- Starting the trip, the Bay of Islands, and the Muriwai Gannet Colony
- The Coromandel Peninsula
- The road to Wellington
- Northeastern South Island — Wine Tasting, Abel Tasman, Nelson, and Havelock
- Kaikoura — marine life everywhere!
- Christchurch, a stay on the farm, and the TranzAlpine Train
- Starting down the West Coast — things are starting to get real!
- A glacier’ing we will go!
- Queenstown
- Milford Sound and Fjordland National Park
As we headed south towards Wellington, we increasingly left the isolated, natural beauty behind for things more aligned with civilization and culture. Our first stop was outside Waihi at the Martha Mine. As I noted in an earlier post, hard rock mining had largely waned in the 1930s but it had a resurgence in the 1970s. This time, however, rather than individual mine shafts, they chose to go with open pit mining. Apparently they pull $1M worth of gold and silver a week out of this mine and employ over 200 locals. They say they use eco-friendly methods to process the crushed ore and contain the tailings, but who knows?
We ended up in Rotorua, which sits on the southern shore of Lake Rotarua. It’s known as “Sulfur City,” because of its geothermal activity and, yes, it does smell like rotten eggs. There we stopped for a soak at a hot springs but it didn’t hold the same level of interest as “our” Hot Water Beach. The highlight of our stay there was a traditional Maori hangi feast at one of the Maori villages. The evening began with a welcome ceremony, followed by a variety of indigenous songs and dances, leading up to the dinner. I always have mixed feelings about this types of performances as they seem to commercialize their culture. But, given the limited amount of time we had in the area, it was probably the best way to sample Maori traditions.
Continuing on the “sulphur” trail, the next day we took a boat trip out to Whakaari (White Island) which is about 30 miles off the coast in the Bay of Plenty. In effect, the island is the cone of a very large submarine volcano. It’s somewhat weird that they let us visit this island in that it has erupted almost continually since it was discovered by Capt. Cook in 1769 and multiple people have died there. Getting on and off the island is a challenge, since there is a surge by the “pier,” sending the boat up and down, making your timing pretty much everything. From there you are issued a hardhat and ventilator. And you need them as you walk between sulfurous steam vents, boiling mud pots, and lots of exposed sulfur. In any regard, we walked around the roughly 800 acre island and marveled at the rawness of it all. Having said that, we were pleased to leave after a few hours, counting our blessings that nothing erupted while we were there.
After our White Island visit, we continued south, admiring the variety of volcanic cones, lakes, and rivers. Much of the hydroelectric power for the North Island comes from the Waikato River system. We stopped to admire the Huka Falls, which is part of the hydro system. It’s interesting that the river flows are increased during the day to account for the additional daytime electricity needs. Pretty clever!
Upon our arrival in Wellington, it was time to say farewell to the two ladies who spent the first week with us in the North Island. For the next two weeks, it would be only Moira, Lauren, Deb, and me as we adventured around the South Island.
This entry was posted in New Zealand, Travel
I am a traveler and sometimes clay sculptor, following a long career working in consulting. My work allowed me to travel the world extensively and I was hooked. Today, I travel with my wife/best friend to explore new places, meet new people, and learn new things.
