Te Wairoa was established by the Christian missionary in 1848 as a model village, however Te Wairoa survived for fewer than 40 years before it, and the nearby Pink and White Terraces were obliterated by the eruption of Mt Tarawera. We went to view the excavated remains and hear the moving story of how one of New Zealand's greatest natural disasters buried a village beneath rock, ash and mud.
The Karangahake Gorge lies between the Coromandel and Kaimai ranges, at the southern end of the Coromandel Peninsula in New Zealand's North Island. A sharply winding canyon, it was formed by the Ohinemuri River. State Highway 2 passes through this gorge between the towns of Paeroa, Waikino and Waihi. This road is the main link between the Waikato region and the Bay of Plenty.
The East Coast Main Trunk Railway used to run through the gorge until it was bypassed by the Kaimai Deviation. The Karangahake Gorge section of the line, including a 1100-metre tunnel, is now a combined walkway and cycleway, part of the Hauraki Rail Trail, and together with the natural sights of the gorge, makes it into a well-visited local tourist attraction. The railhead at the Waikino end of the gorge still exists, preserved as part of the Goldfields Railway to Waihi.
At Karangahake, several walks and tracks ranging from 30 minutes to over 2 hours start at the Karangahake Reserve car park and picnic area.[4] One of the most spectacular walks in the area is the "Windows Walk", a loop walk that leads through the old gold mining tunnels of the Talisman Mine, crosses the Waitawheta River over a suspension bridge, and joins the Crown Tramway Track back along the cliffs of the Waitawheta Gorge. The path follows the route of a bush tramway and passes by "windows" in the cliff face at the end of mining tunnels, which were used to tip tailings down into the Waitawheta Gorge. Two of the mining tunnels, which are about 2 metres (7 ft) tall and wide, are safe to enter. They end abruptly after about 50 metres (164 ft) and are home to glowworms and cave weta.
The Woodstock Underground Pumphouse in the Waitawheta Gorge is also still accessible via a short detour from the Crown Tramway Track.
This was our first official field trip since we’ve landed in New Zealand. The Voyager Maritime Museum is situated on the corner Quay and Hobson Streets, Viaduct Harbour, Auckland.
Exhibitions include:
This is what the ships looked like in those days.
Some hands-on practise of designing your own sailboat…
This is what the homes looked like in those days.
Hands on practice docking a boat…
Some rope knotting…
It took us about 2 hours to work our way through all these exhibits.
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