Half Way around the World 35:17S 174:06E
Seaflute
Tue 23 Oct 2018 04:32
cooked meats and cheeses from a lovely little Italian
Restaurant/delicatessen just outside of Denarau. We’d cooked our passage
meals and were very well prepared but also sad to be leaving the delightful
marina, Musket Cove, for the 6 day passage to New Zealand and the end of the
first half of the Oyster world rally. We had been told during the passage
plan meetings, that as we got closer to New Zealand the weather was likely
to deteriorate. In fact as soon as we left the protection of the Islands of
Fiji we were smack bang into big waves, high winds and the inevitable rolly
seas. It was very uncomfortable so Jack, Rachael and myself felt very
nauseous for the first three days. Ironically, the closer we got to New
Zealand the calmer it became.
Sailing into Opua in the north east of New Zealands North island was such a
high for all of us, we felt as if we had really achieved something very
special. We spent our first night locked on the quarantine dock as the
customs officials had left for the day, nonetheless we had our own dock
party with our good friends on Tianelle and Miss Tiggy and lots of
champagne was consumed. We spent a lot of time congratulating each other
and celebrating with all our Oyster friends over the following few days.
That first glass of champagne was like nectar, actually the second and third
slid down very nicely too!
After we were cleared in, we had a few days to look around the area of
Paihia where the Waitangi treaty grounds are and caught the ferry over to
Russell Island for lunch and a drink in The Marlborough Arms, New Zealands
first ever Public house and sample some of the local wine at the Marta
winery with many of the Oyster fleet. All too soon we had to leave for
Auckland where we would meet our friends Eve and Brian, who were travelling
out from the UK to join us on a land tour of the North and South Islands for
three weeks. After a quick overnight stop in Tutukaka on our trip down the
coast towards Auckland, we had a wonderful escort out from our anchorage
early the following morning with literally thousands of sea birds flying out
to the ocean all around us.
Just as we were relaxing and passing through a narrow rocky channel our
peace was shattered by a sudden deafening silence! The engine had stopped.
After several unsuccessful attempts to restart, Dave ducked hastily below
decks and began lifting sole boards to access the primary fuel filters.
Fortunately at that time there was very little current so we were in no
immediate danger, it is however surprising how vulnerable you suddenly feel,
with no propulsion in such close vicinity to rocks. The previous day on
departure from the marina, we had filled with fuel in Opua, Dave had added a
fuel treatment that kills any algae that can accumulate in diesel fuel known
as ‘fuel Bug’. This had obviously worked extremely well and had produced a
congealed lump of ‘fuel bug’ that had very effectively blocked the engine
filters. Nothing like working under pressure, I remember there were a lot of
expletives being uttered until Dave reappeared to attempt a restart. Good
old Perky fired on first turn and so far this has been the only time he’s
let us down and you can hardly blame him if we chose to starve him of fuel.
We had a berth booked in Viaduct Marina in Auckland, a recently developed
area on the waterfront surrounded by bars and restaurants and just a five
minutes' walk into the centre, a very lively place and great for all the
young crew. The shopping wasn’t too shabby either! Here we met with Warren
our friend Samantha’s brother and his wife Tracey who live just outside the
city. They had emigrated about twenty years ago. We had a great Sunday lunch
with them in one of the waterfront restaurants. It was good to hear their
perspective on life in New Zealand.
Oyster had organised a big celebration at the Royal New Zealand Yacht
Squadron where we were all expected to dress up with the men in jacket and
ties. Obviously that sort of attire is not a thing you would normally carry
whilst sailing around the world, so most of the men had to go out shopping.
We all had a wonderful time, equally bitter and sweet because some of our
friends would not be continuing on, and once we had left New Zealand we
didn’t know when or if we would see them again. During the evening after the
Maori group had finished their traditional singing and dancing, including
the Haka, there was a little presentation and thank you's to various people,
myself included, for my help and nursing care with all the medical
emergencies during the Rally, some very serious and one in particular, life
threatening! I became very emotional as I was presented with a bottle of
champagne and a beautiful pearl brooch.
Having explored the city and said our goodbyes to Tom, Jack and Rachael, we
went to meet our friends at the first of our luxurious accommodations, a
beautiful house in the affluent area of Ponsonby overlooking the bay,
marinas and the harbour bridge. We spent two nights here with our own chef
and butler, what a treat! The next day Eve and I explored the shops in the
area while Dave and Brian went to move the boat with the kids to another
marina just outside the city. Auckland is a wonderful place to visit and
everyone is so friendly, the food and hospitality is outstanding and I could
easily have spent much longer here but unfortunately after collecting our
car, we had to move on to the next town on the itinerary.
Next stop Solitaire lodge in Rotorua. This was a beautiful spot overlooking
Lake Terawera. The owner was very accommodating and took us across the lake
in his speed boat to Rotoiti forest where we could walk through the ancient
trees and enormous ferns to a beautiful waterfall. On the way back he
dropped us at Whakerewarewa hot springs where we spent a relaxing time just
lying in the lovely warm water. The next day we went into Rotorua, which is
peppered with hot springs, boiling mud pools and steaming geysers, Rotorua
sits within one of the world’s most active volcanic regions. But geothermal
landmarks aside, this city of sulphur has a rich indigenous history and is
home to several prominent Maori tribes. Two nights here and we were off
again continuing south to Napier the city by the sea, with its Mediterranean
climate, numerous Wineries and renowned for its lovely 1930’s Art Deco
architecture. In 1931 one of New Zealand’s greatest natural disasters, an
earthquake of 7.8 on the Richter scale struck Hawkes bay at 10.47am on
Tuesday February 3rd. Napier was almost completely destroyed in two separate
shocks, the subsequent reconstruction was costly but the inner harbour had
been raised over 2 metres, creating land which Napier desperately needed to
expand. Here we stayed at The Farm at Cape Kidnappers, just outside town
with a fabulous golf course overlooking the sea. We met up with Cliff, one
of Dave’s old friends who had emigrated here 20 years ago. He proudly showed
us around Napier and managed to get us a tour of the beautiful old Municipal
Theatre, one of the top ten Art Deco buildings in the world, by one of his
friends who worked there. Napier has a wonderful and vibrant café culture
and I felt that I could have stayed here much longer. Energised by massages
and facials, we continued our journey to the windy city of Wellington where
we would spend an interesting night in the Museum hotel before catching the
ferry to the South Island the following morning. I was able to meet up with
a friend, Grace that I used to work with at the Ridgeway Hospital. She
seemed very settled and happy, I was pleased to see. The Museum hotel, as
the name suggests was just that, with varied and interesting displays of
paintings and modern sculptures in all of the public spaces.
The following morning we caught the Interislander ferry to Picton in the
north of the south Island. The 92 km journey took around 3 hours and was the
most beautiful ferry ride I have ever taken, from the Cook strait there are
spectacular views of the Kaikoura Ranges on the South Island. Around one
hour of the cruise takes you through the Marlborough Sounds with lush
covered mountains, small islands and crystal clear waters. The last part of
the cruise took us through Queen Charlotte Sound before arriving at the
picturesque town of Picton. We were collected from the ferry terminal by our
driver who took us through the valley south towards Blenhiem, located in the
heart of Marlborough, New Zealand’s largest wine producing region. We drove
through acres and acres of leafy green vines with the dry hills of
Marlborough in the distance. Being in the heart of the wine country we had
to stop at a few cellar doors to hear the history and unique process each
wine goes through and also of course to taste their award winning produce. A
lovely lunch in a winery high in the Marlborough hills overlooking the vines
gently sloping down into the lush green valley was glorious. Suitably
satisfied we were then taken to the Marlborough Lodge for the night, a
lovely old clapboard house standing in its own large beautifully landscaped
gardens, with far reaching views over the surrounding vineyards.
After a delicious breakfast we were collected by our driver and taken to the
nearby airport where we would take a 30 minute flight to Kaikoura. If we had
driven it would have taken us a whole day to get there because of the
destruction of many of the major roads due to the catastrophic earthquake in
2011. Here we would stay at the Hapuku lodge where we spent the night in
tree houses built on stilts, between the mountains and the rugged coastline.
We spent the afternoon walking along the beach watching the numerous
helicopters flying building materials out to the road works nearby. The tree
houses were very comfortable and with all amenities but we had 100 miles per
hour winds, the highest they’d had in three years. The tree house rattled
and shook all night, reminding me a bit of being back on the boat, needless
to say I got little if any sleep!
>From here we were driven to Christchurch and the Boutique Montreal hotel for
two nights. We would witness first hand the utter devastation that the
earthquake caused to the city, namely for its many new rubble car parks! The
Billion Dollar reconstruction of the centre was well underway but there were
still an assortment of colourful containers left that had housed the many
shops and businesses after the disaster. The Cathedral was still in a very
sorry state, some of the roof and walls had collapsed during the quake, and
scaffolding supporting the rest of it. That evening we spent a jolly time in
an Irish Pub drinking Guinness and eating fish and chips. The following day
we explored the city taking an interesting vintage tramcar tour around the
city centre and suburbs, then a Gondola ride up to the top of an extinct
volcano, Mount Cavendish, which would afford us spectacular views of the
city below.
After collecting another hire car we left Christchurch and headed for The
Mount Cook retreat. As the name suggests we had a wonderful view of the
snowy capped mountain, New Zealand’s tallest, across the shimmering glacial
lake Pukaki. We had a two bed lodge all to ourselves tucked away from
civilization down a long dirt track which meandered through a shady forest,
and the lodge was complete with an outside Jacuzzi and Observatory. The
night skies here are amazing as there is little or no light pollution. A
slow wander through the forest that afternoon and drinks on the patio
overlooking the lake and mountain, really did feel like a retreat. Sadly we
spent only one night here and we were off again.
Queenstown, New Zealand’s adventure capital was our next destination and
Eichardts private hotel. Settled on the shores of lake Wakaipu beneath a
soaring panorama of the Remarkables mountain range, this alpine town is
surrounded by a plethora of historic, gastronomic and scenic wonders. We ate
like kings in the renowned Botswana Butchery, fortuitously met and spent a
lovely evening with Celis and Roberto from Oyster Reach who we had said a
sad farewell to in Auckland. We took a gondola to the top of the mountain
and rode the forest zip wire all the way to the bottom again, scary and
exhilarating in equal measures. We took a very fast and furious ride on a
jet boat down the Dart River, skimming across shallow water and doing high
speed 360 degree spins. Eventually stopping the boat down river, we were
able to visit an ancient kauri forest with trees up to 600 years old and see
some of the places they filmed The Lord of the Rings. Queenstown didn’t
disappoint!
A quick thirty minute drive to Glenorchy for an overnight stay punctuated
our exciting visit to Queenstown. Blanket Bay a beautiful riverside lodge
nestled in the rolling hills was built by an American millionaire for his
private residence and latterly expanded into the beautiful Hotel it is
today. The following morning we were transported by private helicopter for
an amazing scenic flight over the Milford Sound and the glacier on top of
Mitre Peak. As we flew up to the glacier Nick our pilot explained that we
would not be able to land on it then as the clouds were too low, maybe after
lunch he said. Instead he took us to a beautiful sandy beach that could only
be reached by boat or helicopter, the only prints in the sand were ours. For
lunch we were to land on a catamaran in the Milford sound Fjords and spend
the afternoon cruising. As we were coming in to land on the helipad I felt a
bit nervous but also embarrassed that the boat had stopped for us and that
the people on board would be watching us as we got off. As we entered the
Saloon with the six staff standing to attention I realised that we were the
only people on board and this was all for us! As they served us a wonderful
lunch we cruised gently down the Fjord, with the captain pointing out the
varied groups of seals and sea birds and also the many waterfalls that flow
into the Sound. When it was time to leave we watched as our pilot expertly
flew down and landed gently on the helipad. Off we flew again but this time
we were able to fly over a glassy blue lake high in the mountain and land on
the glacier. As we came in to land we were blinded by the sun shining on the
virgin snow and again the only prints in the snow were ours.
After returning to Queenstown for a further two nights we all felt that this
area was probably our favourite so far. Next stop Franz Joseph and the Te
Waonui forest retreat. Franz Joseph is a small but lively town in the heart
of the west coast, known for its 12km long glacier and surrounded by lush
rainforest clad mountains. After a late check in, we had a great supper at
one of the towns many restaurants and a good night’s sleep. The next day we
took a brisk but interesting walk through the rubble strewn valley to the
terminal face of the glacier. We also visited the Kiwi research and breeding
centre in the town. These flightless little birds are protected now as their
numbers have declined considerably over the last fifty years, due mainly to
the introduction of the Possum whose numbers have exploded, which eat the
Kiwi eggs and chicks. It is interesting to note that the usually herbivorous
Possum introduced into New Zealand then quite quickly became omnivores.
Prior to the introduction of cats, dogs, possums and farm animals, New
Zealand had no indigenous mammals, only birds, reptiles and insects.
>From here we travelled north through the old gold mining region to
Greymouth, the largest town on the west coast. Here we would board the Tranz
Alpine scenic train back to Christchurch. Considered one of the world’s
great train journeys, we were transported back to another era. We travelled
across the South Island through the Arthur’s pass national park from west
coast to the east. From the comfort of our carriage we saw lush beech
forest, deep river valleys and the spectacular peaks of the Southern Alps
before we descended into the windswept Canterbury Plains to arrive back in
the city of Christchurch. One more night in the lovely Montreal hotel and
then a morning flight back to Auckland. Here we said our goodbyes to Brian
and eve who would continue home to England. We picked up another car and
drove back to Gulf Harbour and Sea Flute. Daves Mate Cliff drove up from
Napier to spend the weekend with us. Despite living in NZ for twenty years
he had never been North of Auckland, so we did some local sightseeing
together. A week or so later after putting Sea Flute to bed we were off
again to the airport to catch a flight to Adelaide to see my big sister
Maria, her husband Ron and their family. We spent a lovely 9 days here
catching up with everyone and meeting the youngest great niece and nephews.
We are always made to feel so welcome here and I love spending time with
them all. We were also able to meet up with Charlotte, Dave’s niece for
lunch in Inglewood outside the city.
Another flight to Perth in west Australia to spend a few days with my old
nursing friend Jayne. She took us on a good hike one day at the Canning
Mills reservoir with her friend Margaret who like Jayne had emigrated to
Perth from Swindon. We also caught up with her son Joe who doesn’t seem to
have stopped growing!
Kuala Lumpar, was the next stop on our slow travels home. Here we were to
meet up with Dave’s best friend Mike. We stayed for five nights at The
Majestic, a beautiful old colonial hotel that still served afternoon tea,
with dainty sandwiches and an amazing assortment of sweet delicacies!
Evocative of a bygone era, every afternoon the mandatory pianist played
softly in the background on the highly polished Grand Piano. A whistle stop
tour of the city of great contrasts was very interesting. The Petronas
towers such an iconic landmark surrounded by beautiful lakes and gardens
played host to a comicon festival while we were there. The area was bustling
with young people who took the festival very seriously and were dressed
elaborately as their comic heroes and heroines. It did all seem a little
weird but you had to appreciate the great efforts that they had put in! One
day Mike and Kate took us to the Sri Subramaniar Temple, in the Batu caves
where an enormous golden Hindu statue kept watch over the city. The monkeys
that live here are very naughty, you have to keep hold of your belongings or
they will steal them. After, we went up into the hills and took a Gondola
ride up to the top of Bentong heights, oddly at the top of the Gondola there
is an Outlet village set in terraces on the hill. Another time we had a
tasty meal at a renowned crab restaurant near Mikes place and a tour of a
Mosque where Kate and I had to wear long gowns covering our heads, luckily
my sunglasses were a perfect colour match!
All too soon our travels came to an end, and it was amazing to catch up with
so many friends and family on our trip back from New Zealand. Although we
only scratched the surface with our visit to the North and South Islands,
New Zealand has left a lasting impression and certainly this won’t be our
last visit.
Until next time, Lindy x
