Local sites

We go out of town frequently but not every weekend. When we stay in Auckland, we try to do some type of local activity. Auckland is the largest city is New Zealand and houses about 40% of the country's population. In addition to the numerous parks around the region, there seems to be some kind of festival happening nearly every weekend, especially during the summer. We have really tried to take advantage of all that city living has to offer. 

During the summer, the Auckland Botanic Garden hosted Sculpture in the Gardens. There were ~25 pieces spread throughout the gardens, ranging from water features to giant sculptures. Some pieces used the plants within the Botanic Garden as a platform, while others were completely stand alone. Many were whimsical and a fun addition to the gardens. 

an unofficial addition to the sculptures

 Auckland has a large population of Pacific peoples, mainly from Samoa, Tonga, Niue, and the Cook Islands. They are the third largest ethnic group and make up nearly 15% of the population. Although many of the island cultures can be traced back to ancestors from Hawai'i, the island traditions diverged due to isolation from others. There are multiple festivals during the year to celebrate Pacific Island culture, including the Pasifika Festival just down the road from our house. Each Pacific nation has its own area to showcase dance, music, language, and food from their homeland. It is a colorful festival that highlights the similarities and differences of each island nation. 

dancers from Tuvalu

colorful crowns of flowers

The second largest ethnic group in Auckland is Asian. This is a very broad category in the census that doesn't capture the diversity of cultures in that group. The Chinese community is one of the largest Asian groups in Auckland and there are also multiple festivals during the year to celebrate their culture, including the Buddha's birthday. The largest Buddhist temple in NZ is in Auckland and each year the temple hosts a weekend-long birthday party, complete with traditional music, dance, food, and crafts. We visited many temples on our trip to Southeast Asia, but this was the first contemporary temple I had visited. The main difference was the size of the main temple (quite large) and the infrastructure therein for regular worshippers. The grounds of the temple complex were lovely and made for a contemplative stroll.  

Many of the regional parks around Auckland also capture the culture and history of the isthmus. Auckland, or Tāmaki Makaurau as it is known to Māori, was an important place for food production and trading for many iwi (tribes). Auckland sits on a mostly dormant volcanic field, which means an abundance of scoria, basalt, and fertile soils. The Ōtuataua Stonefields are a small remnant of the more than 8000 hectares of volcanic stonefield that existed in Auckland. Much of that land was swallowed by urban development and Ōtuataua is steadily being encroached upon by housing developers. 

The 100 hectare site showcases how newly arrived Polynesian settlers adapted to the cooler climate of Aotearoa. They used the scoria and basalt to create wind breaks and help warm the soil in order to extend the growing season for tropical crops such as taro, kumara, and yams. These structures usually followed the ridge lines and protected crops from westerlies. European settlers who later occupied the land, built dry stonewalls to contain their livestock that adhered to survey lines rather than topographic features. The differences in approach can be seen in the two photos below.  

dry stonewalls built by Europeans for livestock

walls built along ridge lines to warm the soil and protect crops from the wind

The Waitake Ranges are also an important cultural area to Māori, particularly the Te Kawerau a Maki iwi. Last year when scientists discovered the kauri dieback disease was spreading faster than expected, the iwi made a bold move and placed a rahui (cultural closure) on the forested areas of the Waitaks. Although this wasn't a legally binding proclamation, it did send a strong signal to Aucklanders and visitors alike that our presence in the area is killing the iconic trees. Auckland Council and the Department of Conservation have the legal authority to close the park and tracks in the area, and they finally realized they needed to take legal action to protect the trees. We had respected the rahui, with the exception for work, but decided that we needed to take one last hike before the forest was closed on 1 May. No one knows how long the forest will be off limits, but we all hope the closure will succeed in slowing the spread of the disease.

Kauri tree covered in gum. Some gum in natural, but
this seemed excessive, possibly indicating disease. 

upper fairy falls

lower fairy falls

A branch from a kauri tree showing how the tree closes them off
so that they fall from the tree. Kauri regularly shed lower branchesand bark so no epiphytes or vines can grow on the tree.  

Native NZ forests, complete with tree ferns, rimu, totara, and kauri

We really enjoy the wealth of activities that occur in Auckland and the closeness of nature. It makes the city feel much smaller than it actually is. It is also refreshing to see so many cultures celebrated in the city rather than being marginalized. 

Birthday weekend in the geothermal hotspot

For Pete's birthday last weekend, he requested a trip to the geothermal wonderland of NZ, Rotorua. The area sits within the Taupo Volcanic Zone, an active geothermal field covering about 250 kms from north to south. Rotorua was one of the earliest tourist destinations in NZ. It was home to the famed pink and white terraces, sometimes referred to as the eighth wonder of the natural world. Shiploads of people would arrive from the UK, Europe, and America to see the terraces and bathe in the hot mineral waters. The terraces were presumed destroyed in the late 1800s when Mount Tarawera erupted, burying everything around under a thick layer of mud and ash. However, in 2017 a team of scientists discovered that the terraces are still intact but are buried beneath 50 feet of mud and ash. 

Artist's rendering of the white terraces (Charles Blomfield)

The Taupo Volcanic Zone is one of the four most active geothermal areas in the world along with Yellowstone, USA; Kamchatka, Russia; and Iceland. The Rotorua area is surrounded by a vast array of features, including mud pools, boiling crater lakes, geysers, smoking fumaroles, and colorful sinter (solidified mineral deposits) terraces. The smell of sulfur is immediately apparent when you arrive in town, and it is not uncommon to see steam rising from the ground throughout the town and the surrounding area. The geothermal activity is harnessed in the area for residential heating and hot water baths. The holiday park we stayed at even had a natural hot pool!

There are a number of areas around Rotorua that will take your money in exchange for up close encounters with the geothermal features. We chose Waiotapu because it has a range of features within a relatively small area, including geysers, boiling mud pools, sinter terraces, and CRAZY colored lakes. 

Lady Knox geyser steaming...

...and erupting

Devil's ink pots (color from graphite and crude oil)

another one of the Devil's ink pots

the Artist's Palette

the Primrose Terrace - the largest remaining sinter
terraces in NZ after the burial of the pink & white terraces

alum, sulfur, and sand

the coloration from sulfur is amazing!

the emerald green waters of Lake Ngakoro

the lower Primrose Terrace

the sinter surrounding the Champagne Pool

The otherworldly Devil's Bath! 

 

pool of boiling mud

Exploding mud is fun to watch!

After spending much of the day at Waiotapu, we walked through Kuirau Park in the middle of Rotorua, a free geothermal area with interesting, but much less colorful offerings. Our holiday park was right next to the thermal park, making for an easy outing. 

hot mud and boiling water

birthday boy

steamy lake at sunset

The forecast for the next day called for showers throughout the morning so we headed out to the museum at the Buried Village of Te Wairoa. The area was one of the many villages buried when Mount Tarawera erupted in 1886. The Smith family purchased the land in 1931 and began excavating the site to see what buildings they could find from the former village. They found remnants from a Maori storehouse, town hotel, and many dwellings. They also excavated many personal effects from the sites, including dishes, clothing, and tools. Most everything was buried under about a meter of mud and ash. There is also a lovely stream running through the property and a series of waterfalls. The Smiths built a track to the waterfall in the 1930s and was one of the highlights of the visit. 

the Maori storehouse - note the stone carvings either side of the entrance

Pete's birthday umbrella is as strong as advertised!

Lake Tarawera (volcano on the right in the cloudy distance)

It was fun to explore another geothermal area on the planet. That crosses three of four off the list for me - Iceland, here we come!

Another visitor!

We have been fortunate to have so many visitors come through NZ since we've been here. They have not all come to visit us, per se, but we are really grateful when they take extra time to visit. A couple of weeks ago, my friend Brock graced us with his presence for three days at the tail end of a work trip. He's always up for an adventure and was ready to be out in nature, so we did the best we could in the short time we had with him. 

We headed out to the black sand beaches of the west coast on day one. We explored the beach at Te Henga, including a cave and some phenomenal geological formations. The area used to be the eastern flank of the Waitakere Volcano that erupted 15 to 22 million years ago. It was the second largest volcano ever to erupt in NZ. Te Henga was the site of one of the lava flows that extended under the ocean, creating pillow lava and hyaloclastite formations. There are also a lot of examples of volcaniclastic rocks that have been reworked by rivers and the ocean over time.  

microbial mats on the walls of the sea cave

looking north from the cave

pillow lava

volcaniclastic rocks

columnar basalt formed by rapidly cooled lava

From the beach, we hiked over the giant black sand dunes and around Lake Wainamu. We used every ounce of daylight, finishing our hike as twilight set in.

Lake Wainamu with the giant sand dunes in the distance

The following day was a holiday so Pete and I were off from work. It was a beautiful day for a trip north to see glow worms and birds. We first visited Waipu Cave when Jenny and Andrew were here a couple months ago. We thought it was so neat that we wanted to take Brock too. We were not disappointed! The glow worms are really spectacular and there are a lot of interesting limestone formations in the cave too. We explored a bit more of the cave this time around and found some chambers that we missed on our last visit. A large storm came through NZ about a week before we went to the cave and we could see how high the water had gotten inside by the debris marks on the cave walls. That is not a place you want to be in high water!

The little dots are all glow worms. They make
the cave walls look like a starry sky.

After a picnic with a spectacular view over the Whangarei Harbour, we headed to Tawheranui Regional Park to see kauri trees and find some native birds. The birds did not disappoint that afternoon. We even got a good look at a kaka and were treated to its crazy range of calls. Brock finished the day with a swim on the beach at sunset. It was the perfect end to a great day. 

our beautiful lunch spot

kaka (lowland parrot) chattering away in the kauri tree

morepork (ruru) sizing us up

Brock swimming in the other side of the Pacific

Thanks for the great visit, Brock!