Castle Point!

It’s been awhile since I’ve had an opportunity to update my travels…obviously. There was extremely limited internet access at Castle Point. In fact, there was extremely limited access to everything! There was only one store, with very limited stock, one restaurant/pub with limited hours, and less than 20 permanent residents. The rest of visitors to Castle Point are people who come for weekends or holidays to their batches [really small holiday homes]. Being winter, it is the off season for such a place, making it virtually empty.

Our bunk house [complete with living room, kitchen, and beds for 24] sat just across the road from the bay. There wasn’t much beach, mostly rocks. It was surrounded on one side by misty mountains, and the other by a lighthouse.

The time spent at Castle Point was to be spent much like time would be spent at a writing retreat: writing. The majority of our assignments were due upon our departure. It was a bit sad, sitting inside and working all day when there were adventures to be had, but it turned out ok because it rained nearly every day we were there. This is typical of New Zealand weather though we did also have a chance to experience a southerly—a storm system blown up from Antarctica. You can imagine this means cold weather, though not even close to below freezing. Just cold wind and rain.

One morning Taylor, John and I woke up at 5am and hiked up to the lighthouse to watch the sunrise over the Pacific Ocean. It was beautiful. And windy. Once it was light and the sun was up we decided to hike up Castle Rock. This is a giant rock that sits behind the lighthouse, past a small cove. The climb was a bit treacherous—muddy, thin paths along cliffs and steep edges. But we made it to the top and enjoyed the coast to coast view. I know I’ve already mentioned the wind, but it was WINDY. We truly believed there was a chance we would blow off! The group made another trip up Castle Rock on our last day. It was still windy.

A later adventure took to exploring the reef than exists between the lighthouse and Castle Rock. The reef is shelves of sea rock build up. It is quite dangerous during times of storm or strong wind when rogue waves occur. The apparently sweep people off the rocks and out to see. There was a danger sign complete with a memorial. It was enough to make me see and get the heck out of there!

Besides that, I just made a couple trips up and down the beach looking for interesting things.
We had a couple of group adventures. One afternoon at a bird wildlife center seeing native birds. After all, New Zealand is the land of the birds. There are no native mammals to the islands until they were introduced by humans. Because of this many of the birds on the island evolved to be flightless, like the kiwi. We got to see many of these [including kiwis].

Another afternoon was spent with the owners of Castle Point. The resort we stayed at is actually a very small part of a sheep station. The Crofoot’s are originally from the States, but moved to New Zealand and now own and run this incredibly large sheep station…8500 acres. We drove the length of the station in our vans with the Crofoots. We also saw the wool shed where they shear all of their sheep.

Now, we are back in Wellington for a couple days. We are enjoying great food and art around the city. Tomorrow we leave for 4 days in Rotorua where there are hot springs, bubbling mud, sulfur springs, and lots of tourist activities. These four days were actually planned by the group only last week. I think it is our touristy vacation after all of our writing work from the rest of the trip. We then have 2 days back in Auckland and the fly home.
I’ll keep you updated on the rest of our trip!

The misty mountains in the bay at Castle Point

The lighthouse at Castle Point

Beautiful sunrise over the ocean!

Taylor and John as we hike on Castle Point

The reef and some crazy waves :/

Part of the trail up to Castle Rock...told you it was rough

The lighthouse from [almost] the top of Castle Rock

Some of us hanging on for dear life as the wind blows as about at the top of Castle Rock.

Hiking on the way to Castle Rock

Leaving Masterton today

So we're leaving Masterton today. We've spent the last two days exploring the downtown area: shops and restaurants. Thursday morning we met Barry at the Mauri meeting house where he introduced us to his friend, one of the elders in the local tribe. We were shown around the house and the ground it sits on. I have pictures I'll put up later. Thursday night we went to a literary reading, two pretty famous New Zealand authors. It was really nice...we listened to them read from their books and then talk about their writing processes [appropriate for a writing class, don't you think?]. Last night we went to a one man theater production. It was called All the World's a Stage and was an interpretation of a number of Shakespeare plays. It was very good. Apparently the actor is one of the top theater actors in the country. We are now preparing to head off to Castle Point with a trip to the local farmers market and grocery store. Castle Point is a resort on the coast where we will be spending a lot of time outdoors and finishing our writing assignments. I'm looking forward to the views!

New Zealand bush and farm

So I haven't provided much history of New Zealand, so I'll take a breif moment. It is an island settled by British colonists in the 1800's. It was settled a couple hundred years before by people from Hawaii now known as the Mauri [mauw-ri]. New Zealand is divided up into regions and we are spending a majority of our time in the Wiararapa [wi-ra-rap-a]. In the Wiararapa, the Mauri and settlers have always had good relations, making this a fairly peaceful region in terms of politics.

Yesterday, we explored some of the last remaining native bush of New Zealand. Colin told us only 2% of the island remains in its natural state, though the Wiararapa is working hard to encourage regeneration. We drove to the Waiohine [wi-o-heen-ee] Gorge where we walked across a very scary swing bridge. From here we were able to hike through the bush, which I was surprised to find is actually a sub-tropical rain forest. It reminded me a lot of what I saw in the Amazon in Ecuador, though with different varieties of plants and much cooler temperatures. It was chilly and those who had hats and gloves hiked with them. It was all very beautiful. On our way to our next hiking point we stopped at a few local craftsmen shops: a carpenter and potter. All of the work was beautiful and I wish I had the money and space for a rocking chair or set of ceramic dishes. I did find one piece at the potter that I don't believe I will be able to live without...but no progress on the purchase yet [check out the picture below], lol. Our next hike was at Holdsworth and it was similar to our earlier hike in the bush. The evening was filled with our family-style dinner and class.

Today we were able to meet one of Brian's old friends named Barry. Barry is a fourth generation farmer here in New Zealand. His family was one of five to first settle this part of the Wiararapa in th 1850's. The farm stead we visited still has the original house built, though they are currently working to restore it. Barry leases three quarters of his farm now and only holds 170 acres or so for his small-ish heards of sheep and cattle. He talked a lot today about the changes experienced by the sheep industry in the last decade and how many sheep farms are going under. We watched as he fed his cattle, walked around a patch of native bush perserved on the farm, and took turns driving the 4-wheeler up to his new house where we ate our packed lunches. We will see Barry again soon. Our afternoon was spent touring vineyards [New Zealand is wine country after all]. We stopped at 4 different vineyards and tried their various wines. Some were very good and others very different. It was overall a very enjoyable afternoon topped off with a visit to a local chocolate shop. This shop had tons of different chocolate flavors including sea salt [my fav], chili lime, rose, and so many others. We bought 6 different bars to try at dessert this evening...I'm excited :).

Tomorrow we are meeting with Mauri people to tour thier traditional meeting house and Friday is a day to be spend exploring the very inviting downtown area of Masterton. I'll update you soon!

Native bush in the Wiararapa

My boot and a river below as I walk across a swinging bridge.

The swinging bridge we walked across...fun, but scary.

A creek running through the bush.

View from the hiking trail.

Mountains in the morning fog.

Landscape from the car.

Local potter's work.

A piece by the potter that I decided I need. 450 New Zealand dollars and it's mine [take note dad/mom/andrew :)]

Plants growing on a tree in the bush.

Taryn and I in the bush.

Cattle on Barry's farm.

The entrance to the farm stead and the front of the old farm house.

Barry with his sheep.

In Carlton there was a Kansas Street!

Masterton

Well, we arrived in Masterton yesterday. It was only a quick 2.5 hour drive from Wellington. Our group met up with Brian--a preacher from Cedar Rapids who spent a couple years in New Zealand--and drove rental vans here. The drive was through some of the mountains...curvy and a bit dangerous, but very pretty.

Yesterday evening we went to dinner at Jenny and Colin's house. They were the first people Brian met when he came here and they were very welcoming. Jenny prepared a large meal of chicken, potato and leak soup, potatoes, and salad with all the veggies fresh from their garden. Colin told us a lot about New Zealand--especially concerning it's ecological history. New Zealand is very similar to the Galapagos islands in that it is an island that is the only home to many of its plants and animals--all of which are very unique. For example, New Zealand is the only home to the largest parrot, which also happens to be flightless. The big difference between New Zealand and the Galapagos is the New Zealand was settled early in the 19th century and the colonists introduced lots of their own plants and animals, destroying most of what was here. There are of course lots of conservation efforts going on now to restore everything, but it's not quite the same.

Today, Colin and Jenny joined us as we drove down to the coast of the Tazman Sea [between New Zealand and Australia]. Again, breathtakingly beautiful. We saw a seal colony and found paua shells and climbed a light house. I think pictures will say more than I ever could.

Tomorrow we are hiking for a few hours through some native bush...aka forest. Should be fun!

A few other words different in New Zealand:

boot = trunk
tea = dinner
pudding = dessert
garden = yard
flash = fancy
honey crunch rice bubble slice = rice crispy treat [no lies...it's our favorite so far!]

Bay and coast from look-out point.

Pasture along the coast. Yes, that is a fence line along the side of the foothill. Note to fence builders back home: it could be worse!

Me and mountains/rocks. The formation on the left is Kupe's sail. According to Mauri tales, Kupe pulled the islands of New Zealand out of the sea.

More rocks with various members of my group hidden in the picture. Also home to seals.

Taylor with one of the paua shells we found.

Light house we visited and yes, we climbed up all 250 stairs!

Taryn and I at the top of the light house.

Did I mention the beach had black sand?? It's volcanic rock.

We hiked a bit through a dry river bed to see the Pinnicles. They're formed by water dripping through the limestone. Really pretty. These were part of the movie set for Lord of the Rings.

:)

Pasture and a fall colored vineyard.

Wellington and the OverLander

It's early Sunday morning and we are having cereal at our hostel in Wellington. Soon we will be on our way to Masterton in our rental vans.

The train yesterday was fabulous! It is apparently a historical train (1908) and famous for the views it offers of New Zealand countryside. I wish I could upload my pictures right now, but hopefully tonight. The land of New Zealand seems mystical. It is vastly green with islands and mountains fading in to the distance. The landscapes are dotted with sheep--there are apparently more sheep than people here, lol. We went over gorges and up a volcano. It was beautiful. Unfortunately, it broke down halfway through our trip and we had to be transferred to buses. Not nearly as exciting. I guess there were only a few more hours of daylight left, so we didn't miss too much. Anyways, many others are waiting to use the computers behind me.

Beautiful view from the train. Kind of magical looking uh?

River--I can remember the name, but it is the longest in New Zealand flowing alomst 2/3 the length of the north island.

The line you see is the track we were on. The track spirals up a volcano...an engineering masterpiece I'm told.

Remember the outdoor viewing deck? Taylor and I stick our necks out as we cross a very tall bridge!!

Another bridge...curvy this time.

The OverLander as we departed early.

Did I Mention I'm in New Zealand??

Between finals, packing, and graduation, there was little time for anything else. So sorry for the late notice...I'm in New Zealand!! It is another May Term class through Coe [I'm completing it as post-graduation education].

It was nearly a 24 hour trip from Cedar Rapids to Auckland, New Zealand. Here we are 17 hours ahead of the central time zone. Which is why the entire group went to bed last night around 7:30, lol. Our two days in Auckland have been spent seeing the sights of the city. These included a trip up the Sky Tower (similar to the Space Needle), a hike up Mt. Eden to see the volcanic crater, a visit to the Auckland Museum, and a lot of wandering about the busy city streets. My favorite thing so far has probably been the accents of the locals [called kiwis]. We haven't had too many interactions with any yet, but am looking forward to speaking with people while we are here. The frozen Coke at McDonalds also ranks pretty high on my list of favorites :).

Tomorrow we leave Auckland for Wellington--a 12 hour train ride south. We are going from the very north of the north island to the very south of the north island. We will have one night in Wellington and then travel by van to Masterton where we will spent 4-5 days hiking and whatnot [I'm not exactly sure]. While I'm not looking forward to 12 hours on a train, I am looking forward to viewing the landscapes. Hopefully I don't sleep too much on the train. The jet lag is still getting to me a bit. The train ride will also provide a much needed opportunity to catch up on my writing. I am, afterall, here as part of a writing class and our professor expects that we complete our work.

Here are a few pictures below:

Aerial, Taylor and John with downtown Auckland in the backgroud.

City of Auckland from the top of the Sky Walk, seen it the left of the first photo.

Me on the top of Mt. Eden--an inactive volcanic crater in the middle of Auckland.

My favorite house in Auckland...they are all this pretty.