Forgot to post this map the other day showing our route around the South Island of New Zealand.
Brian's Back Blog
Flotsam & Jetsam while sailing from Point A to Point B...
Wednesday, June 18, 2014
Thursday, June 12, 2014
Aotearoa...South Island Tour: Part III
Me and Peter-Alexander on our Air New Zealand flight from Auckland to Christchurch. |
One of the many ruined buildings in the Christchurch central business district. |
Peter-Alexander in the campervan...such luxury! |
View from the rim of the inactive volcano overlooking Akaroa. |
Sunset over the Banks Peninsula. |
Lake Tekapo and the Southern Alps. |
Another view of Lake Tekapo. |
Aoraki (Mount Cook) as seen from our campervan. |
Eunice and Francois at Aoraki. |
I love the Moeraki Boulders! These guys would make great lawn decorations. LOL! |
Pints with Hannah at a local university pub. |
The Dunedin Railway Station. |
Milford Sound (photo courtesy of PAB). |
Malll Street pedestrian block is filled with shops and cafes |
The Franz Josef Glacier (it's the part behind the lone lone tree just left of center). |
Sunset at Hokitika on the West Coast of South Island. |
The vineyard at Milcrest Estate in the Marlborough wine region. |
These guys will end up in a Pinot Noir. Yum! |
The Free House in Nelson...so many choices! |
The coastline outside of Kaikoura. |
Abel Tasman National Park as seen from the plane on our return trip to Auckland. |
Stay tuned for the next installment...Australia! And enjoy these other photos from my South Island tour.
Christchurch: Tribute to its reconstruction. |
After the earthquake and the toppling of many buildings in the CBD, businesses moved into containers that were grouped together and stacked right outside of the CBD. |
Akaroa scene. |
Lake Tekapo: Selfie with Peter-Alexander. |
Mount John: The observatory at the peak. |
On the way to Aoraki. |
Aoraki: White Horse Hill National Park. Our luxurious campervan with Aoraki in background. |
Aoraki: Peter-Alexander greets our morning visitors. Hmm? Do we have any duck confit left? If not... |
Oamaru: Waterford Road shops and cafes. |
Oamaru scene. |
Dunedin: Court House. |
Dunedin: Pouring myself a schooner at Speight's Brewery. I think I see a career change in my future. |
Otago Peninsula: Baby penguins at the Penguin Place Hospital. |
Mirror Lake. |
Cascade Creek campsite. |
Erlington River hike. |
Waiho River swing bridge at Franz Josef Glacier. |
Franz Josef Glacier: Sometimes I get so excited that I just jump up and down. Don't you? |
Lake Wanaka. |
Nelson: Free House Tap House. |
Nelson: HOPS! |
Nelson: The perfect snack! |
Sunday, June 8, 2014
Aotearoa...North Island Tour: Part II
Connolly and our campervan; home for the next ten days. |
Your driver for the next ten days. |
Our Scottish friends and us enjoying a soak at Hot Water Beach. |
After breakfast we headed out to Whitianga and what is known as the "Hot Water Beach". Here's the deal...You head out to the beach on an outgoing tide and rent a shovel, dig a hole and watch hot water bubble up into your "pool". It's like having your very own hot tub on the beach. The day we went it was a little overcast but that was fine for us as the hot water pools were the perfect temperature for just hanging out with a few beers on the beach. You have to get there early as all the good spots get taken quickly. If you are too close to the thermal springs, the water will be so hot that you cannot get in; too far from the source and your pool gets flooded by the ocean waves and its too cold. A young Scottish couple on holiday invited us to join them in their pool (which they had recently acquired as it was abandoned) and the seven of us enjoyed a relaxing time soaking in our hot tub.
The campervan gang at Wai-O-Tapu. |
A campfire, extended happy hour and friends...does it get any better than this? |
Daniel, Esther, me and Connolly; Tongariro National Park. |
This is where the two campervans separated as Hannah, Daniel and Esther needed to get back to Auckland to catch a flight back to Perth, Australia. We had breakfast, said goodbye, and Connolly and I headed south to Wellington.
Helluva weekend in Wellington! No pics so here's a random shot of Connolly prepping a meal in the van. |
Our campervan, Connolly and Mount Taranaki. There is so much more to the mountain that was obscured by cloud cover. |
River along the Forgotten World Highway. |
Surf Beach at Whale Bay. Watch out for the rocks! |
10 days, 2 dudes, you gotta expect a bit of a mess! |
Here's a map of the route we took (approximate) and some additional pics taken along the way. Stay tuned for Part III: South Island Tour.
Approximate map of North Island Tour route. Started in Auckland and ended in Auckland. I know the little tag says 1815 kilometers, but in reality we clocked about 2000 kilometers. |
View from our first campsite on Coromandel Peninsula. |
Sun setting on the Coromandel Penisula. |
We wondered about how offensive this might be to blind people. Then we thought about it. Still felt a bit weird. |
North Island countryside. Yes, that's our road down there. |
Connolly testing the law. |
Me and Connolly at Hot Water Beach. |
Daniel and Hannah, roadside brekkie at Wai-O-Tapu. |
Esther, Daniel, and Hannah inside their campervan. This was silly drinking game night. It involved dice and lots of booze. That's all I remember. |
The waterfall in Tongariro National Park that was used in one of the Lord of the Rings movies. |
Connolly on the harmonica. Dylan he is not. But kudos for a valiant effort! |
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