NZ Land Logs 28, Year 2: North Island—Auckland’s Rangitoto Island
Date: Sunday, March 18, 2007
Weather Today: Sunny with Clouds AM, Overcast with Sprinkles PM
Location: Auckland, Takapuna on the North Shore, New Zealand
Rangitoto Island in Auckland’s Hauraki Gulf was our goal for today. We took the 9:15 am ferry for the 30 minute ride to this volcanic island and spent the rest of the day exploring. Rangitoto was formed 600 years ago when the volcano erupted from the sea. This makes it a ‘one of a kind’ in Auckland’s volcanic field of about 50 cones and craters. The other volcanoes are dormant, while Rangitoto is extinct. This means that at sometime one of the other 49 volcanoes in the Auckland area will probably become active again–not a happy thought for the two million people who live in this area. Rangitoto, and its neighbor, Mototapu, are now joined by a causeway although there is no permanent population on either island. They are managed by the Department of Conservation and Rangitoto is studied for its botanic significance. At only 600 years old, it is home to some 200 different native species of plants and 40 different types of ferns.
We arrived at the Rangitoto Wharf at 9:45 am and took the walking track to the summit. This volcano is only 253 metres high which makes the walk to the summit a fairly easy one-hour walk. At first the track goes through A’a lava which is broken and rough, and then closer to the summit we found ourselves walking over Pahoehoe lava which is solid and flowing. There were lots of lookouts along the way with great information boards. We were all amazed at the amount of vegetation on this relatively new volanic island. I was particularly taken with the kidney ferns. They have a flat leaf smaller than the palm of your hand that curls up when it is too hot to conserve moisture. They are very different from the ferns that we are used to seeing. Once we reached the summit and took in the views of Auckland, we walked to the lava caves that were just down from the summit. We explored a little and then walked back through the lava fields to the wharf. There were many students on the island today surveying the fields. We asked them what they were doing, but even when they told us, we were not totally sure of their task. Regardless, they seemed to be enjoying the day. By the time we were nearing the bottom of the mountain, afternoon sprinkles set in and we needed our jackets. The rain was light and short, and soon the sun was shining once again.
We returned to Auckland on the 3:30 pm ferry and found ourselves on the waterfront which all of four of us love and enjoy. There was a big and beautiful yacht on one of the quays–90 metres or 180 feet. She was beautiful and her name was Athena. While walking down the dock looking at this beauty, we walked by the waterfront restaurants tauting their specials for the evening. We hadn’t planned to eat in Auckland, but the Y Not restaurant caught our attention with they seafood platter for two. We ended up eating here and meeting the owners, James and Lisa Hendry. James is an ‘old’ rugby player and Lisa was a most welcoming host. They were playing the music of what they called an up and coming musician, Patrizio Buanne. It was a delightful stop for dinner.
Tomorrow we will be going to Kelly Tarlton’s Antarctic Adventure in Auckland to see Gentoo and Emperor penguins before heading north to Whangarei. Yikes! Can’t believe we will be home on Windbird tomorrow night.
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| 070318 Web Pics–Rangitoto Island and Auckland Waterfront |
