As mentioned on twitter a while back I’ve become addicted to watching the Karearea (NZ Falcons) at Zealandia. The breeding pair have one chick this year and it has recently fledged. I was lucky enough to stumble upon the chosen resting spot earlier this week and got some good photos. I’m also lucky enough not […]
U2
We travelled up to Auckland last week, primarily to see U2 on Thursday night at Mt Smart Stadium. Along with Keryn’s parents, Travis and Sophie we drove to the stadium (so glad we didn’t use public transport) and found parks easily enough, if a little distant from the stadium itself. Approaching the stadium we could […]
South Island: Kaikoura to Picton
Out whale watching trip was booked for 7.45am so I figured up get up extra early and see the sunrise. The weather looked good as I walked across the railway lines out the back of the hostel and went down on to the beach. I watched as the snow capped mountains turned pink with the […]
South Island: Arthur’s Pass to Kaikoura
We had breakfast in the restaurant area and it was simple but OK. We then packed and drove to the nearby carpark we had walked through yesterday to do the other waterfall walk, this time to see the Bridal Veil falls. Through quiet forest we followed the track again upwards, though not as steep as […]
South Island: Hokitika to Arthur’s Pass
Our last few hours on the West Coast started by heading north from Hokitika towards Kumara Junction where we turned eastward. At Kumara we stopped to have a look at a photo gallery. The work was very good and I bought a print, I’ll have to have a look at it later to get the […]
South Island: The Hokitika Gorge and Lake Kaniere
The forecast today wasn’t that great as as we drove towards the Hokitika Gorge in the morning the mist and low cloud turned to drizzle and mist. There were a few cars at the gorge walk car park and more than a few large sandflies as well, maybe the bites distracted me as I set […]
South Island: Westport to Hokitika
All packed at Westport we headed south, first stop back at Punakaiki. Through blind luck we timed our visit with high tide which meant we got to see some blow hole action. Getting photos was proving to be troublesome, in the end we resorted to patience and simply waited until the waves got the right […]
South Island: Denniston, Cape Foulwind & Punakaiki
Our first trip of the day saw us heading north of Westport to the old mining town of Denniston. On public holidays, today being Labour Day, the Denniston Friends of the Hill historical society (the FotH website appears to have expired) opens their doors at the old School building and their records can be viewed. […]
South Island: Karamea to Westport
A short drive today down from Karamea to another Marram house, this time just out of Westport at Carters Beach. Today’s walk was on the Charming Creek Walkway, accessible just behind the coal works at Hector. The first section of track follows the old railway line that was used to facilitate coal extraction from further […]
South Island: The Heaphy Track & Oparara Basin
We got a fair bit of walking down today, even though the weather wasn’t the best with occasional showers getting more frequent as the afternoon wore on. Driving north from Karamea we headed towards the start of the Heaphy Track, passing farmland seemingly populated more by pukeko and weka than cows and sheep. We were […]
South Island: Kaiteriteri to Karamea
After packing and tidying up the accommodation in Kaiteriteri we started the journey to Karamea. Trusting the sat nav we made easy progress south before turning more westerly passing through Murchison and the Buller Gorge as we continued towards Westport on the coast. We stopped at a hilltop rest area to try and get some […]
South Island: Abel Tasman Coastal Walk
Our water taxi was booked to take us from the beach at Kaiteriteri at 8:30am, or so we thought. Turns out the time on the ticket was incorrect and pick-ups don’t start till 9am in the off season, thanks for telling us and advertising the wrong details Aqua Taxi. It was a lovely morning and […]