New Zealand - caught on camera......

Wednesday, 10 June 2009 09:27:30 (GMT Daylight Time, UTC+01:00)      Comments [0]  New Zealand

NEW ZEALAND -PART 2.........
We were surprised to see and hear the very strong Scottish influence in Invercargill (and around the whole of New Zealand, as we have since discovered), and it was great to see a variety of ‘wee’ kilts being used in school uniforms. The people around this most southerly city in the world appeared to be very friendly and helpful. We had arrived during a wet period (we seem to be making a habit of this!), but we were impressed that we were still able to take a look around the town as the pavements are mainly undercover and there are many small alley’s and shops inside arcades, to help keep dry! It was inside such an arcade (The Cambridge Place Arcade) that Phil found ‘The Tattoo Shop’! Many thanks to Dean (and for Wayne’s help too) for creating the Macswayround Logo as a work of art on Phil’s arm. We are all very pleased with the result as it is a permanent reminder of our travelling, although we are sure that we won’t need too much reminding about our adventures! Jemma and Ben spent some energy at the Chipmunk Play Zone while the master piece was being created. It must be said that Phil had already planned that he would be getting a tattoo on this trip -way back when we were still at home – and what better place than the most southerly city in the world, in a country where tattooing is a part of the traditional culture?! We were all very impressed by the Queens Park in the city, as it was so carefully planned out and maintained to utilise the huge amount of space and to include some excellent attractions for everyone to enjoy. These included an amazing set of aviaries and an animal area, tropical greenhouses, unique gardens, a cafe facility and play areas. The Southland Museum was another enjoyable attraction as it had a variety of exhibits and the children enjoyed another up-close look at the Tuatara. We watched some of a documentary about the life and times of Kiwi Burt Munro who gained many land speed records and saw replicas of some of the machines that he used. Over at E. Hayes and Sons Ltd – a sweet shop for the boys! - Phil was in his element to be able to see ‘the real bike’ that the record was broken on and some more information about it. The Splash Palace resulted in another swimming hit for Jemma and Ben! During this time we stayed at Invercargill Top Ten and would like to thank Diane and Phil for their kindness and hospitality during our extended stay! We had a technical hitch with Kiwi the camper and stayed a wee bit longer until Kiwi was exchanged for ‘Fern’ the camper – affectionately known as ‘Soggy’! At Bluff it was a strange feeling to be at the Lands -End – the most southerly mainland point in New Zealand - before the Antarctic! It has an interesting and unique sign-post that has a variety of worldwide place names and shows the distances to each of them from that point. Unfortunately, the time restraints which we do have on this trip did not allow us to be in Bluff for the annual and world renowned Bluff Oyster Festival at the end of May, although we have been assured by many that it would have been well worth the wait! We got along on our travels and at the Balclutha Motor Park, we were pleased to catch up with Steve and Eileen again (who we first met in Invercargill a few days before!) The TV room had a great selection of toys, books and games and Jemma & Ben were pleased to be able to use a huge bucket of ‘ever faithful’ Lego! Dunedin was our next stop and once again had a strong Scottish heritage link. It was originally named “New Edinburgh”. The Top Ten Camp had a lovely heated and indoor pool that we all took a dunk in! Later in the evening we went along to catch up with my cousin Hazel, who is working very hard at Otago University in the city. It was good to meet all her house mates first, and to then go for a meal with Hazel and her mate, Dave. As a chocoholic (if only a little reformed!) the Cadbury’s World in Dunedin was a bit of a dream come true! The tour gave plenty of choccy prizes for answering questions as we went along and there were even some New Zealand varieties that we were not familiar with and so we HAD to try those, just to be fair! The tour was very informative and fun-filled, with a delicious aroma along the way and a silo full of liquid chocolate pouring down right in front of us! Who could ask for more? Baldwin Street was our next port of call and we had to take the challenge of the STEEPEST Street in the world- now didn’t we?! And we received a certificate for doing so! The street looks very deceptive but is actually at a gradient of 35% (19 degrees or 1:2:86!!) That is STEEP...... and its status is recorded in the Guinness Book of Records! The length of the street is little under 350 metres long but is SO steep that for every 2.86 metres travelled horizontally, the elevation rises by 1 metre! This street obviously attracts many tourists and also has annual events taking place there, including the Cadbury World Jaffa Race – when 10,000 spherical chocolate Jaffa’s are let loose to roll down the hill! Each Jaffa is sponsored and the proceeds all go to charity. Also the Baldwin Street Gut Buster takes place and this involves running up the street and then back down again and the event attracts over 1000 competitors! We met back up with Hazel and Dave in the mid afternoon and went in search of some seals. The Sand-fly Bay had enormous sand dunes covering the coast line and Jemma and Ben loved the descent to the bottom as they raced down the dunes with Hazel! When all of us were at the bottom, Hazel and Jemma went for a quick paddle, just to show they could- but they came out just a tad chilly. We were able to jump across a small trail of water to get a little closer to a lookout hut for the seals and penguins. Unfortunately we didn’t make it that far as within the next few minutes, the weather changed dramatically. A big black cloud descended all around us and the wind picked up pace, blowing sand furiously around us. A bitterly cold chill factor added to the fun and then came the rain! Our leisurely stroll had turned into a life or death situation........as we took shelter behind a sand dune and discussed our options there was no let up in the conditions and it was clear that we needed to get back up to the top before our light started to go. As we battled our way through the wind and sand storm, Jemma and Ben thought the fun was over and we had to cross that tiny river that was now a raging torrent! Hazel and Dave did a good job at getting the children back up to Fern the camper, and getting them warm and dry again. It took longer for Phil and I to get back to Fern, as walking on soft sand is always difficult for Phil, with his damaged leg and a knee and ankle that do not bend. The enormously steep sand - dune and those severe weather conditions made the ascent all the more difficult......... Back at Fern, with everyone all warm and dry again we thought about how this experience will always be remembered and may even be funny one day?! At least we all made it back, safely, of course (just). As Phil sat and warmed up, he remembered “Ice Cold In Alex” where Sir John Mills was climbing a steep sand dune ascent and dreaming of an ice cold beer-very similar to us -although Phil was happy to settle for a wee small dram instead! On our way back to take Hazel home, Dave was sitting in the front of the camper and so Phil asked him if the road was clear at the junction – ‘Yeah – that’s cool mate!’ – Phil showed his age by being SURE that he had asked if the road was clear and not about the temperature – anyway......! The seals would have to wait awhile.......we were also out of luck with the albatross too - as Dunedin boasts the world’s only mainland breeding colony of the Northern Royal Albatross which would have been amazing to see, had the weather conditions been on our side! At Oamaru Phil took his time at a Whisky Barrel house- maybe he was trying to get locked in with the stock of barrels upstairs! There were lovely views across to the Oamaru breakwater from the upstairs rooms and when we saw lots of black and white on the rocks, we thought we were in luck with the penguins. We all raced outside and down to the end of the peer, only to discover that what we had seen were not penguins but some lovely cormorants instead!! Perhaps we’ll book in some eye tests when our trip comes to an end! Whoops! On the way to Timaru we stopped off at Moeraki and took a walk down to the infamous giant spherical boulders (Te Kaihinaki-ancient boulders). These were formed millions of years ago around lime crystals within the surrounding mudstone. Some of the boulders are up to four metres in circumference and are all strewn across the beach. The Mackenzie Basin, deep in the heart of the Mackenzie Country made a beautiful setting for our first dry day in a long time! We enjoyed visiting the ‘wee’ country towns to find out more about the adventures of James Mackenzie and to see memorials and statues. The Church of the Good Shepherd at Lake Tekapo offered an idyllic image, set right at the edge of the lake, with the stunning snow- capped mountains as our backdrop............. We’ll leave you with that image and look forward to catching up next time -as we head for Christchurch......
Saturday, 06 June 2009 09:08:54 (GMT Daylight Time, UTC+01:00)      Comments [0]  New Zealand

New Zealand - part 2..........
FACTOIDS: • Invercargill is New Zealand’s Southern most city and came into the spotlight as a location for ‘The world’s Fastest Indian’-the film abut Kiwi motorcycle legend Burt Munro. Invercargill has a strong Scottish Heritage and enjoys a reputation for its hospitality. • On his first trip to the Bonneville Salt Flats in 1962, Burt Munro achieved a speed of 179 mph ... and in 1967 Burt claimed the World Record Class S-A 1000cc with an average speed of 183.586 mph (one way 190.07 mph) , and this record still stands to this day! Burt’s achievements are the most remarkable that motorcycling has ever seen and he has created a legend...... • The Southland Museum in Invercargill is designed in a very distinctive pyramid shape. Among other interesting displays, it is home to the largest public display of live Tuatara in the world. Henry, at over 100 years old, is the oldest! • Queens Park is without doubt the grandest of all the Invercargill Parks. It covers 81 hectares (200 acres) and is now the jewel in the crown of the city’s reserves and is widely acclaimed throughout New Zealand. The aviaries were opened in 1998 with generous funding from the Community Trust of Southland. Here members of the public are able to view exotic and native bird species –close up. The park is also home to the rarest waterfowl in the world-the Campbell Island Teal. • BLUFF – Where the journey begins.....is the oldest European town in New Zealand. The Stirling Point International Signpost is at the beginning of State Highway One – at the Lands End of Bluff. • Dunedin was the winner of New Zealand’s most beautiful City Award in 2008. • Dunedin is New Zealand’s largest city- by area and is widely regarded as the best preserved Victorian and Edwardian heritage city in the southern hemisphere. • Dunedin Railway Station is said to be the most photographed building in New Zealand. • Almost one fifth of Dunedin’s population of 123,000 are students. • Internationally acclaimed environmentalist David Bellamy has described the Otago Peninsula (just by Dunedin) as the ‘finest example of eco-tourism in the world’. • Maori legend says that the Moeraki boulders are food baskets that were washed ashore from the wreck of the ancestors’ canoe that made its epic voyage to New Zealand from Hawaiiki. • The sky above the Mackenzie High Country of New Zealand is renowned for its clarity and beauty. • The Church of the Good Shepherd was built in 1935 to the ‘Glory of God’, as a memorial to the pioneers of the Mackenzie Country. • Close to the Church of the Good Shepherd there is a bronze statue of the sheepdog, a tribute to the hardy dogs ‘ without the help of which the grazing of this mountain country would be impossible’. • Lake Tekapo is still fed today from the remnants of ice age glaciers descending from the South Island’s Southern Alps. It is now the start of a massive hydro scheme which carries the water through an extensive system of upland canals and lakes generating electricity many times over on its journey to the Pacific Ocean hundreds of kilometres away. The region is the hydro powerhouse of New Zealand. • Named after James Mackenzie, a 19th century sheep rustler –Mackenzie Country lies in the shadow of Aoraki/Mt Cook and the giants of the Southern Alps. The Mackenzie country is staggering in its scale and grandeur. James Mackenzie and his dog are said to have stolen a mob of sheep from a South Canterbury run-holder in 1855 and driven them over the mountains to the Mackenzie Basin. He was the first known white man to enter the basin. When he was finally caught, other settlers realised the potential of the land and followed in his footsteps. His exploits in evading the authorities (and escaping arrest on a number of occasions!) led to his name being forever associated with the district. • Mount Cook and Mount Tasman are New Zealand’s highest peaks.
Saturday, 06 June 2009 09:07:02 (GMT Daylight Time, UTC+01:00)      Comments [0]  New Zealand

New Zealand - part 2..........
WILDLIFE HITS: • Chaffinches • Variable Oyster Catchers • Little Pied Shags • Rifleman • Greenfinches • Black Swans • White Fronted Terns • Gannets • New Zealand Fur Seals • Mud Crab • Tui • Wood Pigeon
Saturday, 06 June 2009 09:05:31 (GMT Daylight Time, UTC+01:00)      Comments [0]  New Zealand

NEW ZEALAND IN PICTURES.....
Tuesday, 02 June 2009 11:06:29 (GMT Daylight Time, UTC+01:00)      Comments [0]  New Zealand

HEY THERE!
Just checking back in to say that the weather has brightened up and so have our spirits!! Some of our New Zealand photos will follow shortly! THANK-YOU FOR TAKING YOUR TIME TO CHECK BACK ON THE PROGRESS OF MACSWAYROUND!
Tuesday, 02 June 2009 10:55:48 (GMT Daylight Time, UTC+01:00)      Comments [0]  New Zealand

NEW ZEALAND ADVENTURES.........
KIA ORA! Following a very fast two and a half hour flight with a tail wind all of the way – we landed into Wellington (South of the North Island, New Zealand), arriving from Sydney, Australia. We found out about Windy Wellington with that very landing, which was probably one of our most turbulent ever! We were very grateful to our pilot for his skilled landing but nobody applauded when we landed – is that another thing of the past? A short taxi ride in the middle of the night got us safely to a local hotel in New Zealand – the home of the Kiwi! We moved on to Lower Hutt, near Petone and stayed in a pine cabin on site until we could collect our next camper – which we have affectionately named KIWI! Our next ferry trip was about three and a half hours over the Cook Strait on the Interislander from Wellington to Picton, on the South Island! We have been in New Zealand for almost four weeks now and unfortunately our opinions of this amazingly scenic country have been seriously scarred by the overall percentage of wet and windy days – we estimate 98%! We have seen lots and lots of happy paradise ducks and many depressed and soggy campers (we do feel sorry for those who have chosen this time for a three week holiday). We have had to act quickly on those couple of dry days, to get some great pictures! The beautiful autumnal colours and turquoise waters, topped with a back drop of snow-peaked mountains is a huge understatement. These views are only given the very best deserved justice when the sun is shining........ those are the times when we caught glimpses of the most amazing picture postcards and our imagination is swept away by the scenery. The fiery orange and reds glow brightly against the crystal white snow........ Our morale’s are struggling and have hit a low on Macswayround- as we know that all this is out there- at arm’s reach and with many unique wildlife opportunities too - but it continues to rain wherever we choose to go ......we do seem to have lost the sunshine for now- but we are sure we will find it again, later on our travels! Back to the beginning of the South Island – we stayed at Blenheim in the Malborough wine-growing region. We found a brand new camp at Murchison with a handy river to go for a quick fish. There was also a variety of strange looking toadstools down along the riverside. In the evening we got valuable travel advice and happy hour entertainment with Gordon (a very kind Scottish chappy who is now from Western Australia but has also lived in New Zealand) and his lady, Donna. We would like to thank them for their company and hope to meet again some day! On our way along the West Coast to Greymouth we stopped off at Punakaiki and saw the Pancake Rocks and Blow – holes. Through a layering -weathering process called Stylo-bedding, the limestone has formed into what looks like piles of thick pancakes! And they really do! We are sure that Greymouth is a lovely place but for the time we were there it was – guess what – yes, raining! Driving through the scenic west coast we saw spectacular snow capped mountain views and stayed at Franz Josef. There was a break in the wet stuff for long enough to go and see the Franz Josef Glacier and it was very odd to realise just how many thousands of years it had been there! This glacier and the one we saw next (Fox’s Glacier) are said to be the most accessible glaciers in the world. Franz Josef has an ancient Maori legend that tells of a girl losing her lover, who fell from the local peaks, and it was her floods of tears which froze into the glacier. Lake Rotoiti was spectacular and we met Steve who has recently emigrated to New Zealand. We would like to wish Steve and his family well in their new venture. Later on we walked along Pikihi which is one of the only places to see kiwis in their natural environment, had we walked at night, as they are obviously flightless and nocturnal birds. A short walk that night, along a pitch- black local track allowed us to see some intriguing glow worms- doing what they do best! After stopping off at the Fox’s Glacier we trekked to Haast and stayed at the campground there. Just opposite we chanced by a great walk along the Hapuka Estuary, saw a variety of wildlife and got information about the very popular Whitebait fishing procedures that take place seasonally in this area. Our 300th day was spent being puzzled at the Stuart Landsborough Puzzling World in Wanaka. This attraction has many world unique scientific experiments and situations, including the slanting room, snooker balls that roll uphill, water that runs uphill and the room of famous faces whose eyes follow you wherever you are in the room! Spooky! There were challenging mazes, mind boggling illusions and many brain teasing puzzles to be entertained with and we ran out of time to explore! The toilets also need to be visited for a treat but we’ll leave that bit a secret! We helped an American guy who deserved all the credit for cycling around New Zealand- but was delayed with a puncture. We piled his bags and his bike into Kiwi and gave him a lift to catch up with his mate, who had not yet realised the absence of his cycling buddy! We had a good chat and it was strange to think that Geoff had only left Albuquerque, New Mexico, just a few days before we were there at the beginning of this year! He actually lived on the Old Route 66 and we must have driven past his door! We stayed at the Wanaka Lakeview Holiday Park and then trekked on towards Queenstown. On the way there, as we sludged our way through the snow and along the highest paved road in New Zealand – we figured that it was probably our best bet to make friends with the local snow plough and gritting driver! Max had stopped for his break and accepted our offer of a cup of tea and a bacon sandwich! We were then happy to continue our journey as the mist cleared slightly and we were able to follow Max’s valuable work safely! We got our real Kiwi fix at the Kiwi Birdlife Park in Queenstown and found out lots about these unique and flightless birds and other species of wildlife that are native to New Zealand, including the Tuatara. The park had an informative audio tour as we met some of the most endangered species, a conservation show and an Early Maori Hunting Village. It was also good to meet our mate back home’s sister, Liz, in her Outdoor Sports Shop in the town. We stayed at the Creeksyde Top Ten in Queenstown....... Next stop – Invercargill – the most southerly city in the world...........We hope the sun will shine......! “SWEET AS”.....until next time ....
Tuesday, 26 May 2009 08:06:28 (GMT Daylight Time, UTC+01:00)      Comments [0]  New Zealand

NEW ZEALAND ADVENTURES.........
FACTOIDS: • The National Icon of New Zealand is the Kiwi and the Fern is the National Emblem. • Captain Cook made his first New Zealand landfall in 1769. He stepped onto New Zealand soil at Kaiti Beach on 8th October 1769. • In New Zealand you may be permitted to drive at the age of 15 (between the hours of 6am and 10pm) • In New Zealand you must be 18 to buy alcohol from the whole -salers, a pub or a night club, but you must be 25 years old to by alcohol in a Supermarket. • Wellington is only the third largest city in New Zealand but retains its status as the capital City. (Many people assume Auckland is the capital, as it is much larger). • Per Capita, the City of Wellington boasts more Cafe’s than New York City! • South Island has an area of - 151,000 square kilometres, a population of 947,500 people and a temperate climate with snow in the mountain regions. • Blenheim is the best place to access New Zealand’s biggest wine-growing district. • Blenheim is one of the sunniest towns in New Zealand, boasting an estimated average of 2438 hours of sunshine a year! (we will let you know about that later!) • Murchison was founded on man’s hunger for gold and for land, while the forces of nature contributed to dramatic ranges and deep fast flowing rivers. • The early Maori knew Franz Josef as Ka Roimata OHine Hukatere – Tears of the Avalanche girl. • The Fox’s Glacier has a depth of up to 350 metres. The glacier terminates at 250 metres above sea level. It has 35-45 metres of snow fall per year. • New Zealand’s fourth largest lake, Lake Wanaka, sparkles on the edge of the town. • The beautiful resort on the shores of Lake Wanaka is the gateway to Mount Aspiring National Park, a World Heritage Area containing magnificent mountains, glaciers and lakes. • Queenstown has a well deserved reputation as the country’s Adventure Capital – White-Water Rafting, Sledging, Tandem, Parapenting, Flight Seeing, River Surfing, Canyoning, Heli-Skiing, Jet Boating and Bungy Jumping – to name but a few!! • The “Shot-Over River in the Queenstown District is the second highest Gold –Bearing River in history, second only to the Klondike River in Northwest Canada. Gold was found in 1862 and the river was so lucrative it yielded a record breaking 57.6 kgs of gold in just one day! The river yielded 12 oz of gold per yard of gravel. • The Remarkables Mountain Range (2343 m), around Queenstown is one of only two mountain ranges in the world that run truly North-South. The other mountain range is the Rockies. • With the Main divide of the Southern Alps at its backbone, the Whataroa Valley is the spectacular gateway to New Zealand’s most outstanding scenery. • The Tui is one of New Zealand’s Song Birds. • The Kereru New Zealand Pigeon is the world’s second largest Pigeon. • The Black Stilt is the Rarest Wading Bird in the World. • The Kea is a cheeky parrot that lives high in the mountains of the south island. They have a reputation for eating the rubber from hiking boots! • The Tuatara is a living dinosaur and has been here for 235 million years. Despite having a lizard-like appearance, the Tuatara has such different skeletal features that it belongs to an order of ancient reptiles all to itself. Today these reptiles are only found in New Zealand. The Tuatara does not like temperatures in excess of 28 degrees Celsius and have the ability to hibernate if the temperature drops below 5 degrees Celsius. On top of a Tuatara skull is a third eye. This is a complex organ which actually has a lens and a retina. It may be visible for the first 6 months of life and then gets covered over with opaque scales. This eye is thought to act as a pineal gland to detect seasonal changes by sensing the length of daylight and darkness. • The female Kiwi can lay an egg which weighs up to 20% of her own body weight! This is the highest proportion of any bird. To put that into perspective it would be a similar experience to a woman producing a 37 lb baby!! The average Kiwi egg weighs about 450 grams (which is a similar weight to 6 hen’s eggs).
Tuesday, 26 May 2009 08:04:51 (GMT Daylight Time, UTC+01:00)      Comments [0]  New Zealand

NEW ZEALAND ADVENTURES.........
WILDLIFE HITS: • Falcons • Mallard Ducks • Robins • Bush Hens • Fantails • Lapwings • Paradise Ducks • Tom Tits • Swamp Hens • White Herons • Blackbirds • Black Backed Gulls
Tuesday, 26 May 2009 08:03:31 (GMT Daylight Time, UTC+01:00)      Comments [0]  New Zealand

Bye Bye Australia.......
A COUPLE OF FINAL ‘PUZZLING’ AUSSIE FACTOIDS: • Australia is one of the only countries (maybe the only country in the world?) to be allowed kill and eat two of their own National Emblems (the Kangaroo and the Emu). • The only animals in Australia (maybe in the world?) who cannot walk backwards -are the Kangaroo and the Emu! (Many thanks to Donna for her thoughts!) FINAL AUSTRALIAN WILDLIFE HIT- King Parrots
Tuesday, 26 May 2009 08:01:12 (GMT Daylight Time, UTC+01:00)      Comments [0]  Australia