This is part of a series called New Zealand Today, we got a very early start, getting on the Interislander Ferry across the Cook Strait and the Marlborough Sound to New Zealand’s South Island. Â After a spectacular sunrise, we enjoyed a very calm transit of about 3.5 hours enroute to Picton. Â Some of our group…
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This is part of a series called New Zealand As we headed south towards Wellington, we increasingly left the isolated, natural beauty behind for things more aligned with civilization and culture. Â Our first stop was outside Waihi at the Martha Mine. Â As I noted in an earlier post, hard rock mining had largely waned in…
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This is part of a series called New Zealand After spending a quick evening in Auckland, we headed out to the Coromandel Peninsula, one of the most scenic coastlines in New Zealand. Â The Coromandel has nearly 250 miles of coastline to explore and around 100 offshore islands to admire. Â For many years, the industry on…
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This is part of a series called New Zealand The plan for our time in Australia was to work half time and travel half time. During the first part of the year, other than the Tasmania trip, Glen had been working more than that ratio. As a consequence, we planned a 3-week trip to New…
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This is part of a series called Tasmania Circumnavigation! Cradle Mountain was our last truly isolated stop on the trip. Â As we proceeded north and the east, we made a number of short stops as we headed back to Launceston. Â Our first was at the wind farm complex at Woolnorth — a blustery cape in…
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This is part of a series called Tasmania Circumnavigation! After a short ride, we arrived at Cradle Mountain National Park, which is part of the Tasmanian Wilderness World Heritage area. Â Cradle Mountain is the most popular location for visitors in Tasmania, despite (or perhaps because of) its isolation. Â In every direction you look you will…
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This is part of a series called Tasmania Circumnavigation! Travel in Western Tasmania is very different from the East — it’s rougher, less populated, and full of natural beauty. Â You had to be an adventurous soul (or a convict) to explore and live out here. Â After spending much of our tour in civilization, it was…
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This is part of a series called Tasmania Circumnavigation! We then spent a few days in Hobart, the capital and largest city in Tasmania. Â It sits at the base of Mount Wellington and at the edge of the River Derwent. Â It’s actually the second deepest port in the world, which probably speaks to its history…
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This is part of a series called Tasmania Circumnavigation! As we continued south along the East Coast of Tasmania towards Port Arthur, we made a brief stop at the Sandspit Forest Preserve. Â this is part of the Wielangta Forest which covers over 90,000 acres. Â We just had time for a short walk on the Robertson’s…
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This is part of a series called Tasmania Circumnavigation! We started working our way down the East Coast of Tasmania. Â One of our stops was at East Coast Natureworld, a 150 acre wild animal park that showcases Tasmania’s unique animals, birds, and reptiles. Â They are also a sanctuary for what they call “orphans of the…
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