Taieri Gorge Railway, Dunedin

We booked an afternoon trip on the Taieri Gorge Railway. It is a 4-hour return trip aboard 1920's heritage coaches that travels to Puterangi through narrow tunnels, winding tracks, rugged canyons, stone and wrought-iron viaduct crossings and super steep gorges. It was a great way to spend a rainy afternoon!

                                            This old railway house is now a holiday home!

                                            After 2 hours we reached the top.

 We now have 15 minutes to walk around while the engine is moved the the opposite end of the train for the return trip.

Dunedin Train Station

Dunedin has a beautiful, old train station, they refer to as the gingerbread.  It houses an art gallery, and a sports hall of fame, small gift shop, and of course you can book passage on their passenger train.

Dunedin

Our next stop is at Dunedin for three nights. We have a great airbnb in old Saint Clair, and we are two blocks off the Esplande(ocean boardwalk) where there are several restaurants. Our host has two dogs, but Dash is the outgoing, friendly one, who loves belly rubs!

The Catlins

The Catlins is a region with significant native forest and rugged coastline, and is a place that looks like time stood still. It's an enchanting region, combining lush farmland, native forests, usual coastline, empty beaches, bushwalks, and wildlife spotting opportunities.

Many businesses in this area include the name Catlin...Catlins Search and Rescue, Catlins Medical Center, Catlins Cafe, Catlins Hardware, and so on!


                                          Waipapa Point

                         Sea lions frolic in this cove. we got to see them wrestling and playing.

                  Waipapa Point lighthouse was erected after 131 people lost their lives in a shipwreck in 1881.

                                          Curio Bay

                                        Unique camping spots in Curio Bay

                                  Curio Bay has fossilized Jurassic-age tree stumps.

                                         
                                          Nice trails

                                       
                                           Beautiful scenery in the Catlins.

 
Children enjoying their summer holidays. But, I must admit, the weather has not been too great these past few days. There is an Antarctic wind that has kept the air quite cool.

Fiordland and Doubtful Sound

We hummed and hawed about going into Fiordland to see Doubtful Sound or Milford Sound, because of the amount of time it takes traveling for one day, but I must say the trip was well worth it, and it is something one shouldn't miss if you are in this part of the world.

Fiordland is a National Park in the southwest of NZ's South Island. It is home to the stunning fiords of Milford Sound and Doubtful Sound, and the beautiful lakeside towns of Te Anau and Manapouri which offer many sightseeing and hiking opportunities. Fiordland is NZ's most impenetrable wilderness, with jagged, mountainous, densely forested landmass ribbed with deeply recessed sounds or technically fiords.

A fiord, geographically, is a long, narrow inlet with steep sides of cliffs, created by glacial erosion.
A sound, geographically, is a large sea or ocean inlet larger than a bay, deeper than a bight(a curve or bend in a coastline or river), and wider than a fiord. Technically, Doubtful Sound, and Milford Sound are fiords.

Doubtful Sound was named Doubtful Harbour in 1770 by Captain Cook, who did not enter the inlet as he was uncertain whether it was navigable under sail. It was later renamed, Doubtful Sound, by whalers and sealers, although it is technically not a sound but a fiord.

Our Doubtful Sound Cruise was a three-part journey. We took a 1-hour boat cruise through Lake Manapouri, bussed for 30 minutes to get to the sound, then journeyed on a second, larger boat, to cruise the fiord for another hour.

 This is the site of a slide from a couple of years ago that must have caused a few problems for buses trying to connect the two cruises.

                                          We are now in the fiord of Doubtful Sound.

                                        This lovely sailboat is the overnighter.

                     This little guy was calling for his mom who went fishing in the sound.

                    We thought we said goodbye to the Tasman Sea. but here she is again!

Invercargill, South Island, NZ

We were told not to go to Invercargill because it is a dull, nothing to do town, but we went anyways because it was on my itinerary! But the young people  who gave us this advice are all into tramping, which is hiking in Kiwi lingo, and mountain biking. We found this small, quiet city quite pleasant. It has a zoo, lovely parks, beautiful buildings, a small art gallery, a museum, super wide streets, not sure what the shopping is like, the most southern city we have been to, and it's the jumping off point to a region called The Catlins!!

                                        One of the beautiful buildings in Invercargill.

                                             Countryside around Invercargill.

 I love the sprawling pasture land with the majestic mountains in the background.

                 These two alpacas are just returning from a shorty...kiwi lingo for haircut.