New Zealand 2015   Stewart Island



Oban Harbour

The flight southward from Christchurch is conducted at an unusually low altitude due to the very strong southerly headwinds along the regular flight path which, as the hostess jokingly explained, could have seen us arrive in Invercargill the following day! The flight was through almost constant turbulence but as well as allowing us to arrive only a little over half an hour behind schedule, this had the bonus of providing great 'close-up' views of the countryside along the east coast.



Oban. Jo's B&B is the little blue house in the centre

Tui

After an overnight stay in Invercargill, an entertaining - thanks to our driver Kevyn - 35 minute drive brings us to the ferry terminal at a cool and blustery Bluff. Stewart Island lies some 25 kilometres distant across the rather exposed waters of Foveaux Strait but in spite of the strong head wind and one to two metre white-capped seas the crossing is rather uneventfully completed in just under an hour. The waters of Half Moon Bay are well protected from the prevailing winds and provide a safe harbour for the little settlement of Oban which seems to us to have changed very little in the fifty years since our first visit. The township nestles in the shelter of densely forested surrounding hills and offers the prospect of a perfect place to kick back and relax as the pace of life here is quite leisurely.

Acting on the recommendation of friends Joe and Beth we have booked into Jo and Andy's B & B - warm, friendly and a little 'quirky'. No-one is at home when we arrive but a note on the door invites us to make ourselves at home - "Your room is the second on the left," and to help ourselves to a 'cuppa' in the kitchen. Jo and Andy's love of books is immediately evident as each room has at least one full wall of floor to ceiling bookshelves crammed with volumes on pretty much every imaginable subject.


Kaka

We catch up with Jo as we browse through the interesting little local museum where she volunteers. Once home we quickly realise that she epitomises one of the many pearls of wisdom that adorn the walls of her home, "There are no such things as strangers, only friends that we have yet to meet." We have a new friend for life but sadly find that Andy lost his battle with cancer some twelve months ago. Her home is certainly very different from other B & Bs that we have stayed at but we have never been made to feel so welcome.

Oyster Catchers

Typical vegetation and walking trail

Our time is spent leisurely strolling the beaches and walking trails in and around Oban, chatting with locals and fellow visitors alike, catching up with local birdlife and conversations with Jo at every opportunity. Tuis, kakas, and New Zealand pigeons, tomtits and robins abound in  the forest and around the town while along the beaches oyster catchers, terns, gulls and albatross abound. Many other birds are also present in numbers but in the dense upper foliage and low light under persistent overcast skies they are often heard but infrequently glimpsed. In spite of the fact that kiwis are quite numerous and can often be seen in daylight hours they manage to elude us for the duration of our stay. It is none-the-less reassuring to know that they are doing so well in this reasonably protected environment where the regular presence of traps along the trails reminds of the constant battle against the devastation that introduced rats are inflicting on birdlife and pushing many to the brink of extinction throughout much of New Zealand.

White-headed albatross

A very rewarding day is spent on a guided visit to Ulva Island which, like Stewart Island itself, is something of a Noah's Ark for endangered wildlife. This small island has, since the mid 1980s, been kept completely rat free due to ongoing trap setting, constant vigilance by Parks staff and checking by a specially trained Jack Russell terrier as there is always the possibility of rats stowing away on visiting vessels or swimming the intervening waters separating Ulva from the main island.

Back on the main island our fruitless search for the elusive kiwi continues but Jo finds time to introduce us to some of her very special, less frequented locations a little further afield from Oban. It makes us feel rather special.

In spite of the leisurely pace of life in Oban unfortunately our calendar and watches remained on real time and our stay in Oban flies by all too quickly and we bid farewell to both Stewart Island and to Jo and begin our homeward journey.

Elaine and Jo

New Zealand 2015 North Island

After eighteen months of planning and anticipation we finally arrive in New Zealand with John and Barbara Bell to celebrate a shared 50^th wedding anniversary.

The view across a stormy Lake Taupo

 The journey south from Auckland on Highway One provides comfortable driving – apart from regular road up-grade works – for the rather long drive to Taupo. The green landscape contrasts vividly with the conditions left behind at home and the steely grey sky both offers a clue as to why and forewarns of the possibility of more rain to come. The lake itself is being whipped into white-caps by a strong breeze which offers good conditions for the para-sailors but is proving difficult for the novice sailors in a small fleet of Sabots. Across the lake the massive shapes of the three volcanic peaks forming the Tongariro massive – Tongariro, Ngauruhoe and Ruapehu – rise eerily through the mist, their heads shrouded in cloud.

The impressive Huka Falls

Taupo is a bustling town providing a central base for both outdoor sporting activities and  holiday makers which for us include the Botanic Gardens, Museum, Rose Garden and, of course Huka Falls on the impressive Waikato River. The nearby geothermal power station has significantly impacted the local geothermal areas such as the Valley of the Moon. A circumnavigation of the Tongariro National Park fails to provide a view of the upper peaks but does run through the very arid country created to the east in the rain shadow of Ruapehu thus providing New Zealand’s only desert country. The following day this section of road was briefly closed due to an unexpected fall of around fifteen centimetres of snow!



Dawson Falls

The journey westward to Stratford provides an unexpected bonus in the form of the "Forgotten Highway" which, while not as often travelled as other roads, provides plenty of fascinating moments. The road, much of which is unsealed, snakes its way around steep-sided hills, above deep stream gullies, across numerous passes and between the impressive seventy metre high walls of Tangarakau Gorge. The frequent landslips and sharp bends demand attentive driving but the rewards are worth it. On a knoll above a bridge is the grave of a young engineer who died in this, at the time, very remote place as he worked to forge the difficult passage through the gorge. 

Shortly after leaving the gorge is the historic little settlement of  Whangamomona which in 1989 proclaimed independence from New Zealand.  You can pick up a passport at the local hotel which would provide a suitable overnight stop to both break the journey and allow more time to enjoy the area at a more leisurely pace. A narrow gauge railway line wends its way along beside the stream and is still in use as evidenced by the presence of maintenance vehicles  close by one of the crossings. As Stratford draws nearer, small farms and occasional well kempt small rural schools begin to appear.



The trail to Wilkies Pools

Stratford, situated at the foot of Mt Taranaki,  is a bustling little township which provides service to the surrounding rural districts and is the gateway to Dawson Falls which, as we approach, is under the shroud of mist which is enveloping all but the lower skirt of the mountain. The last few kilometres of roadway as it passes through dense rainforest is as narrow and as winding as we remember and, as we are soon reminded,  requires constant vigilance to avoid not-so-careful on-coming traffic!

We are warmly received at Dawson Falls Mountain Lodge by our host Markus and ushered to our very comfortable rooms before relaxing by the open fire in the lounge whilst catching fleeting glimpses of the mountain through the swirling clouds being
hustled past the snow-capped peak by very strong winds. Dawson Falls is the hub of a network of walking trails radiating out through luxuriant forest with both the ground and the tree trunks covered in mosses, lichens, ferns and orchids while the branches are draped with 'old man's beards' of lichens sparkling with droplets of water - very reminiscent of Tasmania. The walks range from easy strolls  on well formed and signed tracks to Dawson Falls - the actual waterfall - and Wilkies Pools to access to Fantham Peak and the Summit itself which, due to the strong winds, poor visibility and icy conditions is only accessible to fully equipped and experienced climbers. Apart from the little café at the lodge there is nowhere to buy supplies or lunch so each day we drive down 

Mt Taranaki awakes

the mountain to either Stratford or the quaint little  settlement of Kaponga where the recently restored local pub provides both good meals and accommodation and has restored new life to this community.

Our 50th anniversaries are celebrated in style on the 18th with a delicious meal prepared by Markus and is finished with a complimentary port.

Mist and cloud continue to frustrate our attempts to see the mountain until the final evening when we are treated to magnificent clear views of the summit and the distinctive Shark's Tooth in the rays of the setting sun. The following morning we are up at sunrise and once again enjoying amazing views of the mountain as it awakens to the golden rays of the sun as it


East towards Tongariro

 peeps above the peaks of the Tongariro massive
 which themselves are now showing their heads
above the blanket of low-lying fog. The hills along
 the Forgotten Highway also show their ghostly
 forms Hobbit-like above the mist.

Following breakfast we rather sadly leave the mountain for the last time and head into New Plymouth where, at the airport, we bid farewell to the Bells as they head back to Auckland for the flight home and we board a domestic flight which will take us southward towards Stewart Island.