Napier week 2 (2017-02-12)

 

We have spent the past week doing a lot of biking and a lot of walking around Napier.  Nothing too exciting....2 circuitous rides to Clive and back, on routes that we had not tried before, and a couple of rides (into the wind in both directions) up to Bay View.  The temperatures have varied from low 30s at the beginning of the week, to mid-teens mid-week, and back into the 30s today.  But somehow we survive.  We also managed a few library visits, for me to retrieve information critical to my family history research (or so I told Marlene), and several meals with cousins, Maureen & Denzil.

 

On one of our walks we spotted this cat, safely on one side of the gate, while the dog stood on the other side, barking his head off.  Cruel!

 

Cat tormenting dog through the gate

It has also been a busy week for our daughter, Heather, and family.  Last weekend they bought a house in Sunshine Hills (Delta), prepared their current house for sale, and by Friday night it was sold.  They do not get possession until May, so we will be home to help.  They are going to be cashtrated for the next few years.

 

Cashtration - a definition

 Until yesterday, we had not seen any cruise ships in the Napier harbour, and then yesterday we saw the Dawn Princess arriving, and today the Noordam was in port when we cycled by on our way to Bay View.  This coming week is Art Deco week in Napier (starts in earnest on Wednesday), so there will probably be cruise ships in harbour on most days.

 

Dawn Princess backing into Napier Harbour

 We will probably not see much of Art Deco week this year, as on Tuesday we have to leave our current home and head out to Taradale for our last week in the area.  We were not able to find one place for all three weeks of our stay.  We have already riden past our "new home" and it looks very nice, but we have been happy in our Napier unit, so are somewhat disappointed to be leaving it.  But we will be away from the tourist throng, and it will give us the opportunity to explore a little further afield on the bikes, so a good outcome.

 

Donald Trump features very frequently in conversation and in the media over here, as I am sure he is where you are also.  The cartoon in yesterday's local paper was particularly apropos.

 

 

Speaking of Donald Trump, I dreamed that I had researched his ancestry, and found that one of his ancestors was a buffalo and another was a baboon....that would explain why he is such a buffoon.

 

Napier week 1 (2017-02-05)

We spent Tuesday at our home for the next two weeks, catching up on emails, doing laundry and other assorted jobs, and generally enjoying our own company. 

 

Wednesday was a very hot, 33 degree, day, so while wanting to get out enjoy Hawkes Bay, it had to be somewhere shady.  We opted for the Tainui Reserve in Havelock North, where we were able to enjoy a decent walk, while staying out of the blistering sun.  On the way home we stopped off and picked up some organic fruit and vegetables just outside Hastings, and then stopped for coffee at Zepplin Cafe in Clive (a favourite biking destination for us last year).

 

I have already posted about our trip to Cape Kidnappers on Thursday, so we will go straight to Friday.  Friday was again forecast to be very hot, so we set off early in the morning to climb Te Mata Peak outside of Havelock North.  The Peak rises 440 metres above the surrounding plain, so offers great views of the area.  We parked just inside the main gates, and opted for the longest route to the top, which went through some nice forested areas and culminated in a series of switchbacks to reach the top.

Switchbacks on Te Mata Peak

After climbing steadily for an hour, we arrived at the top, to find that we could have driven all the way up here .  This seems to be a recurring theme! 

 

View from the top of Te Mata Peak

As we drove back through Hastings, I spied a sign in the middle of a roundabout, pointing to the "DIY Coffin Club" (photo below). 

 

DIY Coffin Club Sign

Intrigued, I Googled the term to see exactly what a do it yourself coffin club does.  Unsurprisingly, it is a group of people who get together to help each other build their own coffins, which are then decorated at the whim of the planned occupant.  Apparently coffins make great bookshelves or wine racks while awaiting their final purpose.  Perhaps this is taking "Be Prepared" a little too far?  In addition to making their own coffins, the club also supplies small coffins for stillborn babies, free of charge, to the local hospital.  So a good community-focussed activity.

 

My cousins, Maureen and Denzil, delivered their bicycles to us on Friday afternoon, as they don't want to cycle in the heat.  This is great for us, as it saves us buying bikes to enjoy Napier's wonderful trails.  On Saturday afternoon I pumped up the tyres (that is "tires" for the Canadians), and we were ready for action. 

 

Meanwhile, on Saturday morning we dropped off our rental car, walked into Ahuriri for a coffee, and then walked back around Bluff Hill to our temporary home, with a short stopover at the city library enroute.  In the evening we did a short (1 hour) bike ride, just to get accustomed to the bikes, before tackling anything more major.

 

Sunday morning was calm and sunny with a forecast high of 25 degrees, so we hit the road early, cycling up to the campground at Bay View, about 13 Km away, and another coffee destination from last summer.

 

Intrepid Cyclists on Boardwalk at Ahuriri

 When we arrived home, we noticed that the cactus in our garden, which we had seen buds on the other day, was now flowering.  Meanwhile we were wilting from the heat.

 

Our Flowering Cactus

 In the afternoon we walked into town to do a little shopping, with another short stop at the library and grocery store, as everything will be closed tomorrow for a public holiday, celebrating the anniversary of my Mum's birth (and the signing of the Treaty of Waitangi between the British and Maori).

 

There has been no shortage of exercise this week, and we are certainly glad to be in the sun, rather than the snow which is hitting the West Coast of BC at the moment.

 

Cape Kidnappers (2017-02-01)

As we only had a car for our first 5 days in Napier, we decided to do some out of town excursions while we had it.  This included a visit to Cape Kidnappers, home of the largest mainland gannet (its a bird) colony in the world.

 

Cape Kidnappers forms the southern end of Hawkes Bay and was named by Captain Cook in 1869, as the place where a group of local Maori tried to kidnap a Tahitian boy who was on board the Endeavour.  The gannets must have heard about it (perhaps from a stowaway seagull), as they arrived a few years later, and have been nesting here ever since.

 

There are 3 ways to get to see the gannets -

1. Walk the 20 Km round trip on the beach for free (at low tide)

2. Take a $44 ride along the beach on a trailer towed behind a tractor, then walk to the colony

3. Ride right to the gannet colony on an air-conditioned bus for $80

 

Marlene might have opted for the longer walk option, but I still have nightmares from making the trip as a Boy Scout 50 years ago, and convinced her to take the tractor ride.  Thankfully it was more overcast and cooler than Tuesday (33 degrees), so the ride was bearable.  Each tractor towed 2 trailers, with about 10 people per trailer, so we had about 40 people in total, making the journey.

 

Gannet Beach Adventures

The tractor ride takes you along the beach, which is partly sandy, but largely rocky, below cliffs which tower 2-300 feet above you, and occasionally through the water, if necessary.  At one point the tractor drivers both got out and attacked some new rocks with pick axes to make the ride less bumpy.  Each day more and more of the cliffs falls into the sea below.  Thankfully only a few pebbles came down during our ride, but even a small pebble could cause you some damage after falling 200 feet.

 

The tractors negotiated past Black Reef and along a sandy section of beach, to where we began the 30  minute climb up to a plateau, where the gannets nest. 

 

The Beach and Black Reef from the Plateau Gannet Colony

 

There are about 8,000 breeding pairs at Cape Kidnappers this year, so there are gannets as far as you can see, hear or smell.  The adult gannets have yellow heads, and the chicks start off all white and become grey and speckled as they get older.

 

Where's Waldo

The adult gannets care for the chicks until they are about 15 weeks old, at which point the chicks, having never flown before, fly to Australia (my first flight was also to Australia, but I did it in the relative comfort of an Air New Zealand DC8).  The journey takes about 8 days for the gannets, versus 3 hours on the DC8.

 

The gannets are obviously very smart birds, as after 2-3 years in Australia they fly back to New Zealand and never visit Australia again.

 

My Favourite - Isn't she (he?) Cute?

 

Charming Chicks

 After our allotted hour and a half at the Plateau Colony, we set off on the return journey to Clifton. At this point, Ian, our tractor driver, comedian and tour guide, told us that the Gannets at the Black Reef Colony are exactly the same as the ones we had just climbed to hill to see, and we would be able to see them without getting off the trailer.  Bugger!

 

Baby Gannet at Black Reef Colony

The cliffs along the northern side of Cape Kidnappers show layer after layer of different deposits, including volcanic ash, river silt and heavier rocks.  Having been built up over thousands of years, the cliffs also show earthquake action.  The photo below shows an old earthquake fault line (the near vertical line), where the land on the left of the fault dropped down about 8 metres (25 feet), compared to the land on the right of the fault.

 

Old Earthquake Fault Line

It is said that you have to have a sense of humour to be a New Zealander, and some local wag has posted a "Topless Bathing Permitted" sign outside his beachfront lean-to.  I don't see what the big deal is....I always bathe topless (if you can get me into the water at all).

 

Topless Bathing Permitted

 

 

Wellington - Feilding - Napier (2017-01-30)

If it is January, we must be in New Zealand.

 

We were glad to leave the snow behind in BC and head to summer in New Zealand, but the first week's weather has been very changeable.  Wellington seemed to be hit with another tropical storm every second day, with very strong wind gusts (up to 120 Km per hour), and lots of rain.

 

But we packed a lot of visiting into the week, seeing my sisters, my nephew and his family, 3 groups of cousins, and friends from both New Zealand and Canada, enjoyed several cafe visits for a latte and date scone, and fit in a few small repair jobs for my sister, Margaret.

 

We arrived on Saturday and our first weekend was a holiday weekend, celebrating the Wellington province anniversary, a celebration that may have meant something a century ago, but is now just a day off work.  But that extra day off gave us the opportunity to see relatives who would otherwise have been working.  On Tuesday we stayed close to home as Margaret was babysitting her granddaughter, so it was Wednesday before we ventured out on our own, with a trip into Wellington on the train.

 

Our friends, Ralph and Isobel from Qualicum Beach were on a cruise ship which stopped in Wellington on Wednesday, and we had arranged to meet up with them for a walk and a coffee.  As we headed up Featherston Street from the railway station, I couldn't help but notice the 14 men patching a piece of road, with only one of them actually doing any work.  I guess that is one way to ensure low unemployment!

 

Road Repairs with Parliament Building in the Background





 

As we headed across Lambton Quay towards our rendezvous point, we could barely stand up against the wind and it began to rain.  By the time we met Ralph and Isobel, the rain was torrential and we decided to skip the walk and just head for coffee.  Even staying among the buildings as long as possible, we were battered and drenched by the time we reached the cafe on the waterfront.  We enjoyed a quiet coffee, before leaving Ralph and Isobel in the safety of Te Papa, to take in the Gallipoli exhibit. 

 

 

Marlene and Isobel at Poneke Cafe

Wanting to stay out of the weather, Marlene did a little shopping while I visited the New Zealand Archives and then we met for lunch at the cafe at the National Library, where Marlene had her "best vege wrap ever", a solid recommendation indeed. 

 

The Kaikoura earthquake in November 2016 was widely felt in Wellington and several high-rise buildings are in the process of being demolished, due to earthquake damage.  My Nephew and his family had to go to high ground in the middle of the night as they are only a few metres above sea level, and they also had to vacate their work buildings for several weeks.  Everybody that we discussed the earthquake with in Wellington, indicated that it was the worst that they had ever felt, so we are thankful that there have not been any aftershocks during our visit. 





 

Earthquake Poster

 

We did a day to trip to Featherston on Thursday, to scope out a series of "small" jobs for my other sister, Tricia.  Now that I understand the requirements, and armed with measurements, I have to come up with a list of required materials, so that Tricia can procure them before our next visit, later in the trip.  It is looking like a long day's work.

 

On Saturday morning we headed North to Feilding, to visit our farming friends for two days....finally away from the gales and rain.  With a few consecutive days without rain, everybody in the vicinity was cutting and baling hay.  I learned a lot about square and round balers, and even got to assist with repairs to a baler.  The downside of hanging out in a field of hay all day was the return of my childhood hay fever, which always kicked in once I left the offending field.  But, one night's misery is a small price to pay for a great few days in the country.





 

Our Farmstay Location

 

Now we are in Napier, where we will stay for 3 weeks.  The next 3 days are forecast to be 29-31 degrees, so weather-wise it is a bit of a shock.  Our accommodations are very good - a self-contained flat on the rear of an older house.  We have lots of space, and are closer to town than on our last visit to Napier, so all is looking good.

 

 

 

 

Destination Loverna (2016-10-03)

We were not expecting to be back on the road so soon, but needs must.  Marlene's Mom's sister, Jean, whom we had visited in hospital in Edmonton in July, passed away in late September, and a celebration of her life was held in Loverna, Saskatchewan, this past Saturday.

 

Why Loverna you ask?  Jean was raised in Loverna, married in Loverna, and raised her family there, before moving to Edmonton later in life.  Jean's son lives in Kindersley, the nearest centre of habitation.

 

You have likely never heard of Loverna, Saskatchewan, so I will give you the abridged version of its history.  It is situated just East of the Alberta border, due North of Alsask, in the middle of the Canadian prairies - so flat that they say you can watch your dog run away for 3 days (a slight exaggeration, but you get the picture).  Loverna was first and foremost a railway town, and back in the 1920s boasted a population of more than 500, with 3 churches, 2 doctors, 2 banks, and numerous other businesses.  Marlene's maternal grandfather, Fred Sim, was a railway man, who was transferred to Loverna in the late 1930s, and became mayor of the town in 1945.  By 1980 the railway was gone, and Loverna lost its raison d'etre.  The town is now unincorporated (no more mayors), the population is less than 20, and Loverna is now essentially a ghost town.

 

Our trip was made a little more complicated by the fact that we had agreed to look after our daughter's dog, Charli, as Heather and her family had booked a vacation in San Diego.  So we left Delta, BC, on Thursday morning, with Charli perched on her doggie car seat, and headed to Kamloops, where we dropped Charli with our son, Will, before moving on to Golden, BC, where we spent Wednesday night, as this was more than halfway to our destination - Kindersley, Saskatchewan.

 

On Friday we continued through Lake Louise & Banff, bypassed most of Calgary, and then across Alberta highway 9 (Drumheller, Hanna, Oyen) and Saskatchewan highway 7 to Kindersley.  From the point of leaving highway 2 at Crossfield, Alberta, there are probably not more than 20 curves in the 400 Km to Kindersley.  Our 4 year old granddaughter, Kinley, could probably have driven it!

 

We spent Friday evening visiting with Marlene's cousins in Kindersley and then headed out to Loverna for the celebration of life on Saturday morning.  Once you leave Highway 7, there is no more asphalt, and soon the roads are unnamed (thankfully we have a GPS).  It reminded me somewhat of driving to my Gleeson ancestral home in Ireland last year, but without the hedgerows.

 

The Road to Loverna (just off 317)

The celebration of life was held in the Loverna Community Hall, one of the few buildings still in use in the town.  It was hard to imagine a once bustling town.  The celebration was well attended, as witnessed by the number of vehicles in the photo below.  I have pasted photos of a few of the other remaining buildings in Loverna, at the bottom of this page. 

 

Main Street Loverna today

After the celebration of life, we joined the family in laying some of Jean's ashes to rest with her husband, Floyd, in the Loverna cemetery, and spreading the remaining ashes on the family farm just outside of town.  This provided opportunity to test the AWD capability of the Subaru, as we drove through the alfalfa fields....the fields had less potholes than some of the local roads.

 

On Sunday morning, after coffee with Marlene's cousin, we started the trek homeward.  We overnighted in Revelstoke, BC, a town which impressed us - lots of happy young people and well cared for heritage buildings.  The winter would not suit us (long and snowy), but Revelstoke could be worth a September visit some year, after the summer tourists leave, and before the winter tourists arrive.

 

Monday was a long travel day, as we left Revelstoke at 8 am and did not arrive home until 11 pm.  It was not all driving, as we had an hour with friends in Sicamous, 3 hours with Will in Kamloops, and  3 1/2 hours waiting for / riding the ferry to the island.  Charli was an excellent traveller, and seems none the worse for spending 4 nights in a house with a cat (Giz), although she has supposedly developed a taste for fish-flavoured cat food.  Charli and Giz seemed to consider all available food as being jointly owned.

 

We are tired after travelling over 3000 Km in 5 days, and are happy to be home on the island for a few days before we take Charli home on Saturday.

 

Photos of some of Loverna's remaining buildings -