrived in Nelson and opted to stay at the Palace, a victorian house overlooking the town. We went out for a couple of drinks and met a girl from Arran - we scots get everywhere!!! The following morning we went to the local market - loads of organic food and arts and crafts (we only made a couple of small purchases). An early start for our kayaking trip along the Abel Tasman. We drove to the base (it was cheaper than getting picked up!!) and arrived in advance of our youthful companions on the Kiwi Experience. Decked out in ... read more

On the land, in the air and on the water

Oceania » New Zealand » South Island » Fiordland National Park » Te Anau February 21st 2005

The Kingston Flyer Steam Train

Anat

What a day... Full of adventures! In the morning we left the beautiful hostel in Wanaka, said good bye to all the travellers, and headed south to Te Anau, in the Fiordland. Our first stop on the way was Arrowtown. We didn't find what was interesting in the town except that we managed to shop AGAIN :-) (some beautiful jewlery, yes, again. They have stuff made of a shell called Paua shell, and I fell in love with it). On the way we stopped for WC, and only thanks to that, completely by chance, we saw the steam train that is still opearting in a place called Kingston. For tourist only of course... but still nice. We arrived to Te Anau and booked an evening trip to a cave with worms. Yes, cave with worms, no ... read more

Te Anau

Oceania » New Zealand » South Island » Fiordland National Park » Te Anau January 5th 2003

View from the Barnyard

Ali

Went with Clare, Phil and Laura to Te Anua, Clare’s car is properly broken, not fixable. She now has to hitch. Laura was nice enough to give all three of us a lift. It’s a familiar story shared by backpackers around the world. Stayed in the Barnyard backpackers, we have a small cottage with a marvellous view. It’s very open plan, kitchen, sitting, dining rooms and six beds all in the same room. The view looks out across farmland, and over to mountains. Deer in the field in front of the cottage bray at sunset and dawn. Went on an ecology walk into a wilderness scientific reserve near Te Anua. Professor Allan Mark explained the history of the wilderness, the roles of the moss, bog pine and the problem of yet more introduced species. This time ... read more

Brief history of New Zealand

The Polynesian Maori reached New Zealand in about A.D. 800. In 1840, their chieftains entered into a compact with Britain, the Treaty of Waitangi, in which they ceded sovereignty to Queen Victoria while retaining territorial rights. In that same year...more history

Forum Topics for Te Anau

Rakiura TrackPosts: 4

Pre-pay mobile phone SI...Posts: 9

Win one of two 24 Day A...Posts: 1

24 hours in AucklandPosts: 9

Christchurch (NZ) earth...Posts: 30

Best time of day???Posts: 2

Rental cars.....best ag...Posts: 2

TB Auckland (NZ) get-to...Posts: 15

Is there a more beautif...Posts: 5

Top 10Posts: 2

South Island Hidden Gem...Posts: 8