The major reason to arrive in Auckland early was to visit the Hobbiton Movie Set! I finished reading The Hobbit and The Lord of The Rings before arriving. The owner of the property, Peter Jackson and the movie company have come together to create this tourist attraction. They are continuing to improve and expand on it because of its popularity.Hobbits were not tall and this photo demonstrates the size of the “hobbit hole” on Bag End.This is the inside of one of the homes. There are passageways into each room and it is very cozy. Watch you head on walking out.Haere mai ( Mauri for Welcome ) Mary, Eldon and I met up with the Backroads leaders and fellow travelers in Auckland. First order of business…. riding the Hauraki Rail Trail.We rode through this treacherous tunnel. Against all rules, Mary turned a light on to take this photo. We rode to the gold rush town of Thames and passed this New Zealand ” Christmas Tree” It blooms with bright red flowers in the summer and is an evergreen. The following day we traveled to Hahei Beach to climb into our kayaksFantastic warm weather and an easy paddle to Cathedral CoveClear, blue-green water and we saw a few eagle rays.A beautiful beach to land on and then swim up the river. Coming out of the water, we were treated to made-to-order coffee delights.In the afternoon, we hiked among the Shakespeare Cliffs.On our hike the ” Silver Fern” was pointed out to us. This is often seen as a symbol of New Zealand. A gorgeous redwood in the Whakarewarewa Forest. Redwoods are not indigenous to New Zealand. The state of California donated trees to New Zealand over one hundred years ago.The Waikite Hot Pools were refreshing after our bike ride of the morning.We visited a Mauri home and visitor center. We were treated to a typical Mauri dinner cooked in a large pit in the ground. Mauri traditional dancing and singing topped off the evening.The following day we suited up for white water rafting on the Tongariro River.We had a blast !!! The gorge was wild and so remote. There are no trails or roads to this river. The only way to access the gorge is by boat. We saw two fishermen at the beginning of the ride and saw only birds and each other along the way.Just because we have to pack so much into each day, we hiked to Huka FallsThe water was sooo blue !! The next day we rode by sheep farms, vineyards and cattle ranches.We made our way to Cape Kidnappers. The battery of my Ebike broke so I had to muscle my way up the hills! It was good to know I could still make it without the extra help.We rode into an amazing fig farm and restaurant. We were taken on a tour of the farm and learned about fig farming!We were then treated to an amazing lunch of everything ” FIG” We could not get enough of it. On the way to the fig farm we stopped at a Bee ” Honey” store to stock up on Manuka Honey.After a morning hike to Te Mata Peak we returned to the Mancapapa Hotel for High Tea. We said goodby to our North Island friends and flew to Christchurch to await the start of another Backroads adventure. On the South Island, Christchurch is a delightful little town with a very British feel and signs of recovery from a recent major earthquake. We rode the tram with commentary by the driver all over town. We went punting on the Avon River learning more of the city’s history.The story is told that this weeping willow tree grew from a cutting collected on St. Helena’s Island where Napoleon was buried. My limited research refutes this belief. The tree is impressive and is on the border of an equally impressive Botanic Garden. We found the garden to be a highlight of the trip.Instead of taking the train from Christchurch we took the vans to Arthur’s Pass for lunch. We stopped along the way at the Kura Tawhiti Conservation Area. You may recognize it from the “Chronicles of Narnia” We climbed all over the rocks looking for petroglyphs.After lunch at Arthur’s Pass, we hiked up to these falls on the Devil’s Punchbowl trail. Lots of stairs of varying heights and depths!! Wetting our appetite for the hike tomorrow.We stayed at the Wilderness Lodge which is also a working sheep farm. We were instructed on sheep herding and the famous Merino wool. I came home with enough yarn to last a lifetime. This is a photo of the gnarly Bealey Spur hike of the next day.I made it to the half-way point. Mary and Eldon advanced to a hut a mile up the trail for lunch and I turned around to come down. On the way down, I tripped on one of these “small” tree roots and went head first down the trail. My flight was stopped by more tree roots and a sharp rock that sliced open my eyebrow. Luckily a couple was behind me and she was a family MD. We staunched the bleeding and they helped me up. We make it the remaining mile very slowly but her husband also took a fall and later another of our company took two falls but was not severely injured. After another MD guest irrigated my wound, I was driven 1 1/2 hours to the nearest town for some stitches. On the way there and back, I spotted Gollum perched on the roof of this hotel. You can see “The One Ring” dangling from his hand. Should I have foreseen the fall? Gollum could have been a bad omen. I took a day off but then was back for a hike and a ride. The next day we rode to beautiful Jackson Bay for terrific fish and chips. We then shuttled to Wanaka Wanaka lake was beautiful with this little tree just hanging out off the shore. Major merino wool shopping. I even made a trip to the Salvation Army to buy a small suitcase to get all my purchases home!!.We had a short shuttle to Queenstown and said goodbye to our new friends. Our flight to Milford Falls was cancelled due to weather and we visited the cute mining town of Arrowtown. Like in California, the gold rush brought Chinese immigrants to the area. The tiny dwellings have been preserved. You can still pan for gold in the nearby river. Mary caught a glimpse of ” The Remarkables” when winging her way back to the US. We had a “remarkable” adventure and I hope to return to this unbelievably gorgeous country.
