A journey round New Zealand in February 2007
10th to 18th day
- Visit to Arrowtown,an old gold rush own, and its restored Chinese dwellings
- The Kingston Flyer
- View from our room at the Campbell Auto Lodge, the best place to stay in New Zealand
- Weather: fine
The dry creek bed on the edge of the Chinese village
View from our bedroom at the Campbell Auto Lodge
looking out over Lake Te Anau
The main street of Te Anau
- Early start for the long drive to Milford Sound
- Spectacular boat trip around the Sound
- Visit to the Underwater Marine Laboratory
- "-hur round trip walk to Key Summit (which we had done in wet weather as the first part of the Routeburn
- Weather: a brilliantly fine day
Long cloud over Lake Te Anau in the early morning
The boat which takes you to the start of the Milford trail on the other side of the lake
Reflections of the mountains in Mirror Lake
A kea looking for food from tourists (much discouraged)
The Cloddau River which has bored out
these extraordinary shapes in the rock
Boats at the jetty at Milford Sound
Seals enjoying the sunshine
Kayaks in the Sound - looked like hard work
Mural explaining how the layer of fresh rainwater cuts out the light to the salt water below, and thus causes the "black coral" to grow at much shallower depths
The "black coral" is actually white when it is alive but goes black when dead
This valley is the end of the Milford Trail
Interesting patterns of light and shade at the Terminal
Repeating our previous walk to Key Summit
These 5 pictures are a 180 degree panorama from the summit
Distant view of Lake Marian - a "hanging valley" formed by a glacier
- Visit to the Kawarau Gorge Mining Centre
Pelton's Patent Hurdy-Gurdy water wheel. This undershot whell develops 4 horsepower.
The patent related to the divider which sends the water out sideways rather than straight back, and thus develops 30% more power. A simple device with a very powerful effect.
The Chinese workers who came after the initial rush to rework the goldfields built more substantial huts than the lean-tos of the original miners
Five stamp mill quartz crusher, relocated from Glenorchy in 1985
Water jet for washing out gold-bearing silt
Gold panning demonstration. The pan is zinc-plated and has ridges all round the rim. First you wash out all the fine silt. Then, with the pan tipped away from you, slide the lighter pebbles out. When you are left with the heavy fine silt, swirl round with a "wave motion" and the tiny flecks (or very occasionally small nuggets) of gold become visible in the lowest part of the pan.
Old stationary steam engine
Masses of roadside lupins to liven up a rather parched landscape
Memorial to the first deep introduced into Otago. They adapted far too well, and eventually because pests. Many of the wild deer have recently been captures, and they are now farmed for venison.
- Superb views of Mount Cook in the early morning
- Walking the Sealy Tarns track (3 to 4 hours, it took us 4 hours and 15 mins)
- 365 km
- Tom and Rona's house in Christchurch
- Thermal baths at Hanmer Springs and the museum
- Weather: cloudy with occasional showers and some sunny spells
The thermal baths
Main street of Hanmer Springs
The Karter Kollection Museum
Cars
Cars
and hundreds of other things as well
- Nature trail at the foot of the St James Walkway
- Maruia Springs thermal spa
- Weather: cloudy with occasional showers and some sunny spells
Sundew
Sundew (Drosera arcturi)
Turpentine scrub (Dracophyllum uniflorum)
Bog pine with male cones (Halocarpus bidwillii)
Daisy leaves with protective cover against sunburn
Spider's nest, with young spiders just hatched)
Snowberries
The pool at Maruia Springs
Maruia Falls, formed by an earthquake
Evening walk to the Peninsula on Lake Rotoiti
c
- Chalet at the Yellow Hut, St. Arnaud
- Short walk up Mount Robert
- Weather: early cloud clearing to a nice sunny day
New Zealand bracken (Pteridium esculentum) The Maoris make a kind of bread out of the rhizomes
Marbleleaf (Maori:Putaputaweta)
New Zealand bluebell (Wahlenberdia albomarginata)
The same flower (in non-bluebell mode)
Bugle
Cloud mist on grasses
Kanuka - White Tea Tree (used by the early Maori to make the shafts of bird spears)
- Marahau to Bark Bay by water taxi
- Bark Bay to Torrent Bay (7.8 km - 2 to 3 hours)
- Torrent Bay to Anchorage Hut ( low tide route (1 km - 20 mins)(4 km. at high tide)
- Achorage Hut to Marahau (11.5 km - 3 to 4 hours)
- Weather: cloudy but warm - ideal for walking
Low tide at Marahau
They bring your taxi to the door
The "split apple" rock
Starting out from Bark Bay - the track is very well maintained with no steep or stony sections
Tree fern (left)
Rimu - red pine
?Mingimingi
Torrent Bay
Grey heron
In another hour, all of this sand between Torrent Bay and Anchorage will be under water
Tide-sculptured rocks which could have been the work of Gaudi
Anchorage Bay
Lichen
?Pigeonwood
Looking back - the start of the Abel Tasman trail from the south at Marahau
Sculpture of the Maori king of the gods - done in situ