New Zealand or Bust

[funflair]

Your sort of Museum WESTY66

This was quite innovative, Fergy 20 Petrol/TVO sitting on top of a road roller, chain drive from the Fergy back wheels to the roller, note the two steering wheels

This is the Museum of Transport and Toys just outside Wanaka, it is absolutely ram jam full of rubbish, oops sorry I mean valuable exhibits actually there was a lot of interesting stuff but just “a lot of stuff” it was mind blowing,

That’s an interesting story easily done I guess.

I don’t know if the text comes through OK, but basically a General Dynamics Corvair built 1953, had a serious fire in 1956 when it appears to have a “United Gas” logo on it was repaired and then subsequently converted to a Corvair 440, in 1983 it was badly damaged in a “landing accident” but was again repaired, it eventually found its way to NZ but possibly via Guatemala, we went onboard and it was “a shed” even worse than our shed but the frightening thing is it just came out of service in 2021

Not sure about al these knobs and buttons Geoff nicholsong

 

[funflair]

We missed Queenstown and Arrowtown completely as all the camping spots were full so we are at a little spot called Lumsden just before we head off to Te Anau and Milford/Doubtful sounds.

 

[PaddyM]

We missed Queenstown and Arrowtown completely as all the camping spots were full so we are at a little spot called Lumsden just before we head off to Te Anau and Milford/Doubtful sounds.

We’ve just cycled back from Arrowtown , ( 40km round trip ) Fantastic journey on the bikes over mountains, canyons , rivers .
Back at Kinross now for a well deserved vino !

 

[funflair]

We’ve just cycled back from Arrowtown , ( 40km round trip ) Fantastic journey on the bikes over mountains, canyons , rivers .
Back at Kinross now for a well deserved vino !
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We drove that way and I said to Jen that you were staying around there, we saw loads of bikes out,

 

[WESTY66]

Your sort of Museum WESTY66

View attachment 1020191
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This was quite innovative, Fergy 20 Petrol/TVO sitting on top of a road roller, chain drive from the Fergy back wheels to the roller, note the two steering wheels

This is the Museum of Transport and Toys just outside Wanaka, it is absolutely ram jam full of rubbish, oops sorry I mean valuable exhibits actually there was a lot of interesting stuff but just “a lot of stuff” it was mind blowing,

View attachment 1020194View attachment 1020196View attachment 1020195

That’s an interesting story easily done I guess.

View attachment 1020197
View attachment 1020198
I don’t know if the text comes through OK, but basically a General Dynamics Corvair built 1953, had a serious fire in 1956 when it appears to have a “United Gas” logo on it was repaired and then subsequently converted to a Corvair 440, in 1983 it was badly damaged in a “landing accident” but was again repaired, it eventually found its way to NZ but possibly via Guatemala, we went onboard and it was “a shed” even worse than our shed but the frightening thing is it just came out of service in 2021

View attachment 1020199
Not sure about al these knobs and buttons Geoff nicholsong

Can’t make out the dump truck, looks like a 769 and that loading shovel at the side was it a Hough/international?
They look in remarkably good nick, that D9 looks a beast

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[funflair]

Can’t make out the dump truck, looks like a 769 and that loading shovel at the side was it a Hough/international?
They look in remarkably good nick, that D9 looks a beast

No sorry I don’t know anymore than you see,

This “big boy” was outside

A few fire engines for Jock JockandRita that MACK was a beast,

There are a few cars in nice condition but an awful lot of stuff that isn’t,

And some quirky,

Model trains, a collection of Seagull outboards, dinky toys, hot wheels and goodness knows what else.

 

[WESTY66]

No sorry I don’t know anymore than you see,

View attachment 1020233
This “big boy” was outside

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A few fire engines for Jock JockandRita that MACK was a beast,

View attachment 1020249
View attachment 1020251
There are a few cars in nice condition but an awful lot of stuff that isn’t,

View attachment 1020250
And some quirky,View attachment 1020253
Model trains, a collection of Seagull outboards, dinky toys, hot wheels and goodness knows what else.
View attachment 1020252

The big boy outside looks like a 992

 

[Two on Tour]

We spent a rather pleasant evening plodding along the deserted beach near Punakaiki. Stopped to cook damper bread over a campfire and brew a cup of tea. Finished of the evening with the sunset over the Tasmin sea.

 

[Silver-Fox]

We missed Queenstown and Arrowtown completely as all the camping spots were full so we are at a little spot called Lumsden just before we head off to Te Anau and Milford/Doubtful sounds.

You could have stopped at the Race Course NZMCA place

We did

 

[funflair]

You could have stopped at the Race Course NZMCA place

We did

I didn’t see that one on the NZMCA web site but to be fair it gives us time to go up to Milford Sound before our cruise on Doubtful Sound.

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[jongood]

Has anyone encountered the agressive grey parrots yet?

Edit, think it might be named after a crap camper brand

 

[Two on Tour]

Has anyone encountered the agressive grey parrots yet?

Grey parrots, or do you mean the greenish Kea that like to tear bit off your car ?

https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&source=web&rct=j&opi=89978449&url=https://www.nzbirdsonline.org.nz/species/kea&ved=2ahUKEwiJyorMy-mLAxX7yTgGHeFnI_QQFnoECEYQAQ&usg=AOvVaw1TOOWa8gNJFSBVAQjDhmm8

 

[funflair]

Has anyone encountered the agressive grey parrots yet?

Edit, think it might be named after a crap camper brand

Correct “kea” and no,

Some rather tame weka though

 

[Two on Tour]

Correct “kea” and no,

View attachment 1020592
Some rather tame weka though

A Weka was trying Yvette's toes for taste yesterday.

 

[KiwiKampers]

You could have stopped at the Race Course NZMCA place

We did

I am unable to check my NZMCA app currently. Can you tell me which race course parkover you’re referring too? Is it Queenstown or Arrowtown?
We’ve always avoided both places because they’re too busy, charge rip-off prices for camp sites, don’t allow freedom camping and are almost hostile to motorhomers.

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[Silver-Fox]

I am unable to check my NZMCA app currently. Can you tell me which race course parkover you’re referring too? Is it Queenstown or Arrowtown?
We’ve always avoided both places because they’re too busy, charge rip-off prices for camp sites, don’t allow freedom camping and are almost hostile to motorhomers.

Oops

My brain has just kicked in, it was at Kaikora

I forget where we stayed at Queenstown but it wasn’t a site.

 

[KiwiKampers]

Oops

My brain has just kicked in, it was at Kaikora

I forget where we stayed at Queenstown but it wasn’t a site.

Thanks. Yes, the Kaikoura racecourse was a good spot. It’s still there but has been superseded by a big NZMCA park at the northern end of town. We like to stay at racecourses wherever possible and are frequent visitors to the course at Blenheim. The New Zealand racing industry is in terminal decline and racecourses are closing in their droves. Those that still exist probably make more from offering park over sites than they do from holding a race meeting once or twice a year.

 

[Holly's mum]

This morning we visited the Ngarua caves at Takaka Hill, Able Tasman. They were amazing, we don't remember seeing cave coral in caves we've been in before.

We're now in KiwiKampers home town Nelson, having lunch at Pic's Peanut Butter World.

 

[PaddyM]

Ortaga Peninsula and Lanarch Castle , the albatross were amazing !

 

[Two on Tour]

You were talking about New Zealand car number plates earlier Martin, we went to the pub for a bite to eat this evening and saw these two.

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I think that I may have found a Yorkshire man that has emigrated to New Zealand.

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[funflair]

Ortaga Peninsula and Lanarch Castle , the albatross were amazing ! View attachment 1021883View attachment 1021884View attachment 1021885View attachment 1021886View attachment 1021887View attachment 1021888View attachment 1021889View attachment 1021890

Looks good you are well ahead of us now, we have just had a couple of days up to and around Milford Sound, loads of photos that need to go on the computer and then I will post a few, been without internet for a couple of days, the “shed” is getting a new tyre tomorrow so we have to hang around Te Anau before heading to Doubtful Sound.

 

[Two on Tour]

Looks good you are well ahead of us now, we have just had a couple of days up to and around Milford Sound, loads of photos that need to go on the computer and then I will post a few, been without internet for a couple of days, the “shed” is getting a new tyre tomorrow so we have to hang around Te Anau before heading to Doubtful Sound.

We had lunch at the Ranch Grill & Bar in Te Anau, the ribs and the lamb shank were good.

 

[funflair]

We had lunch at the Ranch Grill & Bar in Te Anau, the ribs and the lamb shank were good.

We were in there a couple of days ago I had mussels and Jen had the seafood chowder, the mussels at Picton were better and Jen said she is glad she tried the chowder but wouldn't have it again.

 

[nicholsong]

Looks good you are well ahead of us now, we have just had a couple of days up to and around Milford Sound, loads of photos that need to go on the computer and then I will post a few, been without internet for a couple of days, the “shed” is getting a new tyre tomorrow so we have to hang around Te Anau before heading to Doubtful Sound.

New tyre, Martin, after 4 years? What happened, or was it just wear and tear on NZ roads?

 

[funflair]

New tyre, Martin, after 4 years? What happened, or was it just wear and tear on NZ roads?

It's only 2 1/2 years and 30,000 km actually, the tracking is out so it has scrubbed the shoulder off, total lack of any sort of mechanical check before we took it out, it didn't look good when we started to be fair and has certainly got worse

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[funflair]

We left Te Anau yesterday to drive to Milford Sound, as we climbed higher the weather got worse, well wetter anyway but in a way it was a blessing as the mountain sides were just running in 100's of waterfalls,

Milford sound is pretty stunning when you get there but the town itself is basically a visitor centre with a cafe some chalets a campsite and the cruise terminal, oh and the airport as you can fly over the sound in fixed wing or helicopter.

This waterfall is Bowen Falls, at 162m its the tallest of the two permanent falls into Milford Sound and was quite interesting as it seems to spout from the rock face but sadly the only way to see it is from the water as the road stops just before it and there was a track but that closed in 2002 after the rocks were deemed unstable.

 

[funflair]

We camped overnight last night at a DOC site close to Gunn Lake, (no phone service)

This morning was cold and misty until the sun got into the valley,

We had short walk through a typical forest walkway with moss and ferns on the floor and on all the trees,

Better attempt at a "selfie" as I usually chop the top of heads off (some say that is an improvement)

It opened up onto the lake with mountains in the background.

 

[funflair]

After this mornings short walk we decided on something more strenuous but hopefully even more rewarding, we had to drive back up the valley a few miles to what they call "the divide" which is basically where one glacier divided making three valleys,

The walk started from the car park at about 400m and rose gently uphill again through lush vegetation before getting steeper and finishing at around 900m.

It started with the odd glimpse of a mountain top through the trees,

But pretty quickly become full on WOW which ever direction you looked,

It was about 7km and took just over 3 1/2 with a stop at the top, well worth the effort though

 

[nicholsong]

We camped overnight last night at a DOC site close to Gunn Lake, (no phone service)

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This morning was cold and misty until the sun got into the valley,

View attachment 1021984
We had short walk through a typical forest walkway with moss and ferns on the floor and on all the trees,

View attachment 1021987

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Better attempt at a "selfie" as I usually chop the top of heads off (some say that is an improvement)

View attachment 1021979
It opened up onto the lake with mountains in the background.

That is a forest in the temperate zone.

If you get to N. of N. Island the sub-tropical forests are very different. All adds to the magic of NZ.

I think one could spend a year there and not see it all. In weeks there I only saw part of the N. Island and did not make it S. of Wellington, but I was also job hunting in Aukland.

 

[Mikey RV]

Loving this thread, brings back so many good memories of when I spent three months touring the islands.

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