Go See Do

Piha, NZ: An Ending Grace Note

2011-03-16T10:52:00.000-07:00

In an effort to avoid Highway 1 on our southerly trip back to Auckland, we crossed over from the West Coast to the East at Wellsford, and then continued on Highway 16. Definitely a scenic route, but...

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Kerikeri, NZ: Dear Ladds

2011-03-09T21:07:00.000-08:00

Dear Sandy, Josh, and Roger, We brought only greetings from John's sister Diana, your friend and colleague when you lived in California nearly 20 years ago. Oh, and a bottle of wine, too, which...

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Northlands, NZ: A Gallery of Images

2011-03-07T20:51:00.000-08:00

At Bayleys Beach on the West Coast of the North Island, fisherman can drive on the beach for long stretches. Ferns of the Waipoua Kauri Park rainforest. Typical rolling pastoral land of the...

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Waipoua Forest, NZ: Botanical Wonders

2011-03-02T17:15:00.000-08:00

There is not many a vegetable that we do not like. At home we have the thing called the sweet potato, and its cousin the yam, both of which we do savor. But here in new Zealand there is the kumara,...

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Brynderwyn, NZ: By Boat, Train, and Bus

2011-02-27T17:05:00.000-08:00

It was a short bike ride to the dock in Picton from our little cove in Queen Charlotte Sound. From here we used a series of alternate modes to get us to the far north of New Zealand. The viewing...

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Moetapu Bay, NZ: Goodbye, South Island

2011-02-22T16:30:00.000-08:00

The Southern Alps are the major geographic feature of the South Island. This mountain range controls everything here -- weather, waterways, roadways, and the movement of people and their vehicles....

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Hanmer Springs, NZ: Canterbury Tales

2011-02-14T17:35:00.000-08:00

For two weeks we crossed the broad apron of land that lies east of the Southern Alps and extends to the South Pacific Ocean. It is generally flat farmland for miles and miles (or kilometers and...

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Rangiora, NZ: A Love Story

2011-02-10T17:53:00.000-08:00

I am afraid my husband's heart belongs to another. It is not surprising -- she can be really smooth, with a natural style and impeccable taste. Apparently this passion has been going on for years,...

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Aoraki Mount Cook, NZ: Stunned

2011-02-01T15:11:00.000-08:00

We are stunned by the kindness of strangers. Lee and Frank met us for five minutes in Nelson two months ago and invited us to their home when we reached Twizel. So we contacted them, and they...

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Omarama, NZ: Two Days, Two Passes

2011-01-30T15:02:00.000-08:00

We heard about the Crown Range Road from other bike tourists. It is is the most direct route between Wanaka and Queenstown. In the year 2000 the last dirt stretch was paved, and now claims to be...

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Glenorchy, NZ: If You Don't Like the Weather, Just Wait a Day

2011-01-27T15:19:00.001-08:00

Queenstown is adventure central for New Zealand. From here there is paragliding, river rafting, bungy jumping, skiing, tramping, kayaaking, etc. It is a compact town built on the northern shore of...

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Mavora Lakes, NZ: Gravel Road to Heaven

2011-01-24T15:13:00.000-08:00

We met a couple of bike tourists from Sweden almost two months ago. The conversation upon meeting others of our species generally includes: where are you going, where have you been, how long have...

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Te Anau, NZ: A Fiordlands Journey

2011-01-21T15:05:00.000-08:00

Te Anau is a town built for tourism. Not big, but full of accommodation options, eating establishments, and booking agencies for access to the Fiordlands and the premier tramping routes in the...

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Blackmount, NZ: Southern Hospitality

2011-01-19T14:59:00.000-08:00

Invercargill was not a city we planned to visit, but my snapped shifter cable changed the itinerary. We arrived late Saturday, and the bike shop not open until Monday, we occupied ourselves by...

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Curio Bay, NZ: Catlin Treasures

2011-01-14T14:52:00.000-08:00

The further south we traveled, the more frequent were those, Kiwis and tourists alike, who said "visit The Catlins". We decided to go for it, but it seemed forever to get here because of that pesky...

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Owaka, NZ: Tibialis Anterior Blues

2011-01-11T18:25:00.000-08:00

Like a good girl, I listened to my mother, and I ate my vegetables. I listened to the physiotherapist in Dunedin, and he said I strained my tibialis anterior, and I am ok to bike because that muscle...

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Dunedin, NZ: Done Eatin'

2011-01-01T17:46:00.000-08:00

With something like 123,000 people, Dunedin is the second largest city in the South Island. So what would be a forgettable small town in the States is anticipated by our current New Zealand...

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Warrington, NZ: Coastal Views

2010-12-27T17:35:00.000-08:00

The last stretch of coast before reaching the city of Dunedin was traveled under gray skies, which seem to appear all too predictably after a day of fine weather. A slight detour was made to Shag...

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Hampden, NZ: Christmas Balls

2010-12-25T17:27:00.000-08:00

Christmas Day was a day of fine weather, and our gift was a tailwind pushing us down the coast in the quiet of the early morning, while the rest of the world was home opening their presents. South...

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Oamaru, NZ: Of Buildings, Bread, and Birds

2010-12-24T17:19:00.000-08:00

We saw the Pacific from the eastern shore of the South Island for the first time in the town of Oamaru. We exited from Central Otago for a singular purpose -- to see penguins, little blue ones and...

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Central Otago, NZ: A Gravel Trail Tour

2010-12-22T15:00:00.000-08:00

It is a fact -- we are not the most spontaneous of people. We have a route, we plan our meals, and we know which campgrounds are on the way. So when John says "I have a wild hair...", I know this...

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Haast, NZ: The West Coast Hustle

2010-12-14T13:36:00.000-08:00

Lingering on the West Coast seemed to us like living on borrowed time. Rain was inevitable, just like the rising of the sun and moon each day. When the rain finally eased in Fox Glacier, and the...

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Franz Joseph and Fox Glacier, NZ: Glacier Experiences

2010-12-12T16:54:00.000-08:00

Legendary tales have been told to us of the rainfall and sandflies of the West Coast. We felt lucky to have made it the village of Franz Joseph with a minimal exposure to either. It has been said,...

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Westport to Hari Hari, NZ: Along the Road on the West Coast

2010-12-09T16:48:00.000-08:00

Images from the journey down the West Coast of the South Island... Our lunch spot after a steady 10 kilometer climb and a thrilling downhill that brought us to sea level. Overcast skies, but a...

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Buller Gorge, NZ: Pathway to the West

2010-12-04T16:42:00.000-08:00

I can't ever recall if I ever traveled along the entire length of a river, from its headwaters to where it empties to the ocean. But now we can say we have. The Buller River begins where it spills...

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