One
of the main reasons for our journey overseas to New
Zealand was to get to see as much of the country as possible. One of
the problems we have encountered is that Wellington is a bit of a dead
end - you can only travel in one main direction without getting a boat!
Thus, you generally have to travel North to get anywhere. You can
travel North up the West Coast, past the sleepy coastal towns of
Paraparaumu, Waikanae, Otaki and Levin before you get to the next
decent sized settlement, Palmerston North. Generally, Palmy isn't worth
stopping in - though we have stopped there a few times. You can also
travel up the Eastern side of the North Island by crossing the Rimutaka
Hills at Upper Hutt and venturing through the sparsely settled
Wairarapa with the pretty towns of Martinborough and Greytown, and the
dumps that are Featherston and Masterton. Generally, most destinations
that we'd like to go to are beyond Palmerston North, and therefore at
least 3 - 4 hours from Wellington.
However,
this hasn't stopped us from seeing the country, as
the following pages are testament to:
Tongariro
Crossing, Autumn 2006
Mangaweka Kayaking,
Autumn 2006
A Weekend
Away in Napier and Hawke's Bay, Winter 2006
A Visit to Auckland,
Winter 2006
Tiritiri Matangi,
Winter 2006
Rotorua Tough Guy
& Gal, Spring 2006
Two Weeks in the South
Island, Spring 2006
Kapiti Island, Summer
2006/7
Nga Manu Nature
Reserve, Spring 2007
A Trip to Hamilton
& the Coromandel Peninsular, Spring 2007
Toast Martinborough,
Spring 2007
The Golden Shears,
Summer 2008
Wanganui River
Adventure, Autumn 2008
A Second Trip to Hamilton
& the Coromandel Peninsular (and Auckland), Spring 2008
Christchurch,
New Year
2008/09
A Trip to Arthur's
Pass, Autumn 2009
A Week in Northland, Autumn 2009
A Trip to St. Arnaud, Winter 2009
White Water Rafting on the
Whataroa, Summer 2009/10
A Second Trip to St. Arnaud, Spring 2011
And of course, we're not limited to visiting New Zealand. Whilst down
this way, we've managed to tour some of Australia, as you can see by
using the links in the main toolbar at the top of the page. We've also
managed to escape to the Pacific Islands with a holiday to Vanuatu;
supposedly the happiest country in the world.
Vanuatu, Winter 2008
