Coast to Coast Walk

Coast to Coast Walk, originally uploaded by Fluffy Bear.

There is a Coast to Coast walkway in Auckland that takes you through the city taking in many points of historical interest and fine views. We thought we'd give it a go - especially as it had route markers like the one above. It would be easy!

We got up early (for once), caught the bus into Auckland and made our way to the start. We saw the nice yellow signs and off we went.

Immediately we came across some interesting old buildings from Auckland's past. The trail signs had started to hide but we had a map and so knew roughly where to go.

After a while we came to The Domain - a large park in the center of the city. Suddenly the trail signs were back again and so Kate & Fiona led the way - passing some interesting modern sculptures as we went. The trail led us along a path in a lovely wooded area where the path split three ways. Sadly there were no more signs to follow. We picked the most likely path and ended up in the middle of the park but with no more sight of the trail. We were very close to the Auckland museum though and after a quick family vote we the trail was ditched in favour of lunch and a look round.

There was a large exhibition of WW1 & WW2 artifacts including a spitfire and a Japanese Zero fighter. The best thing by far though was the volcano simulator which provided a feel (including earth tremors) of what it would be like if a volcano erupted in Auckland harbor.

We then walked back into the center of the city where we did some shopping and caught the bus home.

The North

Wizard, originally uploaded by Fluffy Bear.

For our final NZ mini break I took everyone up to the north. On the way we passed this interesting chap.

We visited the Bay of Islands and Kerikeri where they have the two oldest buildings in New Zealand and had a visit to another strangely decorated toilet.

KawaKawa Toilets, originally uploaded by Fluffy Bear.

There were some big trees, the story of a happy little dolphin and lots and lots of beautiful views.

You can see more about our trip here.

Bearman and the Dragon

Bearman and the Dragon, originally uploaded by Fluffy Bear.

The true purpose of my visit to New Zealand has finally come out into the open as rumours of a new Bearman movie (filmed entirely on location in New Zealand) surface. Peter Jackson will be furious!

Doubtful Sound

Doubtful Sound, originally uploaded by Fluffy Bear.

After our first night in Queenstown we drove further south to Manapouri for an overnight trip on Doubtful Sound. A boat was waiting to take us on a 50 minute cruise on Lake Manapouri where we would board a coach for a trip over the winding Wilmot Pass before ariving at Doubtful Sound itself.

The Lake Manapouri boat was called the Fiordland Flyer and quite large (no chance of getting my paws wet here). Softy and I took charge of the driving (helped by a nice man called Bruce) and we soon arived at the west end of the lake - next to the Manapouri Hydro Power Station (the largest in New Zealand).

We Take Control, originally uploaded by Fluffy Bear.

Whilst waiting to board the boat lots lof nastly little bugs called Sandflies buzzed Fiona and the other people. Luckily those of us with fur were not bothered by this but they all found it really annoying!

At the top of the Wilmot Pass we briefly got off the bus for our first (misty) view of Doubtful Sound. A short time later we were at the jetty boarding the Fiordland Navigator - our home for the next 24 hours.

We were soon underway. Once again my VIB status got us a special cabin - one with it's own bathroom and a door (most other people had to use the shared bathrooms and they only had a curtain for a door!). On his first trip down to the cabin Fiona's Dad was lucky enough to see a dolphin swimming along beside the boat. Everyone else had to wait until the following morning when we were joined by three or four of them.

We cruised along the sound until we reached the sea - pausing to view some seals on a nearby island and where you know who saw a swimming penguin (again the only person to see this!). We then turned around and went back down the sound to a calm area where the boat dropped anchor for 'fun' activities. Kate and her mum went for a ride in some little motor boats while Fiona and her dad went kayaking. Softy and I wisely stayed inside.

Kayaking, originally uploaded by Fluffy Bear.

After this we had a nice dinner and then went off to bed early as it was a 6:30 start the following morning.

There was some fuss during breakfast when some dolphins swam by causing everyone to leave their bacon and rush to one side of the boat. Luckily we didn't tip over and so were able to continue our cruise, this time though the narrowest part of the sound where we could get a good look at the steep cliff sides.

The driver seemed to go to sleep at one point as he took us right into an island.

Island Ahoy!, originally uploaded by Fluffy Bear.

I was going to take charge but he got it under control again and with some excellent driving took us very close to the shore for some great views of the some of the many waterfals that run down the cliff walls.

All too soon our time was up and we were back onto the coach for the short journey to Manapouri where the Flyer took us back to the car.

It was a wonderful trip. You can see some more photos here.

Queenstown

Queenstown, originally uploaded by Fluffy Bear.

After Lake Tekapo we went further south to Queenstown. This seems to be the adrenalin capital of NZ with opportunities everywhere to bungee jump, parascend, treck, dive, fly, sail, etc. Sadly all of the activities on offer had a minimum height requirement so I had to pass. We did however get to go on the Skyline Gondola - a ski lift thingy that takes you to the top of one of the hills overlooking Queenstown. The views are great.

They also have a fun thing up there called the luge. You get onto another ski lift which takes you further up the hill and then slide back down on a tray on wheels along a 400m concrete track. Fantastic fun!

We again stayed in the Youth Hostel however something obviously went wrong with the booking as we appeared to have been put in a small cupboard instead of a room.

The next day we went on down to Doubtful Sound returning the day after for another night in Queenstown. Luckily the room problem had been sorted for our second stay and I was able to get a good nights sleep.

One of the staff on the Doubtful Sound boat, a nice young lady called Jimmi, suggested that we go to a restaurant called Chop Chop when we got back to Queenstown. We did - and it was very nice. She also said that while we were there we had to take a look at the unusual gents toilets...

The Gents, originally uploaded by Fluffy Bear.

On our final morning we walked around town, the girls went shopping and we had a nice lunch sitting outside enjoying the sun. Kate found a man playing a strange musical instrument and we had a nice chat with him. In the afternoon we caught the plane back up to Auckland. Queenstown airport has rather large hills very close to it that the plane needs to clear. After my boat driving experience on the way to Doubtful Sound I thought that I could offer the pilot some assistance however he seemed to manage OK and we saw some wonderful views on the way back up North.

South Island Mountains, originally uploaded by Fluffy Bear.

Some other Queenstown photos can be seen here.

Lake Tekapo

Our Room, originally uploaded by Fluffy Bear.

After Christchurch we moved on to Lake Tekapo. The staff at the Youth Hostel had obviously been informed that a VIB (very important bear) was coming as we got the best room in the place complete with lakeside views.

The lake is an amazing blue colour caused by a mixture of glacial melt water (containing rock flour) mixing with fresh rain water. It reflects back just the blue light apparently.

We used Lake Tekapo for our base to visit Mount Cook - the highest peak in New Zealand - and the Tasman Glacier. On Saturday we drove to Mount Cook where we picked up a bus that took us to a car park in the middle of nowhere. Softy and I took a ride in the backpack as Fiona and the other people walked to a lake formed by the melting glacier. The colour of this lake was a stoney white colour - not at all like the blue we had got used to recently.

Lake Tasman, originally uploaded by Fluffy Bear.

At this point things went a bit wrong as yet another water activity beckoned. Softy and I were left in a shed as Fiona, Kate and the other people went for a trip on the lake. They dodged in and out amongst the icebergs and even got to eat a bit of one. After about an hour of sightseeing they had a fast boat ride back to the jetty where we were picked up and taken home again.

As usual you can see a few more photos here.

Christchurch - Kiwis, Eels and Penguins

I have come to the South Island for another short holiday. I came on my plane. A new car was waiting for me when I arrived (it was supposed to be automatic but it still needs the same old driver!)

I stayed at Christchurch in a nice (although slightly noisy) Youth Hostel. There is a very nice food shop over the road that Fiona and the other people like.

We met up with one of Grandma's friends and relations - a nice lady called Joan - who took us to Willowbank Nature Reserve. We fed eels from plastic spoons and then went to see some kiwis. As it was an evening tour the kiwis were quite active. We got really close to them. They are bigger than me and can run very fast.

This morning we went to Antarctica. It is in a big shed next to Christchurch airport. We saw some Little Blue penguins. They were very cute. We also went into a room that was very cold. We had to wear special clothes. At 11:00am they turned on a storm and it got even colder.

See our photos here.

We spent the rest of the day driving down to Lake Tekapo. More of this later.