On the Northern Explorer

Yesterday was quite an adventure. The inter Island ferry was delayed, and delayed…..but kind Red Cross volunteers brought round sausages in bread . Eventually we set off. The sea was calm, the sea was rough. People started regretting eating dinner. 4 metre swell running. Staff ran around with paper bags,ice and wet towels..
Yes ,thankfully , we escaped. Finally arriving in Wellington we caught the shuttle to the railway station. It was after midnight, well past our bedtime.From here it was a stroll to the hotel. Successfully negotiating the door entry, the lock box and gaining the room keys, we could at last fall into bed. For a capital city, there was no one around.
Another early start and we are on the Northern Explorer . No mishaps or dramas and no rain….so far.
So did you see much of Wellington? I didn’t so I guess that will need a visit in the future .
Some farms still have windbreaks. The hedger man doesn’t have as much work here as they are not as dense or frequentThe woodlands are thick with more varieties of trees. Thick pine forests don’t dominate the landscape. It’s rolling hills rather than mountains. Everything is green following a wet summer and the cyclone. I think the cows and sheep need Wellington boots to cope with the wet ground.

Rounded hills give way to higher, rugged terrain that looks more volcanic. There are deep gorges with full rivers . For the rail enthusiasts,there are lots of viaducts and even a clever switchback to cope with the difficult terrain.

Aren’t the sheep funny to watch? If one sheep is by itself, it will ignore the train. Now if one sheep in a group gets startled. They all go racing off and spook other groups so you have all these sheep racing to the other side of the paddock. Cows don’t care. They are too busy discussing how much milk they have produced this year or the best place to eat. I was hoping to take a photo of the sheep but they were toooo far away and we had entered cow country .I could have shown you cows, rabbits, geese, goats, turkeys and a cat but no sheep.

Close to Auckland,there is an extensive wetlands area. This gives way to the harbour. We have arrived.