Wandering LeFebers

When Rain is Gain

May 27, 2019 wanderinglefebers3 Comments

Question: How can rain possibly benefit a sightseeing tour? Answer: When that rain activates thousands of dramatic waterfalls in Fiordland National Park.

Fiordland National Park occupies the southwest area of the South Island. It covers 4,868 square miles and its steep peaks and valleys are so wild that most of the park is inaccessible except by helicopter. Where land meets sea, it looks like huge glacial claws raked the shoreline, creating deep, craggy fiords for miles.

The park is known for its spectacular views. In particular, tourists rave about the Highway 94 drive from Te Anau to Milford Sound, and about scenic boat tours on Milford Sound. Imagine our disappointment when we awoke the morning of our tour to driving rain and cloud cover so low we could barely see the roof of our hotel (and it was a one-story hotel!) We gamely donned our rain suits and waited in the downpour for our guide. Our expectations were low, so imagine our surprise when the guide excitedly greeted us. “This is going to be the best tour of my life. I’ve never seen rain like this, the waterfalls are going to be off the charts!”

We chalked up his enthusiasm to an attempt at consolation. But he was right. The mountains are sheer rock; when it rains (and this was a 100-year storm, so it RAINED) the water can only sheet off in torrents of water tumbling from 1,000 foot cliffs. These falls were non-stop for much of our drive to the coastline.

There was so much rain that rivers roared violently under bridges. Boulders crashed downriver as they were uprooted from riverbeds. The noise was deafening.

Milford Sound was churning wildly when we reached the coast. The Sound is normally buzzing with tour boats; this day only one boat went out—luckily it was ours! The boat pitched and yawed, the coffee service flew off the counter at one point. We did not see the famed peaks, but we did see powerful, unforgettable waterfalls. We put our rain gear to the test and stood on the bow to immerse ourselves in the spray where fall met sea. Our rain gear didn’t hold up (even Marmot, L.L. Bean, and REI!) and we got soaked to the skin. One of us loved it and stayed out for more wet adventure. The other slogged back into the boat cabin for the remainder of the trip. We won’t say who did what, but photos don’t lie . . .

Are we sorry we didn’t see the picturesque peaks of Fiordland National Park?

Mitre Peak, Milford Sound–what we would have seen on a clear day
(Photo courtesy of Pixabay)

Just a little. But we wouldn’t have traded our stormy day for anything. That rain was our gain. It even gifted us a rainbow the next day!

FUN FACT (this is for geography nerds): On the road to Milford Sound we passed the 45 Degree South marker—the opposite of the 45 Degree North marker we pass on Interstate 5 on the way to Salem from Portland, Oregon.

TRAVEL TIP: Don’t drive this road yourself. It’s too beautiful, curvy, and busy to drive on your own, and there is limited parking at Milford Sound. Treat yourself to a tour by Fiordland Tours and ask for Ray. He’s one of the best guides we’ve had in all our travels.

As always, thank you so much for traveling with us. We truly appreciate your reading this!

Bagpipes and Penguins – Dunedin

May 13, 2019 wanderinglefebers3 Comments

When we told people we were visiting Dunedin (a city in Otago, southeast on the South Island), people often responded with raised eyebrows and a polite comment, “Why would you go there?” Small and less swanky than Auckland and Wellington, Dunedin is often left off tour itineraries. But we wanted to see the city’s University of Otago, where our daughter had studied in 2017. We discovered a city that reminded us of Tacoma, Washington (my hometown, so I can poke fun at it)—a bit faded in places but full of cultural, historical, and natural gems.

Dunedin was founded in 1848 by settlers from the Scottish Free Church (Presbyterians). The day they arrived they organized a town and the First Church of Otago. The church is enormous and beautiful, crafted from local stone, featuring high wood ceilings and colorful stained glass.

Note the Oregon Territory wood (info below)

The church still adheres to its Scottish roots, which are reflected in its alter decor and a bagpiper who played several hymns at the conclusion of the service. Scottish hospitality still reigns; we were invited for “a cuppa” by the many kind congregants who greeted us during the service.

FUN FACT: The wood in the ceiling and floor of First Church of Otago came from the Oregon Territory. There was plenty of wood in New Zealand, but it was not seasoned enough for construction. Oregon timber, after its lengthy sea journey, did the trick.

The Scottish influence is also on display in the architecture of the University, the Catholic church, and the train station. We loved the tile floors and windows in the train station with their detailed mosaics of train scenery.

The Otago Museum is outstanding and had the best natural history display of all the museums we visited in New Zealand. The life-sized dioramas of native birds and mammals are excellent.

Little Blue Penguin Diorama (my grade school shoe box dioramas never looked this good)

Hungry? Dunedin had plenty of restaurants, but we especially enjoyed the fresh food at the colorful farmer’s market–and walking around with a cup borrowed from the cup lending library!

Unfortunately, the roads did not mimic Tacoma’s wide, nicely shouldered and guard-railed highways. Like the rest of New Zealand, the roads are curvy, cliff-like, and feature guard rails made of toothpicks and dental floss.

However, the perilous drives are rewarded with spectacular scenery just east of Dunedin. Beaches, rolling hills, and nicely flocked seagulls are on display on the Otago Peninsula

The Otago Peninsula also features really fun wildlife. There are large sea lions snoozing on sandy beaches. They look like logs until you get close. But don’t get too close—we watched one angrily chase two girls. Who knew those awkward bodies equipped only with flippers could move so fast?!

They dig resting indents and flick sand on themselves to rid themselves of flies

We were fortunate to see several enormous Royal Albatrosses fly very close to us. Their flight is elegant, nearly effortless.

The frosting on the wildlife viewing cake was watching seven tiny blue penguins swim out of the surf and waddle to their nest boxes in grassy banks. They are only about twelve inches tall and could not have been been any cuter.

For all these reasons we are very happy we defied quizzical looks from other travelers. Dunedin is charming, and worth every moment we spent there.

As always, thank you for reading this and looking at our photos. We really do appreciate it!

FUN FACT NUMBER TWO: Cromwell is a city about 125 miles northwest of Dunedin. It is well-known for its giant fruit sculpture, but it SHOULD be known for the world’s best cinnamon roll. Seriously, if you are near Cromwell, find the historic part of town and indulge. It is well worth the calories.

The Wild West

April 10, 2019 wanderinglefebers2 Comments

The South Island’s West Coast is marked by spectacular mountain, river, and coastal beauty. The Southern Alps range runs along most of the coast. Its rivers and rain forests tumble dramatically into the Tasman Sea. It is no wonder we passed through four national parks while sight-seeing this area: Paparoa, Westland Tai Poutini, Anraki Mt. Cook, and Mt. Aspiring.

Highway 6 twists between the Alps and the Tasman Sea. We nicknamed it “Harrowing 6” because it was curvy, narrow, devoid of shoulders, and had minimalist guard-rails. It is also punctuated by long one-way bridges. Drivers are alerted to the right of way by signs approaching the bridge—the bigger arrow wins. But sometimes it was difficult to see the other end!

On a sad note, several days after we left this area it suffered a 100-year rainstorm. The storm washed out the only bridge south of Franz Josef. The result is a twelve-hour detour to reach anything south of the area. This has, of course, had a severe impact upon tourism and daily life in the surrounding communities. For dramatic photos (I couldn’t get the link feature to work on this blog, sorry!) search “Franz Josef bridge washout” on Google.

The highway connects a series of small towns. Today most survive on tourism and some dairy, but many were founded on a gold. We could still see glints of gold in the sand and stones. We loved every town, but our favorite was Hokitika. It was founded in 1864 when gold was discovered. In just three years it was the number one port in New Zealand, with records indicating its river port harbored 41 ships–rapid growth! (For a vivid description of the Hokitika gold diggers’ wild lifestyle, read the mystery The Luminaries by Eleanor Catton—it’s fun!)

There are unending scenic gems along the West Coast. There are quiet coves, long beaches, dramatic coastlines, and a series of unique cliffs made of thin rock stacks, appropriately named “Pancake Rocks.”

The rivers are turquoise with glacial flour—fine particles of rock ground by glacial action. The rain forest is dense and rich with plants and bird life which we discovered while kayaking on Okarita Lagoon.

The Alps and Mt. Cook tower over the forests and rivers, jagged and intimidating, and their glaciers are impressive. We enjoyed hiking as far as we could to see the Franz Josef Glacier, but were discouraged by how far this glacier has receded in recent years.

Best of all, the West Coast offers some of the most scenic picnicking imaginable. New Zealand provides picnic spots every few kilometers, many nicely marked. We thoroughly enjoyed our outdoor lunches, but I will probably never eat another peanut butter sandwich. (We tried to add variety with the popular local spread Marmite, but that was a failure.)

Fun Fact: The McDonald’s menu in New Zealand (yes, we did cave in to an American food craving after the Marmite debacle) includes a Kiwi Burger. It has a fried egg and beet slice on it!

Thank you very much for taking a look at this–as always, we appreciate your sharing our travels! Love, Bob and Sally

JODI not FOMO

March 30, 2019March 30, 2019 wanderinglefebers3 Comments

Today is our last day in New Zealand. We will not have reliable WiFi for a week or so, so we will have to complete our blog journey later.

We will leave you with the biggest Travel Lesson we learned here. FOMO (Fear of Missing Out) is real. Sally continually worried about missing a “must see.” But this is a big, wonder-filled country. There is too much to cover in four weeks. So we learned to embrace JODI, the Joy of Doing It. We ignored the pull of “don’t miss this” and simply loved and appreciated the experiences we had. We are grateful and humbled by all these experiences–JODI!Thanks for sticking with us–we’ll add a few more posts a bit later.

Walkable Wellington, Marvelous Marlborough

March 28, 2019March 28, 2019 wanderinglefebers2 Comments

Wellington is on the southern tip of the North Island. It is a compact city because it sits on a large bay with its surrounding land sloping steeply up, much like San Francisco. Several large green belts, set aside early on by the New Zealand Company, further inhibit sprawl. One challenge with this compact city is its skinny roads. Work is being done to alleviate this, but of course the road work creates an even more white-knuckle drive. Bob is the hero of the trip for navigating that challenge!

Note: large city buses travel this route!

We loved this lively city. Its compact nature allows pedestrians to walk everywhere to enjoy its food, coffee, shopping, and botanic garden. Much of the Victorian architecture has been preserved, and the waterfront sparkles with boats, sleek buildings, and residents commuting on foot and bike.

Te Papa, New Zealand’s national museum, houses an excellent collection of national treasures in an impressive, modern building. One exhibit is a heart-breaking display about New Zealand’s involvement in WWI, vividly brought to life by the personal stories of several soldiers and a nurse.

The exhibit includes large, incredibly life-like models of New Zealanders involved in the WWI Gallipoli battle (Photo from Te Papa website)

At the northern end of the South Island one encounters the Marlborough Sounds. This is an enormous area of spectacular islands, bays, and shorelines. Views from the shoreline are stunning, but the drive is impossibly wiggly. Our GPS had its hands full. (Again, Bob’s driving shone!)

Never underestimate 2004 technology…our old GPS unit never missed a turn!

To get a better look at Marlborough Sounds, we tagged along with the boat service delivering mail and groceries to outlying lodges and residents who can only reasonably be reached by boat. The government pays the service a small amount to handle this route; the service bolsters its pay through curious tourists. The scenery was sublime—steep forested islands, rustic structures, green-lipped mussel farms, we even saw blue penguins! (No photos of those…too hard to photograph!)

The tiny white dots on the hillside are sheep

But the best part was the mail delivery. The boat pulled up to a dock, and residents—often accompanied by dogs and pigs—would exchange an empty mail sack for a full one. Each pet received a large biscuit, which explains why they all trotted eagerly down the docks. It was a unique, relaxing day and a good look at an entirely different way of life.

Our dinner discussion after the tour was: could we live like that? Good food for thought. To spur on this conversation, we ate, of course, green-lipped mussels!

Travel Lesson Learned: AAA gives its members a free six-month membership to AA, New Zealand’s roadside assistance program. Hmmmmm . . . I wonder how we learned that?

Oops . . . . Sally got a little too close to the curb. Hooray for rental car insurance!

As always, thank you for riding along with us. We really appreciate all of you who read this!

Tongariro Crossing . . . We Made It!

March 21, 2019 wanderinglefebers3 Comments

Tongariro National Park lies in the center of the North Island. Established in 1887, it is New Zealand’s first national park as well as a UNESCO site. A Maori chief named Horonuku Te Heuheu Tukino IV gave the land to the British to preserve its beauty for all to enjoy. We are grateful to Chief Horonuku, because we certainly did enjoy this park’s stunning scenery. Much of the scenery features three volcanos: Ruapehu, Ngaur, and Tongariro. These massive peaks are all still active. The most recent major event was in 2012 (Tongariro), but every day steam puffs around the peaks.

One of the most popular “tramps” (New Zealand word for hikes) is the Tongariro Alpine Crossing. A little over 15 miles, the crossing snakes between Mount Ngauruhoe and Mt. Tongariro. The trail ascends a relentless set of stairs connected by paths, then descends an impossibly steep (very steep, as in EEEEEEK!) scree slope before switch-backing down to a bus pick-up area. The hike takes 6-8 hours to complete. Our knees and feet pleaded with us not to go. But we couldn’t resist the challenge. We told our body parts to buck up, and off we went.

Nature’s wild variety was on full display throughout the tramp. As we climbed (and climbed and climbed and climbed), we saw flora specimen from sub-alpine to tussock to nothing but scree.

We saw steaming vents, vivid blue/green lakes, odd moonscapes, and a gorgeous red crater. Nature’s violence was evident from the blown-out mountainside.

When we finished, our toes and knees were screeming (couldn’t resist the “scree” pun). According to Bob’s phone we had walked 33,368 steps and climbed 162 flights of stairs! But every step was worth it. It was the hike of a lifetime and I’m grateful we had the opportunity to do it. Again, thank you Chief Horonuku, and the Government of New Zealand, for making this possible!

Travel Lessons Learned:

I am no longer a snob about using a hiking stick. Our light-weight Black Diamond sticks were so helpful!
Cheap hotels are terrific and allow us to travel for extended periods of time. However, sometimes a hotel is worth the splurge, and Chateau Tongariro is one of those hotels. At the end of that hike, coming back to this lovely landing spot and its delicious Chateaubriand for two was simply divine. (We would include a photo of the meat but we ate it too fast—no chance for a photo!)

As always, thank you for following along. We appreciate your friendship and interest! Next installment (coming an a bit): Wellington, the Crossing, and the Wild West.

Coastlines, Maori, Mud and Sulfur

March 15, 2019 wanderinglefebers5 Comments

Full disclosure: This post is a little wordy, so just skim the photos if you prefer. We include captions under each photo so you’ll get the gist of the post.

From Auckland we headed north to the Bay of Islands region. Bob quickly mastered driving on the left—although we both find it a little confusing at times. Fortunately this accommodating country understands tourist confusion, so they provide helpful hints.

Despite initial concern, Bob turned out to be a natural at driving on the left!

Sally was grateful for these pedestrian reminders

The drive north showcased two wonderful things about this country—scenery and the prominence of cows and sheep. Dairy, meat and wool are some of New Zealand’s top exports, so we passed enormous herds along the way. The cows are peaceful and bulky. The sheep are simply adorable. There are even bucolic chickens pecking around rest stop parking lots.

View from rest area between Auckland and Bay of Islands

We stayed in the touristy little town of Paihia. It has a wonderful beach, but what we enjoyed most was visiting the Waitangi Treaty Grounds. This area is considered the birthplace of New Zealand. It was a landing site for many Europeans, and there is much history here about the interaction of those Europeans with the Maori (native residents). In 1840, 43 Maori chiefs signed the Treaty of Waitangi with the British Crown. Eventually, over 500 chiefs would sign the treaty. The treaty governs sovereignty and property rights, and is considered New Zealand’s founding document. It is not without controversy (the English and Maori versions of the document conflict), but the document is still in effect and the Waitangi Tribunal works with both versions of the treaty to settle claims.

We absorbed a lot at the Grounds about Maori culture. They were clever negotiators and fierce warriors; they greeted their visitors with bulging eyes, protruding tongues, and athletic, lightening fast movements. They were master carvers, building and decorating huge canoes and meeting houses.

We also visited the lovely town of Russell. Once known as “the hell-hole of the Pacific” because of rampant debauchery, it is now an elegant harbor town populated with pretty sailboats, houses and restaurants. The oldest church in New Zealand is also there. The church is active today and features gorgeous hand-needlepointed pew cushions.

From the Bay of Island region we headed south and stopped in Rotorua. There is plenty of action in this town, from Zorbing (rolling down a hill in a large clear sphere) to extreme mountain biking.

Zorbing . . . we did not do this but it is popular here!

But we are nerds not adventure-seekers, so we spent our time here touring marvelous demonstrations of geothermal volcanic activity. This activity is on display throughout the city in the form of steaming vents, bubbling mud pots, colorful (and smelly) sulphur ponds, and explosive geysers. There is a LOT happening both above and below the ground in Rotorua!

We also visited the Redwoods Whakarewarewa Forest. (If you think that is a mouthful, the name of the Maori village where we saw the geyser and steamy lakes is Tewhakarewarewatangaoteopetauaawahiao.) This is a large, peaceful stand of California Redwoods just outside Rotorua. We felt at home among these majestic evergreens.

The Redwoods were planted in 1899 to see if the species would grow in New Zealand. They obviously can!

Final, very random and unexpected fact: Rotorua’s Sister City is none other than KLAMATH FALLS OREGON! There is a rose garden dedicated to Klamath Falls in Rotorua’s extensive Government Gardens Park.

As always, thanks for sharing this crazy journey with us. We appreciate it! Love, Bob and Sally

Hello Auckland!

March 8, 2019 wanderinglefebers2 Comments

Auckland is a fantastic city. It is vibrant, friendly, and wildly diverse. We spent three full days exploring its sights, and we loved all of it. Well, almost all of it. Our feet did NOT love the twenty-plus miles we pounded into the sidewalks! Here are a few highlights—excluding photos of our blisters.

Public Spaces: Auckland is dotted with numerous spacious parks. We enjoyed the greenery and play spaces dedicated to relaxation and fun. The streets are clean and lined with thriving shops, restaurants, bars and take-outs. There is a pleasant “buzz” of pedestrians at all times, and the diversity of the population is remarkable. The Britomart and Harbour Districts are great fun, with intimate hip restaurants, high-end stores, and bars/coffee shops galore lining the boat-filled waterfront. You cannot be bored in this city!

Tiling in Khartoum Place commemorating New Zealand’s granting of voting rights to women–the first nation in the world to do so.

There were many open spaces throughout the city center

The Auckland Museum: Housing a terrific array of Pacific Island and Maori artifacts, this is an excellent place to begin to understand New Zealand’s history and complex relations with its Maori citizens. One of our favorite exhibits was a suit of armor woven from flax, accompanied by a helmet made from a dried blowfish. There is also a helpful diagram showing migration patterns of early Pacific Island populations, and beautiful examples of Maori carvings.

Imagine navigating canoes across these vast seas thousands of years ago!

Waiheke Island: As if Auckland’s splendid Hauraki Gulf (between Auckland and Coromandel Peninsula) isn’t enough, the Gulf is home to the beautiful Hauraki Gulf Islands. The largest island is Waiheke. The island features beautiful, long, soft sand beaches, hiking trails, restaurants, galleries, and vineyards/wineries overlooking turquoise bays dotted with sailboats. The Hop On Hop Off Bus lets you roll from one lovely activity to the next. I thought the place would be sort of kitchy and touristy, but it’s not. It’s magical.

The Kiwi Accent: Need we say more? The lilting speech pattern always sounds like there is good cheer and a little laugh just around the corner. They really do say “Gidday Mate!” We are smitten. Someday we will come back to this colorful city. It is well worth a second visit!

As always, thank you for reading this (or if you only looked at the pictures that’s fine, we know you’re busy). We’ll be back with more soon!

And . . .We’re Off!

March 1, 2019 wanderinglefebers3 Comments

Passports renewed . . . check. House sitter found and prepped . . . check. Paper stopped, autopay set, foreign currency obtained . . . check! Bags packed . . . well, almost check.

Why does it often feel like there’s plenty of time, but in the last hours everything is frantic?

At this point we’re out of time, so if something is not checked . . . . oh well! Thank you very much for sharing this adventure with us, and I promise, better photos will come.

Another Adventure!

February 22, 2019 wanderinglefebers6 Comments

Moss is growing under our feet (and on our mailbox, and on our driveway, and on our patio. . .) So we decided to explore a new part of the world, New Zealand and French Polynesia. If you are interested, and have time, you can follow our trip here. We’ll include lots of photos and not too much text, keeping it simple!

We look forward to bringing you photos of our own (these are from Pixabay, a terrific free photo source), and a little commentary soon. Thanks for looking!