Image above: First clear view of the blue Southern Ocean. [Monday 14 September] / [View all photos]
Taking a day off from the kids, I spent Day 10 and my final full day in New Zealand exploring the stunning nature in and around Wellington.
In the morning, I started with a short boat ride across to the tiny island of Matiu / Somes located in the middle of Wellington Harbour. One of its unique attributes is that despite being so close to a major city it is entirely mammal-free. And the reason for that was clear when I got off the dock and had to go through a biodiversity protection briefing and check by a ranger . A little weird since I was the only one there!
After a good hike around the island, it was back to Wellington to take this 4×4 jeep up through the hills overlooking Wellington, through the mists, to descend down to the southern shore of the North Island. Getting through the clouds and was amazed by this view of the Southern Ocean. But the best part was the driving by the waves on the beach, squeezing through rock outcroppings, and buffeted by sand winds along the way.
My driver / guide had a very dry sense of humor and also amazing eyesight spotting the resting seals so quickly. Had a treat being able to see a pale white fur seal, which was apparently quite rare, as well as walking around the seal colony itself. So windy though and glad of the hot tea on offer to warm up afterwards!
All of this was just a day in the natural surroundings of Wellington but it really got me wondering what other amazing sights I would get to see the next time I came over for longer.
Next up … a short entry spending most of the day just getting from New Zealand to Australia.
Travel Stats:
- 10 days travelled of 29
- 4 places visited in 3 countries in 2 continents
- 26.5 hours spent in 6 planes
- 20,320 km travelled
- 12 time zones crossed
- RTW – Los Angeles – Part 1
- RTW – Los Angeles – Part 2
- RTW – Cook Islands – Part 1
- RTW – Cook Islands – Part 2
- RTW – Cook Islands – Part 3
- RTW – Wellington – Part 1
- RTW – Wellington – Part 2
- RTW – Wellington – Part 3
- RTW – Wellington – Part 4
- RTW – Wellington to Melbourne
- RTW – Melbourne – Part 1
- RTW – Melbourne – Part 2
- RTW – Melbourne – Part 3
- RTW – Melbourne to Perth
- RTW – Perth – Part 1
- RTW – Perth – Part 2
- RTW – Singapore
- RTW – Hong Kong
- RTW – Macau
- RTW – Siem Reap – Part 1
- RTW – Siem Reap – Part 2
- RTW – Siem Reap – Part 3
- RTW – Siem Reap – Part 4
- RTW – Siem Reap – Part 5
- RTW – Phnom Penh – Part 1
- RTW – Phnom Penh – Part 2
- RTW – Hong Kong
