12 replies to this topic

[smlobx]

^^^^

Great report Old Crow.
Thank you!

[Old Crow]

^^^^

Great report Old Crow.
Thank you!

 

Thanks, smlobx. 

 

We had such a great time.

 

A couple of other things come to mind as I think back on it...

 

  Baggage restrictions on our flights.  The New Zealand Air folks were strict on baggage limits so be sure to research current limits and excess-baggage fees. We struggled to keep carry-on under the weight limit and ended up throwing away some of our clothing so we could move stuff to the checked bag to make weight limits for the trip home.  Also- we flew in to Auckland and then took a domestic flight to Christchurch so we had to pass baggage checks twice coming into the country.  When we got off the international flight we had to retrieve our bags and hoof it over to the domestic-flights building and go through security and check-in again.

 

  Customs.  We came very close to being fined for dirty hiking shoes on our way into New Zealand. My wife had a pair of low-cut walking shoes and didn't declare them as she thought they weren't the 'hiking boots' they meant (which might carry biosecurity threats like seeds).  Customs spotted her walking shoes on x-ray and took us aside.  They removed the shoes and found a small amount of dirt in the shoe-treads so they cleaned and sanitized the soles.  The agent also went through the whole thing we see on TV-- is this your signature on the declarations card?  Is that your checkmark where you say you have nothing to declare? Do you recognize that New Zealand law requires you to declare such items?  Do you recognize that you have broken New Zealand law and are to be fined $200 and perhaps not admitted to the country for this offense?  (and of course let that sink in a minute).  After a few uncomfortable minutes they waived the fine but said the incident would be in their records and might be taken into consideration in any future interactions with New Zealand customs.

 

  We were there in February and March and weather was perfect for van-camping.  We happened to arrive in a bit of a cold spell and bought an an extra blanket (and a mattress topper) at the local Kmart.

 

  We had few bug problems for the great majority of the time but did have a memorable night fighting off mosquitoes on the west side of the south island... an area known for them.  It turned out the van didn't have screens over the fridge vents.  I bought fiberglass door screen material at a local hardware store and duct-taped it over the vents.

 

   Coffee shops (and wi-fi).  We were surprised to find coffee shops with espresso machines in some of the rural areas. Good coffee and and they often had wi-fi.  I don't know if it's the same today, but at the time wi-fi was a paid thing-- generally in the $2-3 range for a half-hour but sometimes $5 for 15 minutes.  It's enough that you want to plan how you're going to use it before starting the clock.  Even the Starbucks wi-fi (in the city) was a paid service.

 

  Crowds.  The only place we felt too crowded was the Franz Josef glacier. And that wasn't so much the people around us as the tourist helicopters flying overhead.  You're walking up a long valley toward the glacier and at any point in time have multiple helicopters right above the valley edges, coming and going.  Other than that, we were surprised by how alone we were at so many beautiful places.

 

Stoats and possums.  New Zealand has an overabundance of stoats and possums and they're a major threat to birdlife.  The impact on you as a visitor is that you may see stoat traps and possum baiting stations in what otherwise seems like pristine wilderness.  We were surprised to see how extensive the trapping and baiting effort is. 

 

This 10 Things You Did Not Know About New Zealand Wildlife article reminds me that we spent an afternoon and evening looking for yellow-eyed penguins at Curio Bay on the South Island. Prospective visitors might want to take note of this 8 Best Places To See Penguins in New Zealand article for planning purposes.  We did finally see yellow-eyed penguins that evening but it was nearly dark when they showed up and by that time photos weren't really possible.. at least not with our camera.

 

We also had some interaction with the keas-- the alpine parrots.  They're unique and interesting but the 'interaction' I mention consisted mostly of trying to drive them off the camper roof with a towel.  They kept attacking the roof vents and if you'd walk away from the camper, they'd peck away at the windshield wipers.

 

We also went on a kiwi photo-hunt one night on the Trounson Kauri Park Loop Track.  We camped nearby and walked the trail in daylight then returned around 10 pm to very slowly walk the loop, using the lights as little as possible.  We'd halt to listen for ten minutes or so at each spot before moving on. We didn't have any luck but it's always a thrill to be in the woods at night so we didn't mind.

 

We also went swimming with Hector's dolphins at Akaroa.  If you watch the video at the bottom of that web page, that's just what it was like (though we only had about half that many people on our trip).

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Edited by Old Crow, 25 July 2019 - 06:07 PM.

[DavidGraves]

Greetings All

 

As a bit of followup to this thread we just returned from 6 weeks in the western/southwest of England and the north of Wales.

 

This was not exactly a camping trip although we tried to get into the outdoors a lot.

 

I will try to add some observations and insights to travel in the UK once I deal with some home issues.

 

FWIW I have had a lot of trouble logging into WTW lately....maybe on my end.

 

Glad to be home.

 

David Graves