Logbook: NZ West Coast

On Monday morning, Betty and I drove over the mountains and through the woods, down to the west coast. The rugged shores and pounding surf along the Tasman Sea are a stark contrast to those of the aptly named Pacific to the east. We enjoyed many fine views and a stop at the geologically intriguing "Pancake Rocks" before stopping in the town of Hokitika which I have renamed it "Hokey-tika" in honor of it's ambiance. Known for its jade trade, the town treated us to an evening of trying to find an open restaurant followed by a noisy night by the train tracks. The weather was overcast then rainy on Tuesday which was just as well because there really wasn't much to see in the area. Betty did a little souvenir shopping during the day while I made a quick visit to a local dentist who gave me a clean bill of health. (For those of you who are keeping track, I've now seen dentists in Costa Rica, France, Scotland and New Zealand!) We had better luck making a booking for dinner, spent a quiet evening watching movies and enjoyed a more quiet, restful night.

We continued south along the coast on Wednesday, making an obligatory stop at the Bushman's Cafe where I made Betty try a "possum pie" which is made -- as the name implies -- with meat from the ubiquitous New Zealand possum that is a wildlife pest and at the top of the nation's "must eradicate" list. With that questionable culinary delight to fortify us, we carried on south to Franz Joseph Glacier which is a hyper-active center of tourism all related to the nearby glaciers. The town is in the middle of an explosive building process that promises to add many hotels, motels, shops, restaurants and holiday homes to the already crowded little area. You can have your pick from numerous vendors of glacier hikes, fly-overs and the like, but be prepared to wait on line if you want to use one of the two small internet centers. Compared to what I saw when I was here three years ago, I can tell you that the place is in its last days of being a manageable little oasis of beauty. Betty and I finished out day with a brief visit to the eponymous glacier before checking into our motel for a relaxing afternoon and evening.

Betty was quite keen to do a flying trip to land up on the glacier, but the weather yesterday was too overcast to make that possible. Instead, we drove a bit further south to Fox Glacier -- the other glacier in the area -- and made our way to a nice viewing area. The glaciers are not really very big, but they quite attractive even with cloud cover limiting the view. From there we drove out to Gillespie's Beach where hundreds -- maybe thousands -- of driftwood "sculptures" make for interesting viewing and exploration until the killer sand fleas start to eat you alive and force a hasty retreat. The weather this morning was almost perfectly clear, so Betty has gone on her flight while I am taking some much needed time online. As a "virtual person", New Zealand's internet service is a real problem for me. The limited number of facilities -- combined with the cost and limits of download that I have mentioned before -- makes it very hard to carry on one's iLife. I honestly believe that the problem is one of mindset not infrastructure, and I hope that the country "evolves" in its internet development very soon. Not just for people like me, of course, but for all of the people who visit and live here as well.

We will continue our southerly migration tomorrow, stopping somewhere for a couple of days on our way to Te Anau, gateway to the famous southwest Fjordlands.

Logbook: Tourist Trifecta

About 12 million years ago a series of volcanic eruptions just off the coast of New Zealand's south island formed a convoluted land mass which became connected to the mainland over the eons and is now known as the Banks Peninsula. It is an impossibly beautiful area which Betty and I visited for a couple of days in the middle of the week, doing a good mix of sightseeing, fine dining and relaxing. Betty took advantage of a few of the many tourist attractions -- including a harbor cruise and a scenic driving tour with the rural delivery service -- while I was more keen to wander around town to really get a feel for the place. I can report that the Peninsula's proximity to Christchurch makes it both a popular place for people to have holiday homes and for tourists to visit on short layovers in the area. As a result, the full-time population of about 700 swells to something like 7,000 in the summer and the parade of buses that arrive on a daily basis is amazing. If you are ever in the Christchurch area, a trip to Akaroa is worth it for the views alone -- though I somewhat ironically neglected to take a single picture of them while I was there! -- but be aware that you may be put off by the crowds and "touristy" feeling of the place.

On Friday we drove back through Christchurch and northwest to the town of Hamner Springs -- famous for its thermal baths -- as our home for the weekend. Although neither of us turns out to be a fan of public baths, the area is very peaceful and visually stunning, making it a fine -- though pretty touristy -- place to spend a couple of days. In addition to our rapidly evolving pattern of dining and relaxing, we took a jet boat ride on the river in nearby "Thrill Seekers Canyon" which was fun, though surprisingly brief for the cost and typically not quite as good as advertised. I took a nice, long-ish walk this afternoon on a woodland trail that worked its way up into the nearby hills but failed to offer any particularly good views of the surrounding area. So, it was a nice "walk in the woods" but nothing great. I'm aware that my reviews of recent exploration have been lukewarm, but I think they have been fair and objective. New Zealand is a beautiful, friendly and easy to travel place, but I'm not convinced it lives up to its international hype.

Then again, it is possible that I've been in a kind of "tourist trifecta" -- Christchurch - Akaroa - Hanmer Springs -- for ten days and am writing from the perspective of someone who is a traveler and not a tourist. In fact, it is probably true that The Voyage has made me a good traveler and a poor tourist. We are heading west in the morning, over the mountains and out onto the coast. I'm confident that the scenery will be at least as stunning and hopeful that the "tourist factor" will be a little less. Stay tuned!

Logbook: Christchurch

I drove out to the rural suburbs of Christchurch on Saturday to meet Betty at the home of her cousin Tim and his wife Jill who very graciously offered to be our hosts for the long weekend. In addition to enjoying their excellent and generous hospitality -- including some mighty fine dining and intelligent conversation! -- Betty and I did do some exploration in the area. Our first stop on Sunday was the International Antarctic Center which -- in accord with what I am going to call "the formula" -- was interesting and worth visiting, but not quite as great as the brochures made it seem. The highly acclaimed "Blue Penguin" exhibit, for example, was a small pool with a half-dozen or so animals, many of whom were victims of some kind of physical handicap like missing feet, broken wings, etc. Nonetheless, it was a chance to see another species of penguin and add it to my growing list of acquaintances. We also went into the city center where I made Betty have her obligatory photo taken at the famous statue of "Scott of the Antarctic" and where we were treated to the cacophony of a bagpipe festival -- yet another example of NZ's historic link to Scotland. On the way back to the farm we stopped at the aviation museum which somewhat exceeded "the formula" in overall quality and value.

Yesterday we headed into town where Betty toured the local art museums while I found a place to go online, a process that once again put me face to face with the country's idiosyncratic approach to the internet. One place had wi-fi but had run out of voucher cards, another had voucher cards but not a working connection and still another had hi-speed access but no facility for laptops. I was finally able to connect at a quirky little place at the rate of $1 per 20 minute unit and a limit of 30 megs download per unit, sufficient for my needs but not exactly a bonanza. Betty and I reunited in time for a late lunch then made our way to the city's famous gondola for a ride to the top of a nearby mount. Although "the formula" applied to the ride and facilities, we had a decent cup of coffee while enjoying a pretty good view of lovely Lytleton harbor. We ended the day with a fine BBQ dinner back at Tim's and Jill's farm and final night of their much appreciated hospitality.

We got going at a leisurely pace this morning and made a stop at a wildlife preserve where we were able to see actual New Zealand Kiwis! These flightless, nocturnal birds with impossibly long beaks are proof of what only evolution can produce. From there we headed to the coast and arrived in the charming town of Akaroa which has as its gimmick a French motif, including French street names. Nestled into one of many beautiful bays produced by volcanic eruptions over the eons, we plan to explore here for a couple of days. Stay tuned!

Lost In Translation: Christchurch, New Zealand

Street Advertisement

Christchurch, New Zealand

March 2008

This may not really be lost in translation, but it still seems wrong on so many levels!

Logbook: Coast - Christchurch - Co-Explorer

I drove out of the hills, off the plains and down to the coast on Wednesday morning where I had a delicious, fresh fish lunch at a charming little cafe in the tiny village of Moeraki. As I was eating, a mother dolphin and her baby were frolicking in the bay which made the experience all the more enjoyable. By mid afternoon I had moved up the coast to the town of Oamaru where I checked out the public gardens, the local whiskey museum and a few other reasonably interesting attractions before finding a place to stay and calling it a day. Yesterday morning I continued my northern migration and stopped for lunch in Timaru, a large-ish town with substantial local commerce but not much in the way of attractions. By mid afternoon I was up in the town of Ashburton where I was able to find a decent place with good, unlimited, fixed-cost internet. I make this point in particular because I have found that many places in NZ charge not only for online time, but for download quantity. At an average charge of ten cents per megabyte, each of my otherwise free favorite podcasts can cost $3-$5 each to download, and a 1+GB movie that costs $3.99 to rent from iTunes can cost over $100 to download! My point is that some folks in NZ are still in the "gouge 'em if you can" state of internet development, and you have to be really careful about what you do online and where. So, being able to take advantage of unlimited access at my motel in Ashburton to download almost 10GBs of media -- that would cost a whopping $1,000 elsewhere! -- was a very cost-saving way to spend the afternoon!

I completed my drive north to Christchurch this morning and found a place to stay, then had lunch in a little cafe nearby. After that, it was time to set the next phase of The Voyage in motion by calling my next co-explorer and arranging a meet-up. So, now, to announce the mystery person you've all been waiting to hear about: It's Betty! You may recall that Betty was the "other passenger" with me this time last year on the Polar Star repositioning cruise from Ushuaia to Canaria and that I visited her for a few days last summer at her home in Dawlish, England. Well, we were talking back in December when I had made my arrangements for the freighter cruise to New Zealand and she said something to the effect of "I've always wanted to go to New Zealand!" As you might imagine, I simply replied "Well, why don't you meet me there?" So, while I was at sea Betty made arrangements and arrived here in Christchurch yesterday after an unbelievably long series of flights.

We have no "plans" for our NZ co-exploration, but we have plenty of time to "wing it" because we both expect to be in country until mid-April! I'm looking forward to spending so much quality time with Betty, to fully exploring the country with her and to enjoying her always upbeat attitude and delightful sense of humor. Hopefully, I'll be able to talk her into making a guest post or two to this website! Stay tuned!

Dram: What Are The Chances?

Just a brief glimpse at this photo is probably enough to help you understand why I did a double-take in the parking lot of my little motel this afternoon. A little bit closer look may explain why that became a triple-take plus a look at my key to see which was actually mine! Seriously, what are the chances of these two cars winding up in the same place at the same time?

Logbook: Gore - Ranfurly

Heading north out of Invercargill on Saturday I had made arrangements to stop in the small town of Gore, the attraction of which was a nearby airport that was highly publicized as having an extensive collection of antique aircraft and an elaborate restoration shop. I'll probably never know if this is true, because -- true to form on The Voyage -- the entire facility was closed when I arrived. I was able to peek in a window and see a couple of old biplanes, but the facility didn't quite seem to live up to its hype (Note: Exaggerated promotion is another aspect of New Zealand's tourism marketing that I am becoming familiar with. Not everything is quite as good as it is advertised to be!) Also true to form for The Voyage, however, Gore turned out to be a good choice of places to stay due to a couple of unexpected coincidences. The first was that Saturday just happened to be the annual "Moonshiners' Festival" -- celebrating the region's long and glorious history of Hokonui Whiskey -- and I was treated to a delightful afternoon at a small town festival of food, music, history and pretty decent local whiskey. Lucky break!

The second fortunate turn of events for me was striking up a lively conversation with one of the festival volunteers named Allan who invited me out to visit his nearby sheep farm! So it was that after breakfast on Sunday I drove down the road and found my way to his place, a thousand acre spread with almost ten thousand sheep and lambs on it. We spent about an hour cruising around in his 4x4, talking about general agricultural in New Zealand and sheep farming in particular, as wells as a wide variety of other topics of mutual interest. It's impossible to describe the magnitude of his farm, but clicking on the photo will at least give you a representative glimpse. Allan and his wife very graciously invited me to stay for lunch and we dined and talked until mid-afternoon. Once again, the "kindness of strangers" has given me yet another very interesting and enjoyable experience on The Voyage!

I spent yesterday morning driving generally north, through mile after mile of landscape that ranged from fertile farmland to barren badland. One of the things that amazes me about New Zealand is how varied the terrain is in such a small place, and I'm hopeful that my photos will show this during my exploration here. I stopped for the day in the small town of Ranfurly where Sandra from Incargill had set me up at the delightful little motel of her good friend Cindy. After checking in and dumping my gear, I walked into the charming but also slightly creepy little town center. Ranfurly has carved out its tourist niche as "A Rural Art Deco Oasis." Following a series of disastrous -- and suspicious -- fires in the early 1930's, the town was rebuilt with an Art Deco theme. It is charming in a way, but the middle-of-nowhere location combines with it being a little "over done" to make it -- as I said -- a little creepy. Nevertheless, the people are just as warm and friendly as everywhere else around here and I enjoyed my afternoon visit.

Today I drove to the nearby town of Naseby for lunch via a series of dirt and gravel roads which -- had it not been for the road signs at every intersection -- almost had me believing I was lost in the badlands. Talk about creepy, Naseby was the major town of the area during the gold rush of the late 1800's but is now a sort of a semi-historical, practically deserted town. Proof of what happens when the railroad bypasses your town, Naseby is a small collection of buildings that have well-noted links to the past but little evidence of current prosperity. A bit farther afield, I stopped at the historical "Hayes Engineering Works" which once made all sorts of farm tools. It was worth a brief visit but hardly lived up to its promotion or even its slick color brochure, providing further data for a formula I'm developing as an informal rating system for NZ attractions: "Marketing x 80% = Reality" Nevertheless, it's been another couple of good and interesting days on The Voyage.

Dram: Dag Crushing

I'd never heard of "Dag Crushing" before, so I stopped in to check this place out. It turns out that there is enough wool content in "dag" -- the Australian (and therefore New Zealand) term for the dung-coated wool on a sheep's hindquarters -- for an enterprising young man to make a business out of it. He collects bags of dag, dries it in the sun then runs it through a custom, purpose built machine of his own design which thrashes the "non-wool" matter out and mostly -- though not completely -- ventilates it out of the building. The clean wool which has been extracted is then bagged and sent off to market right along with all the other "normal" wool. It's a pretty nasty job and I didn't get the sense it pays particularly well, but it seems to be a busy little business... and something else you probably wouldn't hear much about except from The Voyage of Macgellan!

Logbook: Invercargill - Stewart Island

I picked up my rental car on Monday morning and headed south along the "Southern Scenic Highway" -- mostly along the coast -- stopping to enjoy many scenic views, a number of roadside attractions, a few snacks and one RV wreck noted below. I had planned to stop for the night somewhere along the stretch of coast known as "The Catlins" but nothing really appealed to me, and before I knew it I was entering the southern-most city of Invercargill. I cruised the town's main street for a few minutes then let my intuition lead me to pull into a tidy little place called Surrey Court Motel. I walked into the office and was met by a very friendly woman named Sandra whose lively sense of humor was immediately evident and we hit it off right away. Once again, my instincts had landed me in a perfect little place to stay for a few days!

Invercargill is kind of a quirky little city. The first thing that seems a bit odd is that the entire town -- the entire area -- is completely flat. This was unexpected to me having come down out of the hills -- it is no doubt the result of some kind of geological/glacial idiosyncrasy -- and it gives the area a definite "seashore" kind of feeling. The community is fairly spread out, consisting of the eclectic "downtown" you can see in the photo surrounded by an extended sprawl of tidy, one-storey, cottage homes. I spent most of the day on Tuesday exploring the area, taking in the few local attractions and enjoying a lengthy visit to the large and very delightful Queens Park. I had lunch downtown, did a little wandering around the shops -- including finding a much needed iPod-to-car-radio accessory -- then got my haircut and called it an afternoon. In the evening I took a drive out to the coastal beach and found a great place to have a fabulous steak dinner, quite possibly the best I have had yet on The Voyage!

I was up and out early Wednesday morning for a half-hour drive down to the town of Bluff for the morning ferry to Stewart Island. Now, tourism is a very important part of New Zealand's economy, and it is something that the country does very, very well. In fact, I would go so far as to say that New Zealand is the best in the world at tourism. This is a topic I expect to touch on from time to time, but my reason for bringing it up here is that this highly efficient tourism model is perfectly exhibited in "The Stewart Island Experience." Run by one of the country's major tourism companies, it offers the visitor a completely easy, hassle free, "fire and forget" way to explore the island. In less than five minutes, I had purchased a round-trip ride on the fast, one-hour ferry to the island, a seat on the hour-and-a-half "Villages and Bays" morning tour and the two-and-a-half hour "Paterson Inlet" afternoon boat cruise. Just like that, my day was planned, arranged and ready to execute! If one wanted to stay longer, the company would happily arrange accommodations, additional tours, hiking passes or anything else a visitor might want.

As I result, I had a really easy and outstanding day. After a ferry ride that was indeed fast, I disembarked on Stewart Island at the tiny -- and only -- village of Oban then almost immediately boarded a van for the morning tour which turned out to be delightful. Unlike so many of these tours during which the driver tells a canned story and some really dumb jokes, our driver told us of her own experience growing up on the island and gave real insight into its history, people, culture and lifestyle. There are only 28 kilometers of road on the island -- in and around the 2% of it which is populated -- and the rest is national park and wildlife preserves. We covered much of those roads during our tour, stopping at several lovely little bays along the way and ending up back in town where several local businesses -- like the fish and chips shop, the internet cafe, the grocery, the cafe, the restaurant, etc. -- were appropriately promoted as being "worth a visit." It was obvious cross-selling, but it was done in such a natural, informative way that it was really quite charming.

After the van tour, I had just enough time to stop at the cafe to grab a sandwich before boarding the boat for the afternoon cruise. Like a water-borne version of the morning's land cruise, we meandered along the coast and checked out many little coves where historical figures lived, ran saw mills and whaling stations while hearing tales of history and culture. About mid-way through the tour we docked at Ulva Island which is a bird sanctuary and had an hour long guided walk that was informative and enjoyable. (Though I have to admit once again to struggling with the whole "conservation" thing where practically every bird "in the wild" is banded and exhibits clearly learned behaviors with respect to begging for food from the human visitors... but I digress!) From there it was back on the boat and a return to Oban where I had -- surprise, surprise -- enough time to get some fish and chips, a cup of coffee and a bottle of water from local merchants before boarding the ferry for the return ride. Like I said, it was a very easy and very enjoyable day of "The Stewart Island Experience."

I spent practically all of yesterday doing file work of various kinds, hanging around the motel with Sandra and playing with her cute little dog Pep. I got going at a reasonable hour this morning and headed out to explore some more of the coast, the highlight of which was a visit to Slope Point where I had my picture taken at yet another "southern most point in the world." In the morning I am going to start heading north toward Christchurch -- stopping a couple of times along the way -- where I will be meeting my next co-explorer on The Voyage later in the week. Just for fun, I'm going to leave you in a little suspense about who that will be! Stay tuned!

Dram: Driza-Dog!

How cute is this!

A "Driza-Bone" is the "Down Under" -- and arguably best -- version of a full-length, waterproof riding coat. While wandering around Invercargill today I happened to see this modified version for dogs! They come in all sizes from puny to gigantic, and you can even get them with fleece lining for those really cold days!

I was really tempted to send one to Teddy in time for the Iditarod -- which starts in just 10 days! -- but I'm pretty sure all the other dogs would be jealous and make fun of her for having such a cool coat! (Plus, Aliy has plenty to do without having to manage a custom wardrobe for my dog!)

So, it'll have to be the thought that counts... Good luck to all of my human and canine friends in this year's Iditarod! I'll miss you again this year, but maybe next year...?