Up Front: The Home Straight
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I've got a touch of the old mind-fuck blues brought on by a reference to "en route to Ohingaiti"...
From my childhood memories Ohingaiti (pronounced "oh-nightie" in those less-enlightened days) was only ever a place passed through and never a destination in its own right.
I recall a (dangerous) railway crossing, a pub and a scattering of quiet houses. I think we once stopped there so the grown ups could have a cold beer to break the journey. I assume they bought us a fizzy drink, too.
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Talking of traveling State Highway 1 - the route of the Blondini Gang is to be redone as part of the 50th anniversary of the Mini. Though fifty teams will not be able to do all of the original stunts - thinking particularly of some of the train stunts.
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I've been trying to visit it for ten years, but to no avail ....
Today would have been a good day to visit. It is simply gorgeous outside.
While I have not been arguing the merits of overthrowing capitalism with you, I have had a vigorous morning bike ride (up Chinaman's Hill, hurtling down Motions Road then off-road around Meola Reef), been monstered by geese with Leo at Western Springs Park, and even knocked out some work.
Now we are about to pop around the corner for a swim at the newly awesomised Pt Chev beach. I like it here today.
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I like it here today.
Not to enter into a competition about the weather, but Wellington is similarly gorgeous today. Took the kids for a scooter ride and a swing, no water for us today. But life's good, even under the crushing yoke of capitalism.
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Not to enter into a competition about the weather, but Wellington is similarly gorgeous today.
You can stick Chch. We peaked at 40, it's still 35, and the next person to say 'hot enough for ya' or 'least it's a dry heat' is getting a serious slapping.
the route of the Blondini Gang is to be redone as part of the 50th anniversary of the Mini.
What a fabulous idea.
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I got dropped in Ohingaiti by a very stoned hippy when I was hitching north back in about 1990.
The guy looked like a frantic version of Neil from the Young Ones - imagine maybe a combo of Neil and Rik.
Its one of the small places I've got stuck, lift-less, for several hours (others being places like Himatangi Junction, Buller Gorge turn-off; the junction at the south end of Lake Pukaki...)
I think it also had a Post Office in those days. The building is now a craft place.
You can stick Chch. We peaked at 40, it's still 35,
Sheitt...I passed through yesterday and it was 34. That was bad enough.
I'm in Arthurs Pass. Its blowing a bit, but still very warm. Nothing like 35 or 40 though.
@Sacha: the good coffee place in Taihape - 'Brown Sugar'? Compulsory stop when I'm driving through with my daughter. She has her own table she insists on sitting at, or at least trying to....
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Brown Sugar- that's the one.
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They opened another Brown Sugar on the Wellington side of Otaki :> I haven't ventured in on trips south, so dunno if it's as good as Taihape.
Speaking of Taihape, the old Taihape-Napier road is a good rally drive, unless they've sealed it (horrors!). Some good camping, fishing & swimming spots - and photo ops too.
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Nice vintage Napier-Taupo highway post by Chris Bourke here
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is getting a serious slapping
that's exceedingly generous of you?
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ice vintage Napier-Taupo highway post
Duh, sorry, Taihape-Napier.
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We had a flatmate at varsity in Dunedin who was from Wellsford and he bought a motorbike while in Dunedin. The 1st time he rode back up north on it he didn't notice that State Highway #1 takes a definite left turn in Taihape and ended up on the Taihape/Napier road. (I think it is/was referred to as Gentle Annie in those days.)
He persevered, thinking that the unsealed section he was on must end soon, seeing as it was SH1, but eventually he was descending into Hawkes Bay (the region, not the bay itself). The nice thing is that he was happy to admit it to the rest of us afterwards. My how we laughed. Good on ya, Fuzzy.
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Thanks, Joe. The most cover-your-eyes, crouch on the floor trip over the gentle Annie was in a Leyland diesel house bus, 1950s vintage. It grumbled slowly up the hills, inching to the tops, then swooped down the crazy curvy bits with the driver pouncing on the vacuum brakes. I was sitting up front and as we rushed down the last hills, lurching and swaying out over the edges, I saw nothing but sky and a blur of treetops whooshing past. I ended up on the floor, head in hands praying, (not looking, not looking) while Al furiously pumped what was left of the brakes - it was the drive of his life.
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Brown Sugar- that's the one.
We were driving through Taihape in about 2000, and stopped off there. After about five minutes, my wife quietly told me that the staff were taking turns to sidle out of the kitchen and stare at me. I'm not a particularly unusual looking bloke, but I did have 12mm flesh tunnels in my earlobes (i.e. big enough to comfortably fit a pen/little finger through the lobe), which I guess weren't a common feature of life in Taihape at the time. Good scones though.
The Brown Sugar cafe in Otaki is pretty nice, too. I'm quite fond of that wee place near Marton - the Sugar Plum, I think. It's a random city-style cafe in the middle of a lot of fields.
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BTW anyone have any good recommendations for cafes around Taupo or Opotiki? Wheelchair accessible preferably.
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Having just done the Picton to Dunedin run two days ago, off the morning ferry, in the ridiculous heat, this post felt like doing parts of it again.
This is the first time I've done the trip with dogs, so while previously it was a case of finding good playgrounds (Ashburton has a great one at the domain), now it's a case of finding isolated beaches and rivers (one of my dogs doesn't play nicely with small canines). There's a great stony beach a little north of Kaikoura, the water quickly goes from lovely aqua to deep blue, crashing on stones, including what my son described as the perfect skimming stone. The dogs threw themselves into the water and then went and found some disgusting mud to run through and bring back into the car.
The whole car (except the dogs) did the Rakaia bridge. It's important to slow down before you get there and let the car in front get ahead a little. You need to do the whole bridge at a consistent 100 to be fair.
I'm tremendously disappointed that the bridge just north of Seddon (one lane vehicle, rail line directly overhead) is now closed and you can't drive on it at all. Sure, the new road is faster, but that was a great bridge to drive on, kids loved it.
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finding good playgrounds (Ashburton has a great one at the domain)
Seconded. The Ashburton Domain playground is just the best.Our kids have outgrown it now, which is a bit sad.
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I've found that a good stretch of grass is better for my kids letting off steam than a playground usually. The Paddock in Cheviot and The Store at Kekerengu both have outdoor tables and lots of running space.
Also fun this time last year was travelling with a newly toilet-trained two-year-old who had great fun discovering exactly how fast Daddy could stop the car at a cry of "I need to wee on the grass" whilst consistently failing to produce.
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BTW anyone have any good recommendations for cafes around Taupo or Opotiki? Wheelchair accessible preferably.
Having just spent Xmas with the folks near Opotiki, there are two good cafes there.
One is upstairs above the florists in the Rostgard's building (and I'm not sure of the spelling of the building name but it is unusual), and the other cafe is the Two Fish Cafe in the side of the pub in the main street in the middle of 'town'. The upstairs is not wheelchair friendly, but I suspect that the Two Fish one is - you may have to go around the back or something.
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My sweetheart and I are going to have a driving holiday in the South Island in a couple of weeks and I was wondering if the wonderful folks at PAS would like to have some influence over where we stop and what we do.
We stay overnight in the places in bold in this next part...
We will fly into Ch'ch and spend a couple of days there before heading in a generally clockwise tour of the island.
We are heading for Waimate (via the Mackenzie country) then on to Dunedin for a couple of nights, down to Invercargill and round to Te Anau.
From there we head to Queenstown for a couple of nights before heading through to Franz Josef, up to Westport and on to Nelson.
From there we are due to drive around the top end and down to Kaikoura for a spot of whale/dolphin watching before returning to Ch'ch airport & the flight home.So if any of you good folks have some good tips on "what to see & do" we would be happy to know about them.
Thus far we have arranged a day-trip to Greymouth on the TranzAlpine train and are planning on heading to Akaroa for a look-see (& lunch) on the Monday. Our Westport stop is actually at Punakaiki so we will see the pancake rocks and stop at teh glass-bead place. I have a friend at Te Mahia in the Sounds so will stop off to see him & his family between Nelson & Kaikoura. Also stopping to see a friend just north of Waimate, in Makikihi where, as I recall, they really should have "Welcome to Makikihi" on both sides of a single sign. It is (was?) one of those crossroad towns with a pub & a couple of shops and that's about it.
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The best stop between Waimate and Dunedin is Moeraki, about 15 minutes south of Oamaru, with zee boulders. Don't go to the restaurant, head slightly further south and take the next left and walk north along the beach to avoid having to pay to use their access.
In Dunedin, if you've got the money, this is good fun (possibly moreso for kids), and you see seals and yellow-eyes. I'm not sure if the Albatross Colony is good this time of year, I forget when the adult birds are around, the tour through the gun emplacements is pretty good if you're into that. Larnach castle is alright on the drive out, as are Glenfalloch gardens.
In town, the Otago Museum has a wonderful butterfly thing going on at the moment. The Taieri Gorge railway is alright, though nothing like the transalpine. Olveston House is near the centre of town and is probably better than Larnach Castle if you're into 19C culture, art, houses etc.
If you can find the time, take the coastal road to Invercargill via the Catlins, rather than through Gore. The main road is very boring, the Catlins road is lovely, but probably takes another hour, plus stops for waterfalls, caves, gypsy caravan, etc.
I think Makikihi has a chip making factory, and that's it. One suspects if the factory closed down, so would the shop, pub, and all half-dozen houses.
Have fun!
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Makikihi
At least it was (and still is) bigger than Otaio, a few km up the road, where I came from.
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There are some pretty awesome limestone caves around Waimate with rock-drawings in them. I'm not sure what the access is like these days: when I was a kid you just hiked through the paddocks.
The Rosendale Winery just west/south of Chch does a beautiful outdoor summer lunch and their Reisling is lovely.
And Hanmer. I know it's a bit/lot touristy, but then you're going to Queenstown. The view from the top of the Conical Hill walk is great, and the pools just don't ever seem to be over-crowded.
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Check out the wallabies in the park in Waimate, take some bread and they will eat out of your hand. The females have a joey in the pouch at this time of year which is sort of cute
The butterflies in Dunedin are very good especially if you hit a cold Dunedin day......all four seasons can and do arive in Dunedin in one day
If the weather is good a trip out to Riverton when you are in Invercargill is well worth the time -
Thanks for those suggestions Kyle, Emma & Raymond.
I went to varsity in Dunedin but that was back in the 70's so I'll be checking out memory-lane as well as finding new stuff that will be of some interest to my better-half.
The Moeraki boulders is already on our mental to-do list (mental because it's not written down, not cos we're a couple of mad young things...) and I am keen to view wildlife that is not within the confines of the Captain Cook or the Robbie Burns. I think she fancies a trip round cadburys which isn't my cup of tea, but hey, it's her holiday too.
The wallabies and the cave paintings sound great and suggestions that include words like 'lunch' and 'riesling' are always going to get my attention.Thanks again.
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