tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32208443712623460322024-03-05T05:08:09.676-08:00Hobbit Stalking 2011A TRAVEL BLOG BY RUTH,GARY & THE GRUFFALO(tm) TRAVELLING NEW ZEALAND AND MAYBE A BIT OF AUSTRALIA (if the money doesn't run out) IN 2011GARYhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14901677395703706647noreply@blogger.comBlogger45125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3220844371262346032.post-31155858265737949412011-05-30T09:53:00.000-07:002011-06-01T05:31:34.407-07:00We are homeSorry but we seem to have forgotten to let everyone know we are both back home in the UK now, how long for we are not too sure, we'd love to return and spend more time travelling more of Australia and the parts of NZ we missed. Anyway we are back and now slowly coming down to earth and trying to find a bit of work to fund another adventure. Apart from concluding, as this is the end of this journey, we'd rather think it as a new beginning. Anyone wanting go and have a travel and are dithering, all we can say don't worry and go ,if you don't like it you can always come back, and don't leave it too late, you'll realise when you've been you'll want more and time is precious!<br />
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Our last day and a half were spent in Sydney, the Sunday was our birthday too so we decided to cram in as much as we could. We arrived at the frankly excellent hotel in The Rocks early and left our luggage with them. The hotel was about five minutes from both the Opera House and the Harbour Bridge, we chose the Opera House first. The sun was shining and there was not many folk about so we got lots of pictures before heading on the official tour inside - all a dream come true for Gary. It's hard to describe what it's like seeing stuff that you have seen in books and on TV all your life - quite a thrill. Next was a ferry trip to Manly and its surf beach, this was grand, we had to buy shorts as it was so warm! There was stacks of people surfing and playing beach volleyball and just living the aussie life. We sat and walked along the beach for a few hours before getting the ferry back to Circular Quay. Quite unbelievably on the ferry we met Nessie and John, the couple from St Helens we'd met back in Taupo and Wellington all those weeks ago, they were working and living in Sydney, though their time was almost up too. The next (and last) day we left the bags at the hotel and had a walk into the city and then around the Botanic Gardens in the sun - big spiders and fruit bats in the gardens, before walking over the Harbour Bridge for a last look before heading to the airport in the afternoon ready for our flight home and the end of our jolly to the other side of the world.<br />
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</div>The EndGARYhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14901677395703706647noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3220844371262346032.post-61224036168278340292011-05-27T02:14:00.000-07:002011-05-27T02:24:30.099-07:00TasmaniaWell our apartment in Hobart was much nicer than the noisy backpackers - wouldn't be able to afford it on a budget though! We couldn't check in until after 2pm so we went on a Red Decker tour of Hobart to pass a chilly morning, the tour was guided by a chap called Ivan from Nottingham - there's no escaping us Brits. We saw Hobarts nice, historic bits - Battery Point, the Botanic Gardens, the site of the female factory from convict times and the Cascade Brewery amongst others. You could spend several days just exploring Hobart town, however we had other trips planned.<br />
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First trip was to the south west of Hobart - the Huon Valley. It was a cloudy, cold morning and the road out of Hobart was steep and busy, we were glad to be on a minibus and not bikes. We followed the Huon River for a time before heading into the managed forestry land around Greevston. Here we had a short walk spotting loads of mushrooms, some quite sinister looking, also the damage done to a tree by a Black Cockatoo and the ground by a Lyre bird - neither culprit to be seen though. We did glimpse Pademelon though, cute little mini wallabies. Then it was off to the Tahune airwalk, a metal walkway through the Myrtles and Gum trees (48 metres at it's highest point). Scott our guide was interested in all the natural history and was excellent pointing out all the items of interest. We had to cross two swing bridges, that we did swing and jump on, great fun but probably not approved of by the Tasmanian Forestry people! Next it was down to see the Big Tree, an old gum probably about 87 metres high, the biggest in Oz and one of the biggest flowering plants in the world - Redwoods don't flower so don't count in these statistics though they are bigger. Onwards again to the Hastings Caves, at a brief stop at the visitors centre Ruth was lucky enough to spot a Platypus very briefly. The caves were fab, millions of years old and full of different stalagtites and a large cave spider (apparently this was a little one as they can be a foot across!). Then it was back to Hobart passing Southport and Dover and lots of rainbows.<br />
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The next day was the trip to Mount Field National Park. This was a really cold morning, snow on Mount Wellington this time. Todays trip headed north west from Hobart, first stop was at the Russell Falls and the Horseshoe Falls, both very picturesque but it was freezing in the damp forest so we walked quickly! Further along the road we arrived at the alpine mosaic (at about 1000 metres above sea level), sort of like our moorlands but with Eucalyptus, there was ice up here, but it was beautiful. We walked around Lake Dobson looking for, but not seeing, Platypus. We had a snack at the shelter watching Red Necked Kangaroos - watching them watching us. Back down the hill a trip to see more tall trees, big 80 metre high gums. Next stop in a full day was at Something Wild, a wildlife sanctuary where we saw Pademelon, Koala, Eastern Quolls, Golden Possums. Tasmanian Devils, two Platypus and a Wombat. The Platypus were very good, though a good distance away they were below us so we could see them gliding about in the river really well. The Devils were completely mental, three sisters and a brother who manhandled them about, lots of squabbling and biting, in fact they looked quite manky from all their battlings. The Quolls were also entertaining - cute, spotty and vicious. But the highlight was the wombat, she'd been hand reared by the keeper but was of an age where she was being taught how to become independant ready for release into the wild. The bloke could still pick her up like a huge teddy bear but she could bite too. She wandered around letting us all pet her and tap her on the bum (rock hard and able to kill a dog in a burrow by whacking the dog's head into the roof). Last stop as it was going dark was Mount Wellington, a long climb up but no doubt fab mountain biking down. We looked at the views of Hobart and the peninsulas while stood in snow and freezing to death. Another good trip done.<br />
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The next day was our last trip with this particular company, we weren't as lucky with the weather this time - cold and teeming down. South east this time through the Tasman Peninsula to Port Arthur and the site of one of Australia's main convict settlements. The site was picked for use as a penal settlement as the Tasman Peninsula has two narrow necks, less than 50 metres between the sea on either side so easy to guard against escapees. We went through a place called Doo Town on the way - just a small settlement where all the houses have Doo in their names - Sheil Doo, Dr Doolittle, Doo Nix etc, really sort of bonkers. Then it was off to the coast to see the Devil's Kitchen blowhole and a walk in the rain through the bush to Waterfall Bay, it was all stunning but actually quite freezing. Next stop was at another wildlife sanctuary where we got to wander amongst and feed Kangaroos and Wallabies and then witness the Devil's feeding time. They really are quite daft animals, all was peaceful and relaxed and they looked cute - much less tatty than the day befores sepecimins. And then the keeper chucked in some wallaby road kill, they went deranged. Devil's brains apparently are mostly geared towards finding food and you can tell, they would get a piece of meat after much squabbling and then run off to look for a quiet spot to eat it, however they would keep encountering another Devil and run away again, they seemed to have no recollection of where they'd been and who was where, very amusing to watch. No love lost either - this was a mother and four sons, she wasn't going to let them have her food, big fights and snarling and toe biting, fab! Last to see was a bird show, this was mostly held indoors as it was still raining, we were introduced to a Cockatoo, a Galah, a Frogmouth and some rescued birds of prey. Next was Port Arthur where it was still raining. This wasn't quite what we expected but was interesting, all the old convict buildings and the settlement that had sprung up around. Gary found a Spriggs listed in the convicts register, but no Besfords. Last stop was the Federation Chocolate factory where everyone tasted and bought masses of chocolate - the nicest we'd tasted in months.<br />
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Our last Tasmania trip was a two day tour up the east coast. This tour headed straight north at first along the old coaching route between Hobart and Launceston through scenery very like the Scottish/English Border country. There was various bits of public art along the way such as highwaymen and stage coach images. First stop of the day was at Ross, this is an old town with plenty of historic buildings from the 18th century. It was interesting to walk around even in the rain. We saw and heard two Kookaburras which was a thrill. Next stop was in Freycinet National Park at a stunning beach (don't know what it was called), to get here we had to go through what I consider to be proper Australian countryside - sparse bush, burnt in places and red dirt. The beach had turquoise seas and white sands, beautiful but perishing cold unfortunately. After a walk along the beach (and the pies we'd bought in Ross) it was back on the bus for the short trip to Coles Bay and the start of the walk over to Wineglass Bay. The sun was out at last so we had a good walk over the saddle of the Hazards before heading down (past more Pademelons) to the Bay, really quite a top spot. We had a nice our mooching about, it was a shame it was chilly as this must be amazing in summer for swimming and relaxing for the day. A quick stop at Honeymoon Bay later as the sun was setting and then it was off to the hostel at Bicheno for the night. I can imagine that Bicheno in summer is buzzing, in winter they roll up the roads at 6pm! <br />
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</div>The next mornings first stop was St Helens, not at all like our town, this one was on the edge of the Bay Of Fires, Lonely Planets Top Spot 2010! See photos....<br />
The Bay Of Fires was fab, white sands, sunshine, pink granite rocks and Pelicans, we went to Binalong Bay and then Cosy Corner Bay, it was difficult to leave. We left the coast after this and heading back into the mountains, the scenery here was much more like New Zealand again. We had a couple of stops at a cheese making place and some waterfalls and then it was off to Launceston and then Hobart in the dark. And that was our Tasmania trip done..<br />
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</div>GARYhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14901677395703706647noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3220844371262346032.post-17560994771064820632011-05-07T16:43:00.000-07:002011-05-25T01:56:06.431-07:00AustraliaWell here we are in Hobart, Tasmania. We flew to Melbourne very early on the morning of Thursday 5th May and after checking in at the hotel spent the day wandering the city and shopping at the Great Victorian Market. A city is a big shock after the time we've spent in New Zealand, so many people and everyone rushing about, no chilling and relaxing! The market was great though, masses of fresh fruit and veg and all sorts of things we'd never seen before. We bought quite a bit but it ended up rather wasted as Ruth was poorly the following day (we were on a surf school tour up the Great Ocean Road, so a bit of a nightmare), and nothing got eaten.<br />
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We are now in Tasmania, it's cold and raining just at the moment. We spent the night in a backpackers hostel in a room next door to the loadest snorer in the world, we are moving to an apartment studio today! We are booked on a tour of the East Coast at the end of the week, visiting Wineglass Bay, the Bay of Fires and then St Helens! We are also intending to go on tours to see Port Arthur (famous for it's convicts) and a Tasmanian Devil sanctuary. And then it's back to Melbourne to hopefully catch a Storms match, we shall see.<br />
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Sorry there are no photos at the moment, internet connection is very slow here but we thought we'd better post what we could and add pics later.GARYhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14901677395703706647noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3220844371262346032.post-58084056726821298372011-05-07T16:35:00.004-07:002011-05-24T13:16:04.552-07:00Hanmer Springs And St James Cycle TrackAn early start on our last Saturday in NZ for the trip with Andy and his mates Rod and Tim to Hanmer Springs for the St James Cycle Track. The guys set off on the 60 odd kilometre route on a cold bright morning at 9.30am while I pottered about on my hire bike getting muddy before driving the ute to pick them up later on. Very much later, say around 4.30pm, two bikes were seen on the horizon, the first of the four. Tim and Rod, A class elite racers, followed by Andy from Natural High and Gary representing the St Helens/Welsh connection. All back safely, Gary nearly broken in two though. The ride newly opened up by the DOC is one of the first advanced range of cycle paths. I stress advanced, lots of tough, steep climbs, mixed with good deep, wide river crossings and gnarly single track. It's certainly one of the toughest days on a bike Gary as ever done.<br />
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The rest of our time in Hanmer Springs will be sent preparing our stuff for the flight to Melbourne of Thursday, mountain biking in the forest and wallowing in the thermal pools!GARYhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14901677395703706647noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3220844371262346032.post-63806338290573112842011-05-07T16:35:00.003-07:002011-05-24T13:14:09.017-07:00ChristchurchBack in Christchurch we met Andy and Kay for a cycle around the city, the first time they'd been in since the February quake. I wasn't sure what to expect and couldn't really have imagined it if I'd tried. So many buildings already gone, others condemned and waiting for demolition. Huge cracks, holes and bumps in the road. A lot of businesses closed though the buildings have been given the all clear. And in the CBD horrendous sights into the shopping malls and Cathedral Square. All the lovely old buildings either destroyed or seriously damaged. It'll take a long time to fix and I'm not sure where they begin.GARYhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14901677395703706647noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3220844371262346032.post-37394010016815439002011-05-07T16:35:00.002-07:002011-05-24T13:13:19.521-07:00Christchurch and the Banks PeninsulaIn Christchurch we were very kindly housed and fed by Andy and Kay from Natural High again, whilst there we felt our first earthquake/aftershock, a 3.5 apparently. We were given use of the bikes for a few more days so the following day we set out along the Little River Rail Trail to the most fantastic camp site - all quite eco with composting toilets, hot showers pretty much in the open air and a wooded glade furnished with old chairs and lampshades hanging from the trees. The next day was the route along the Summit Road, following the rim of the now extinct volcano. This was pretty constant hill climbing until the final epic downhill into Akaroa, but the weather was lovely and the views fab. Akaroa is a lovely old French colony, the only one in NZ, lots of nice shops and cafes and a cokkery school. Also our coldest night so far with a star filled sky and a heavy frost.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAC3BcCXvBjzQSs308M601mMd3ZIrk7gIiNTSCUezS93U7j13m6ABLfxdf7SD_YWgZ0dr38mXOpjWMrnR0u3A8cE34DY5-pusVDMUuNS2G0z-6qtuSG8hKlGIE7Gi9wS2biY2P7Nkr_z0/s1600/P1030043.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAC3BcCXvBjzQSs308M601mMd3ZIrk7gIiNTSCUezS93U7j13m6ABLfxdf7SD_YWgZ0dr38mXOpjWMrnR0u3A8cE34DY5-pusVDMUuNS2G0z-6qtuSG8hKlGIE7Gi9wS2biY2P7Nkr_z0/s320/P1030043.JPG" t8="true" width="320" /></a></div>GARYhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14901677395703706647noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3220844371262346032.post-13794884005451565652011-05-07T16:35:00.001-07:002011-05-24T12:58:38.189-07:00Cycling Days Twenty Four To Twenty Seven And GreymouthWe had a lucky break with the weather for our final official three days on the bikes. The first day took us to Harihari, a small place on a long, wide, straight road in the middle of nowhere. This was the site of the crash landing of the first trans Tasman flight in 1900 and something.<br />
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Then it was off to Hokitika and it's many jade shops the next day, our choice of camp site wasn't the best, rather run down and sort of loomed over by the gigantic dairy factory. A lovely black pebble beach though.<br />
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And then our final destination of Greymouth where we spent the Easter weekend. We came unstuck on Good Friday, unlike at home everything closes on Good Friday, we didn't realise and went to the pub on the Thursday night instead of shopping so no food1 We eventually found an open pub and had sandwiches and chips and that was it, our food for the day. On Saturday we went on a tour to Punakaiki and the Pancake Rocks followed by a tour of Monteith's Brewery in the evening. Sunday was a cycle ride to Shanytown, a gold mining town theme park that was in the midst of an Easter egg hunt, kids everywhere, total bedlam! Easter Monday, most stuff was shut again and Greymouth really only came back to life on Tuesday when the sun came out and we left Greymouth for Christchurch on the Tranz Alpine train.<br />
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</div>GARYhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14901677395703706647noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3220844371262346032.post-46536802102469178542011-05-07T16:35:00.000-07:002011-05-24T12:19:39.884-07:00GlaciersAfter getting totally soaked on the road to Fox Glacier township the afternoon turned glorious. We walked to the Glacier from the village along the new path through the bush. You could get within 80 metres of the terminal face of the Fox Glacier and it was stunning, stretching far into the mountains behind.<br />
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The following day we cycled to Franz Josef in the most amazing rain, we were utterly drenched by the time we arrived so booked another cabin! We joined a tour the next day that actually went onto the glacier for a full day - crampons, no toilets and stunning weather, it was fab. We crossed ice falls, walked through crevasses and shuffled through ice caves. An amazing day.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpbzXBggddB9FePrp5XgfKJaLpN05Lz8F3kOli1AI-wqL2jrY2nJjFFpTDTQYWndSzmOaPx9iAFiC1fkyaf5IENGkGikW5zF9Wjh-vjRuGu3vDUwqDTc4dEw46C1z5oGyEIaOmzRt3Pnw/s1600/P1020851.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpbzXBggddB9FePrp5XgfKJaLpN05Lz8F3kOli1AI-wqL2jrY2nJjFFpTDTQYWndSzmOaPx9iAFiC1fkyaf5IENGkGikW5zF9Wjh-vjRuGu3vDUwqDTc4dEw46C1z5oGyEIaOmzRt3Pnw/s320/P1020851.JPG" t8="true" width="320" /></a></div>GARYhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14901677395703706647noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3220844371262346032.post-6277233153441954192011-05-07T16:34:00.000-07:002011-05-24T11:38:08.756-07:00Cycling Days Nineteen to Twenty ThreeWell a lot to catch up on really. We left Wanaka on a sunny autumn day on 12th April and I think that was the last time we saw the sun for any real period of time until Franz Josef! The first days cycling was lovely along Lakes Hawea and Wanaka to a place called Makarora in the middle of nowhere and somehow totally populated by Brits. We decided to conserve precious food resources by eating out at the bar, Gary's pasta meal seemed to mostly involve roast veg floating in a double cream lake, not the best pasta dish we've ever had, mine was nice! The possums were lively that night and the stars amazing as there is no artificial light at all out there.<br />
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The next day was the climb over Haast Pass which wasn't too bad, though the descent down the other side was quite hairy. We had an entertaining couple of minutes watching a camper van try to overtake a double length sheep wagon on a corner on what was probably a 1:5 drop. Excellent fun. The waterfalls were great coming off the cliffs at either side and the views of the bush covered mountains amazing, after 83km you do start to tire of them though. We camped that night at Haast, a small settlement near the sea and not near anything else, in the night the heavens opened and the rain didn't stop for about 24 hours. We stayed an extra day huddled by the wood burner in the camp kitchen.<br />
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The next day dawned overcast but sort of promising so we set off towards Fox Glacier with a couple of camping options. We made good time crossing the three hills at Knights Point and decided to skip Lake Paringa and it's sandfly infested camp site. The road was through bush most of the way and was really beautiful. We actually saw the coast at Bruce Bay, a fab place, really wild with masses and masses of driftwood. We arrived at a motel at Jacobs River mid afternoon and decided to stay there rather than tackle the last 36km to Fax Glacier. This was another really dark night in the middle of nowhere with a couple of miserable Germans for company. It started raining in the night...<br />
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We couldn't face another day in the wilds so set off for Fox the following morning in the rain. It never stopped, 36km of flat road have never seemed so long. We upgraded ourselves to a cabin when we arrived at Fox Glacier township in the hopes of drying out. This was a grand, centrally heated plan! The rain actually stopped in the afternoonGARYhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14901677395703706647noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3220844371262346032.post-43145828219977144322011-04-10T21:44:00.000-07:002011-04-10T21:44:17.666-07:00WanakaWell we've had four nights in Wanaka in the end, today is Monday 11th April and tomorrow we start our cycle to and then up the West Coast. The first day was spent sorting a repair to one of the bikes (bottom bracket if anyone wants to know) and then just some pointless wandering. The second day however was much more productive with a walk up Mount Roy (1578m high), the weather was lovely and the views over Wanaka and Mount Aspiring National Park were quite something, hopefully you can see from the photos. Today is admin and food shopping ready to hit the bleak and empty West Coast. We will hopefully be able to access the internet in some places so we can update the blog but it might be even more random than now, sorry!<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjREWGT2rVRU4OYOM6qtsscZhfYIhPON_IDo-j0QB-hrkR9oAiD6TGeVbZiybVb0ZcUksANS0I4J_amcrVUZT-CTohnOhmlFuxHfk1jMKQJ-tlN2N4xt5BfBeJrT0kC72t20UvMK5FILHQ/s1600/P1020518.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjREWGT2rVRU4OYOM6qtsscZhfYIhPON_IDo-j0QB-hrkR9oAiD6TGeVbZiybVb0ZcUksANS0I4J_amcrVUZT-CTohnOhmlFuxHfk1jMKQJ-tlN2N4xt5BfBeJrT0kC72t20UvMK5FILHQ/s320/P1020518.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>GARYhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14901677395703706647noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3220844371262346032.post-7915223920519103682011-04-10T21:33:00.000-07:002011-04-10T21:33:49.220-07:00Cycling Days Seventeen and Eighteen and ArrowtownWe left Queenstown on Wednesday 6th April with just a short 19km to Arrowtown, I think this was one of the hardest cycling days we've had! Arms aching from the river boarding, legs aching from the mountain biking, bikes weighing a tonne for no apparent reason, lots of dead things on the road and our first puncture, it was just a poor day. Arrowtown however made up for it, the campsite was newly refurbished with a lovely kitchen and underfloor heating in the bathrooms - believe us this is bliss!<br />
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Arrowtown is another old gold mining place, we stayed an extra day due to inclement weather and mooched around the museum and Chinese settlement and then had a walk along the river admiring the autumn colours. Finally a drink at a micro brewery in town. Just what we needed to rest for the following day. Arrowtown is one of the nicest places we've been to.<br />
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Day eighteen of the cycling is one of the biggest we'll undertake, the Cardrona Pass over the Crown Ranges, NZ's highest sealed road at 1078m high. It took us just under two hours to get to the top of all the switch backs etc, we were deceived by the first section which wasn't too bad, the second section was hideous. However we made it without pushing and the views at the top were reward for all the hard work. A long downhill then to the Cardrona Hotel and a burger and beer reward. An easy run then into Wanaka and the reward of a cabin for the night instead of a tent.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgdgEHsg6TccLFpGmv3dBxSriC2TFrVPRcaTaQcwBfIDeykGXnrzQhyVIAkWpEstVk4Z71XgJf6dZNrmtb3wEnA2SOKGXI71xOSnVGfidN7L8CX8yZ2QaseFwK5o2sGvW-wgrbWSX6yG4/s1600/P1020435.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgdgEHsg6TccLFpGmv3dBxSriC2TFrVPRcaTaQcwBfIDeykGXnrzQhyVIAkWpEstVk4Z71XgJf6dZNrmtb3wEnA2SOKGXI71xOSnVGfidN7L8CX8yZ2QaseFwK5o2sGvW-wgrbWSX6yG4/s320/P1020435.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>GARYhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14901677395703706647noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3220844371262346032.post-76315445713878313992011-04-10T21:09:00.000-07:002011-04-10T21:16:32.364-07:00QueenstownWell we had four nights in Queenstown and we didn't bungee, we did something that in the end seemed far more terrifying! We started off with a very entertaining first day on the gondola and luge, the views of Queenstown from the top of the mountain were spectacular and the luge was so good we bought more goes - we got air on some of the dips on the advanced course, fab at the time but we'll probably be crippled with arthritis when we are older!<br />
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The next day was spent waiting for and then participating in river boarding, this was scary as anything. You jump into the Kawarau River clutching onto a body board and then ride the rapids clinging on for grim death, the rapids are grade two and three and with names such as The Maneater and Oh Shit you can imagine they are quite intense. There was a total of 7km of river to ride down, the guides were fab dragging you back into the part of the river you needed to be in for most safety if you were struggling, but I must admit the views were lost to us, just not drowning occupied our every thought! At the end of the rapids we were dragged by jet ski down the river a little further and then there was a cliff jump, a board slide and a swing across the river - Ruth's back is bad from landing badly (on her backside) from the 10m cliff we jumped off - makes cycling a little uncomfortable now! A great day in retrospect but never again, our arms are still aching a week later from the death grip on the board.<br />
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After that we, for a last bit of adrenalin on our last day (but not too much), hired downhill bikes and tackled the single track alongside the gondola, it was perfect, you get the gondola up so no hard pedaling and then ride back down as many times as you like. Gary was good at the mountain biking so had a go at the harder tracks, Ruth stayed on the green track (avoiding the boardwalks) and tested the hydraulic brakes to the limit but did improve her skills and enjoyed it. Definitely something to do more in the UK.<br />
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And that was Queenstown done, apart from the two Ferg Burgers we had, delish!<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHB4iAzORgmbZyZ60Fy1hWZnvurNwDuLMxTTz6HovDDUoMPrb1OYwfggxYQq0NWWdo2DrUTCkT1ZB4uPUA2rY8jHAaa-D_9cf0ribwY2cJLgjswmuwGlpi3N0gBlZ_fVUEX6Hci6oykiE/s1600/P1020256.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHB4iAzORgmbZyZ60Fy1hWZnvurNwDuLMxTTz6HovDDUoMPrb1OYwfggxYQq0NWWdo2DrUTCkT1ZB4uPUA2rY8jHAaa-D_9cf0ribwY2cJLgjswmuwGlpi3N0gBlZ_fVUEX6Hci6oykiE/s320/P1020256.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>GARYhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14901677395703706647noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3220844371262346032.post-1931079015165935682011-04-03T15:31:00.000-07:002011-04-03T15:31:53.378-07:00Cycling Days Fifteen and SixteenThis was a two day leg from Te Anau to Queenstown, 31km on tarmac and then 70 on gravel. The first day was hellish, a strong headwind most of the way, and the gravel was deep and hard going, the only bonus was very little traffic. We camped at a DOC site that night at Mavora lakes, we just got the tent up and out stuff away when the rain that had threatened all day started. We spent a couple of hours trapped in the tent dozing, tipping puddles off the tent roof and killing some of the swarm of sandflies that had sneaked in. It was pitch black up there that night, no light pollution at all and we were the only ones there, Gary had a poor nights sleep however with the base jumping possums and their antics - including attacking our rubbish bag and dislodging guy ropes! The second day dawned beautiful, mist that soon cleared, a frost and stunning views over the lakes, well worth the lack of shower. The trip down to get the boat to Queenstown was long but enjoyable, 56km of gravel, mostly along a huge glacial valley and then following the River Otiri to Walter Peak Station and the steam boat over to Queenstown.<br />
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Our first day was to Doubtful Sound, it was misty, rainy and cold but very beautiful. The rain meant all the temporary waterfalls were in full flow, the Tasman Sea when the boat left the Sounds was quite calm and the silence when the boats engines were switched off was amazing, you rarely get total silence like that at home, usually some car will pass and spoil it! A final thrill for the day was the pod of Bottlenose Dolphins that accompanied us for a while. The return trip to Manapouri involved a stop at the hydro electric power station, the threat of earthquakes is never far from your mind when you are down a 2km tunnel under a mountain!<br />
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The following day was the trip to Milford Sound, this was really fab. It was a 2 1/2 hour coach trip to get to the Sound with a few stops on the way for photos and a wee stop at Knobs Flat (a classic if you are cycling I think!). The scenery along the Milford Road was quite immense, a long trek along a glacial valley and then just sheer cliffs and glaciers once you go over The Divide to the Hollyford Valley and then the Homer Tunnel. Once through the tunnel our views on the way out were a bit restricted by mist but on the way back you could see how stunning and frankly scary these mountains are. The weather cleared for us out on the Sound and again having had rain the waterfalls were great - the boat gets steered under a couple of them so that you can get soaked at the front if you chose. Where Doubtful Sound was beautiful Milford Sound is awe inspiring, quite the most amazing place we've ever been. See the pics below.<br />
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Our last trip for that day was to the Ta Anau glow worm caves, these were across the Lake (6 boats in 2 days!), there was the usual Kiwi disregard for health and safety. You had to crawl or crouch along a low tunnel in the dark to get into the caves, once in there you walked along dodgy board walks and concrete walkways alongside the stream. The lights were fairly random, no hard hats and really wicked stairs. All very entertaining though. We then had to scramble into a boat and the guide climbed along the side to the front to pull us along, the lights were switched off and we were in total darkness. The glow worms were great, it was like looking at the night sky and when they were in big enough numbers they did cast a faint glow that could illuminate the boat. We were at the back of the boat, it was very comical how quickly everyone scrambled out, virtually a stampede!<br />
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A great couple of days.GARYhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14901677395703706647noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3220844371262346032.post-41353726194738716442011-03-24T16:49:00.000-07:002011-03-24T16:49:12.256-07:00InvercargillWell bang up to date for a change! Today (24/03) we decided to stay in Invercargill another day and went for a walk around with Chris the cyclist. We spent a happy couple of hours in bike and walking shops and then went up to the main park in town. This was a revelation, it was like the UK thirty years ago with a rose garden, fountains, a band stand, everything we used to have before the scumbags apparently inherited the Earth. We had a walk around the tropical house and aviary (where we saw Keas for the first but hopefully not last time). Then it was back into town and while Chris went off to service his bike we went to look for a sleeping bag liner as it's really cold at night now and then to find the Invercargill Brewery. The brewery was great, you could smell it as you approached. There was a bottle shop where you could sample the brews before buying and then there were bottles to buy or fill with your choice of brew. Loads of people came in with flagons that they had bought and refill regularly (possibly a little too often judging by some!), it was great. We bought 3 litres and are off to sample which is why this is really short!<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjaBAb65lflrfoCFmzLi2iY_EX5JF4CPeSZEyIQzmdA2XdQlTfPf4DmOfWAlhwgN34PwO8EkuzZD-9ioUAIj2HfjnM4QBez4GJsCRMb1npoh8Rx4D7I5E8jLsNzzYVV2uTrQIf9b1WZQPU/s1600/P1010798.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjaBAb65lflrfoCFmzLi2iY_EX5JF4CPeSZEyIQzmdA2XdQlTfPf4DmOfWAlhwgN34PwO8EkuzZD-9ioUAIj2HfjnM4QBez4GJsCRMb1npoh8Rx4D7I5E8jLsNzzYVV2uTrQIf9b1WZQPU/s320/P1010798.JPG" width="240" /></a></div>GARYhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14901677395703706647noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3220844371262346032.post-53750167158112343712011-03-24T16:47:00.000-07:002011-03-24T16:47:14.218-07:00Cycling Day FourteenA longer day than we've been used to today, 80km to get us to Invercargill - we had no choice, no money and nowhere to stay that would take a card payment! We left Curio Bay in good spirits, they quickly left us when we hit the 20km of gravel road that we had to travel to Tokanui, thick gravel, rain in the night and traffic meant it was hard going capped off with a lovely uphill section at the end. We used the last of our money to buy ginger beers in Tokanui! It was then just a long way to Invercargill along the Southern Scenic Route, not too hilly in this section but strangely never downhill either. We stopped at the cafe at Fortrose but they didn't take card payments either so in a starved state we carried on to Invercargill. We got there mid afternoon, a bit of a shocker to see proper traffic after being out in the Catlins for days, at the campsite we met Chris from the Geraldine campsite (cycling around the world).<br />
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We had a bit of an experience at the supermarket when we went to get tea and beers, they didn't have any beer. Apparently in Invercargill and a couple of other places some licensing law means that supermarkets can't sell alcohol. We trudged off to the bottle shop feeling like a pair of alcoholics (still went in though all the same!)GARYhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14901677395703706647noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3220844371262346032.post-20153949744456397422011-03-24T16:46:00.000-07:002011-03-24T16:46:53.743-07:00Surfing!Another day at Curio Bay and its campsite, we had run out of money by now so were buying our junk food on credit card! This really is the back of beyond here, we went for a walk and saw no one, no shops, bars, ATMs, nothing. Our trip out took us to the petrified forest, this is were some natural disaster millions of years ago knocked down a forest and fossilised them very quickly, they could be seen in the rocks as long rocky log looking things, to be fair you could also see what looked like fossilised bark in places as well. We had a natural disaster of our own when a freak wave soaked our shoes and then in an effort to escape an even bigger freak wave behind Ruth legged it and fell in, oh well, middle of nowhere, soaked through, no way to get dry, same as ever really!<br />
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Gary's surfing did go better, he was the only person for the lesson so got one on one tuition and did really well, stood up every time and learnt alot. A very rewarding afternoon. The only downside was the non appearance of the Hector's Dolphins that sometimes join the lessons, we'd seen them earlier in the day but they'd disappeared at this point. No pics of his expolits as I fell asleep in the tent and missed it all!<br />
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Last task was to go and look for the Yellow Eyed Penguins coming back to the beach that evening, they are moulting so not out at sea really, we saw three. Oh well.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisV6OPgh0FqVVgh7u5p1hLe-FPoLkiu2N1vTwrnDJCbWcA5hgHZn3dYDW-xLhVTK9JtCKy6Oi7D-Zd1p0bHvfKnXFLs6qsb-Xv3UhLfVlTiZqKvnfR-og5vye9w5eD_80EHKx-FjMUhHc/s1600/P1010783.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisV6OPgh0FqVVgh7u5p1hLe-FPoLkiu2N1vTwrnDJCbWcA5hgHZn3dYDW-xLhVTK9JtCKy6Oi7D-Zd1p0bHvfKnXFLs6qsb-Xv3UhLfVlTiZqKvnfR-og5vye9w5eD_80EHKx-FjMUhHc/s320/P1010783.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>GARYhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14901677395703706647noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3220844371262346032.post-76788322413261416132011-03-24T16:39:00.000-07:002011-03-24T16:39:27.480-07:00Cycling Day TwelveWe couldn't delay any longer, we had to leave the YHA and get back to camping, so we left Owaka and it's central heating and hospital beds and headed over some quite large and steep hills towards McLean Falls. We nearly killed ourselves getting to the top of the first hill and paused to look at the view and eat jelly sweets, hideously in front we could see more climbs to come and the smallest of downhills possibly. With jellies giving us energy we pressed on and eventually reached the car park for Matai Falls, more for a rest than anything else we set off through the bush for a view, and well worth it it was in the end, really pretty. We got chatting as usual back at the car park until a campervan jam hurried us on our way - a bit scared of getting squashed! Next stop along the way was Papatowai and the Lost Gypsy Caravan, this was a bonkers place that loads of people had recommended to us. The guy just invents stuff out of junk, loads of automata, and also seems to collect weird things, he must have a really crackers imagination. We explored the caravan and his garden, there was cycling skeletons, metal tentacles coming out of the bushes, all sorts. Also really good coffee. We had a happy hour there apart from the voracious sandflies that were out in force. Bed for the night was at a campsite in the middle of the Catlins Forest, it was quite claustrophobic in a way, trees as far as you could see, the sea could be heard though so couldn't be far away. A quick trip to see McLean Falls themselves, an encounter with the dreaded Kiwi Bus and then back to the Whistling Frog Cafe for a very tasty meal that all the same left a couple of peckish cyclists wishing for a chippy!<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXpsmRTqJ3nOgccQ7WDY1xr12hQHFoNp7ST68v_r-96aEh2Pvhep0DYWy4UroV9DCzHH4VCYmH2LF7Bjc_A21TON_d4bvzlIFlk69GyCsmDKwuR9inXfW_DYeNx3xFkwRwbxWv9QogeLw/s1600/P1010711.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXpsmRTqJ3nOgccQ7WDY1xr12hQHFoNp7ST68v_r-96aEh2Pvhep0DYWy4UroV9DCzHH4VCYmH2LF7Bjc_A21TON_d4bvzlIFlk69GyCsmDKwuR9inXfW_DYeNx3xFkwRwbxWv9QogeLw/s320/P1010711.JPG" width="240" /></a></div>GARYhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14901677395703706647noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3220844371262346032.post-77203180630030718932011-03-24T16:35:00.000-07:002011-03-24T16:35:33.214-07:00Cycling Day ElevenWe had decided to stay another night at the YHA, it was raining and blowing a gale so we couldn't be bothered! The day did improve so we went on what should have been a short trip to see the sights and ended up as a six hour trip with no water and few provisions. We went first to see the Purakanui Falls, these were in full flow following all the rain so were good, we saw a long suffering girlfriend shivering whilst Mr Photographer boyfriend spent ages framing the perfect shot and showing it off, as we left he was starting the whole process again - I would have thrown the camera in the river.<br />
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Next was a trip to Purakanui Bay where the surfers and proper bodyboarders (not like us) were out in amazing waves. It was a great spot and we would have lingered but the rain started again and it was a long way back along more gravel roads so off we went.<br />
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Last trip for the day was to Jack's Blowhole (!), this was another 8km along lovely gravel tracks and then a twenty minute walk to see the hole. It was wort it in the end, the sea has eroded through the cliff to create a deep hole in the middle of a field that the sea rushes into, with the wind and a high tide it was quite good.<br />
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Back to the YHA and a warm room and a proper bed, on again tomorrow into the headwind to a campsite, joy.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhuC97X2-P7KMHjZNza7vWeO4GqbgguQH0u9savW_J00oDuSljM1pbklkm9NQG8YH_XoNgDVla1WiEbGCOxhBxbhgsGYs3RpzyrC9j56p_fB-FiFvV5huReQFXrSya5Duh4kEPKty25tdQ/s1600/P1010647.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhuC97X2-P7KMHjZNza7vWeO4GqbgguQH0u9savW_J00oDuSljM1pbklkm9NQG8YH_XoNgDVla1WiEbGCOxhBxbhgsGYs3RpzyrC9j56p_fB-FiFvV5huReQFXrSya5Duh4kEPKty25tdQ/s320/P1010647.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>GARYhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14901677395703706647noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3220844371262346032.post-51395416429176834512011-03-24T16:31:00.000-07:002011-03-24T16:31:58.391-07:00Cycling Day TenA bit of a cheat to get to this day, we didn't fancy cycling down the highway for 80km so we hoped a bus to Balclutha where we pitched camp and got stuff dry after another soggy night in Dunedin - the tent actually started leaking this time, great.<br />
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The following day was day ten of the cycling, the start of the Catlins, as easy run at first to a place called Kaka Point on the coast, a tiny little place that had been evacuated the week previously along with a few others when the tsunami warning was in place from Tokyo. We went to check out the surfing but nothing was happening, they roll up the roads in some of these places after the Christmas hols are over. We cycled on to Nugget Point which was good, it had an all important lighthouse and the Nuggets - big lumps of rock out at sea, very picturesque and impressive, also more Fur Seals in the rock pools. The road out was OK, it was gravel and bouncy but we made good time, going back was hellish, a headwind had sprung up that blew dust in our faces and basically blew us backwards at times, no free wheeling here. We slogged it out for another 16km until we arrived at Owaka where we thankfully opted for a night in the YHA, a good plan as it turned out as the heavens opens minutes later and it didn't stop all night. The YHA is in an old hospital and is run by a guy from Manchester called Craig and his dog Jett, he said the place was just abandoned when he bought it, all the stuff in there just as if they'd walked out and not looked back. In fact we were sleeping in hospital beds, but warm and dry so bliss. Gary disappointed no bed baths offered by matron though!<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilXGBrOqEd8tpjI9lJH5dLX9Av0Gvr3dZ7vh-qjlob04paYg-ga7mrLG9YSt-c-q8ZcL0ew9RjoLa6PW9Uod9WPY20V57X8ov0EGNl6H1M1pPBBNIDzX7NrHeKIFin2HprKjTwilYZ8dc/s1600/P1010614.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilXGBrOqEd8tpjI9lJH5dLX9Av0Gvr3dZ7vh-qjlob04paYg-ga7mrLG9YSt-c-q8ZcL0ew9RjoLa6PW9Uod9WPY20V57X8ov0EGNl6H1M1pPBBNIDzX7NrHeKIFin2HprKjTwilYZ8dc/s320/P1010614.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>GARYhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14901677395703706647noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3220844371262346032.post-15563498243577764902011-03-24T16:24:00.000-07:002011-03-24T16:24:55.718-07:00DunedinWe had a total of four nights, three days in Dunedin doing different tours and things. Our first day was spent just shopping and eating and getting our bearings, a city was a big change after where we'd been and this was the biggest place we'd been to since Wellington weeks ago. It's a big student town spread over loads of old volcanic hills and with a strong Scottish influence, Robbie Burns glares down at everyone from the city centre. Whilst we were there the residents were building up for St Patrick's Day and the Fringe Festival so there was quite a buzzing atmosphere. This was also the start of changeable weather, it was mad hot one day freezing and wet the next and then hot again the following.<br />
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Our second day was tour packed, we went on the Seasider train in the morning up to a middle of nowhere town, as the weather was poor we didn't get the cliff top views we should have and actually slept on the way back. A healthy afternoon involved a Cadbury's chocolate factory tour and then a Speight's Brewery tour, chocolate and beer, a perfect afternoon. It has to be said the chocolate here mostly isn't to our taste, lots of marshmallow and caramel combined, we are still trying them all though, purely in the name of cultural exchange you know. The beer tour was OK, we got to taste six brews at the end, just helping yourself, we did!<br />
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The next day was a tour to see Royal Albatross, Yellow Eyed and Blue Pengiuns and Sea Lions. We saw them all which was good. The Albatross were as huge as I expected, we only saw them flying though as the tour at this stage was quite rushed to you couldn't go and view the nest sites. The penguins were in moult so were mostly hiding feeling sorry for themselves but we did see a couple waddle in from the sea which was bizarre and fab. The Sea Lions were amazing, you could get really close to a group of six young males who were play fighting amongst themselves, they can shift as well so we had to be ready to leg it if they decided we would be good to play with. The last things to see were NZ Fur Seals, there are loads of these playing in the rock pools and just entertaining themselves and us really. A good day out.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvs6VspvXQ5tTmHHZ96f-KTgsuuBIEDiTQugtb4RKVLpovql1Bvnrr5XovphntuqGcxZy3LLQ5bFVG8NrcFRbryx7QvJ0NmI-yOxZlLQjGYHJ0SHNJIm0f3xpA3LXSlQ_waWwPn9Fsc_Y/s1600/P1010560.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvs6VspvXQ5tTmHHZ96f-KTgsuuBIEDiTQugtb4RKVLpovql1Bvnrr5XovphntuqGcxZy3LLQ5bFVG8NrcFRbryx7QvJ0NmI-yOxZlLQjGYHJ0SHNJIm0f3xpA3LXSlQ_waWwPn9Fsc_Y/s320/P1010560.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>GARYhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14901677395703706647noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3220844371262346032.post-86312041914383705612011-03-23T22:47:00.000-07:002011-03-23T22:47:19.526-07:00Cycling Day NineLast day of the trail, another longish one to Middlemarch. We left Naseby early in thick fog as we had no breakfast and there weren't any shops to buy any! We made really good time along the road that we'd slogged up the previous day and were in Ranfurly by 10am. More mousetrap at a cafe and a chat with some people from the day before and we were off again. The fog quickly lifted and it turned into a really hot day. We made an effort to get along today, less chatting as we wanted to get to Middlemarch in time to catch the train into Dunedin. The mushrooms in the fields outside Ranfurly were huge, dinner plate size things.<br />
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We did have a couple of snack breaks but arrived into Middlemarch by 3.15pm. This was a strange place, there's not many women live here so the singles ball is all important. As it was a Sunday and warm the local men were all hanging about outside the pub, they'd had some entertainment before we got there with a group of nudist cyclists finishing the trail, Gary missed that one so he was gutted.<br />
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We went to the station, no sign of staff, train or timetable so we wandered to the bike shop. There we found out that the train had left at 1pm but there was an afternoon one from Pukerangi (23km down the road) at 4.45pm. The bike shop booked us on a shuttle bus to take us to the station, with our usual Britsh panic we dashed to the pub and downed a pint so that we could get cash out and then with the usual Kiwi casualness we stood panicking until 4.20 when they remembered us and came to drive the shuttle. We got to the train with five minutes to spare, spoke to the train manager who told us to get our bikes on and then meet him in a particular carriage - we got the wrong one so had to be hailed which was a bit embarrassing but in the end so worth it. The train was full of people who's just finished the rail trail so we all celebrated with beers and those more flush, with champagne, the train itself went along a scary gorge with loads of bridges and tunnels, a really fab trip.<br />
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Dunedin is hilly, sort of unbelievably, it took us an hour after the train arrived to push our bikes over this unreal hill, we pitched the tent in the dark and gave up until the morning!<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRXy3kGwNviAqjdMuZ4A9av5CfEeljpj8FrOZDOtvdgrCzWeR_WBf9oJHJEO3rQrJt8AR6fYRS3iBqdssOIBlQpWM98A6iLUTnxcdVirx2SQ31VrRCyv275LMYcobgocNssxiLm8nD0Jw/s1600/P1010448.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRXy3kGwNviAqjdMuZ4A9av5CfEeljpj8FrOZDOtvdgrCzWeR_WBf9oJHJEO3rQrJt8AR6fYRS3iBqdssOIBlQpWM98A6iLUTnxcdVirx2SQ31VrRCyv275LMYcobgocNssxiLm8nD0Jw/s320/P1010448.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>GARYhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14901677395703706647noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3220844371262346032.post-25362953810729046452011-03-23T22:41:00.000-07:002011-03-23T22:41:11.910-07:00Cycling Day EightA longer stretch along the trail today, about 70km to do. We heard on the scouts radio that there had been an earthquake in Japan, but it was just breaking news so we set off and were to remain oblivious to how bad things were for days.<br />
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We stopped quite quickly on the trail at a place called Lauder where we had Mousetrap - cheese, tomato, bacon and pickle toasties, very nice. We also got sandwiches for later and muffins because we couldn't resist. This will be the only weight gain cycling holiday!<br />
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Today the trail involved tunnels, we had prepared with torches to the ready as had most sane people, Gary of course met the mad person who hadn't. The first tunnel we came to was about 130m long and bent in the middle so you couldn't see through. This guy came roaring past we just as I was leaving the tunnel, you are supposed to walk, I heard Gary talking to him and learnt later that Gary was shining his torch so the bloke could see but he still walked into the walls half a dozen times, Gary does seems to attract them.<br />
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We passed the Ida Valley dam where the locals go curling in winter and then we had to leave the trail to head for our camp site at Naseby.<br />
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We had decided to stay there rather than on the trail as it looked quite interesting and it was. They started planting conifers in the area in 1900 and the area is called the Black Forest. The village is at 2000 feet and seems proper sort of alpine. We didn't get a chance at curling at the indoor rink but did have nice food and a glass of local Pinot Nior at the pub!<br />
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