Trail tales and more

  Giving birth to a Moeraki Boulder It was a cold misty morning when we left our friend’s place.   I wanted to fill up with petrol given the price had come down due to the government relieving us of some fuel excise.   On the way to the petrol station, we called into St Clair which is a rather pleasant seaside suburb with a couple of nice cafés one of which, of course, we availed ourselves.   It was lovely looking out at a calm ocean with surfers braving 12 degree water temperatures to indulge in their passion.    St Clair beach Dunedin   We then travelled north to Oamaru via Moeraki where we wandered down to the boulders.   For some reason they seem to have shrunk since I was last here or it is that I have got larger? Some of the boulders Looking toward Moeraki Village In Oamaru we called into the Victorian precinct where we had a second cup of coffee and a bite to eat.   It is such a lovely area to wander.   At one point I was ta...

  Peace Garden - note the arrival of the autumn colours I went to University in Dunedin for five years.   It was a time of transition from teenager to adult and I have fond memories of the place.   My first couple of years there were a disaster academically with me coming close to being kicked out for not passing enough units.   However, I found psychology and my academic path changed.   There were small classes and great lecturers which made it a great learning experience.   It was where I learnt to think critically and to not accept teaching at face value.   The city was about the same size as it is now and while I was there businesses were shutting down and head offices were going to Wellington (and thereafter Auckland).   The climate was not great and I think worse than Wellington other than having less wind.   It was cold for nearly six months of the year and I learnt to dress for the cold. We took the car to Princes Street in th...

  Otahu School 1913-1956 Instead of taking the shortest route to Dunedin from Te Anau I decided that we would take our time and go via Clifden where there is the oldest suspension bridge in New Zealand.     The road takes you south more or less following the Waiau River which drains Lake Manapouri (in a fashion,   as most of the water goes out via the power station to Deep Cove in Doubtful Sound).   The result is that the river has a much reduced flow.   However, before we left we called into the weekly market.  We were not sure what we would find but it was a cute little market with lots of preserving and baking.  We got some of the very cheap preserves plus some baking.  There was even a coffee cart where we, of course, purchased a couple of coffees to drink on our way south.  Coffee please On the way to Clifden we went past the little school house pictured.    Normally, I would just comment about how ...

  Late afternoon at West Arm Lake Manapouri About twenty years ago I went to Doubtful Sound.   At the time I thought it was one of the best t things I had done as a tourist.   I wanted to share this with Bev and she readily agreed that we should do it.     We drove the 18 kilometres to Manapouri and got there in time to get a coffee before we and 15 other adventurous people were loaded onto a boat for the 45 minute trip across the lake to West Arm.   The last time I did it we had a tour of the underground power station at Manapouri but this time it was not part of the itinerary which was a pity as it was an amazing experience.   I remember the project and the campaign waged in the late sixties to ensure that the lake was not raised.    Fortunately it was not!   Some of our fellow travellers The weather forecast had been for showers but fortuitously it was only overcast and a bit misty and clearing which is a fa...