Australia and New ZealandJune 2003Go to the updated pics - added 5 July 2003Welcome to the Australia and New Zealand picture page! There are over 200 pictures here, from both Tim's digital camera as well as scanned in photographs from regular cameras. The pictures are a bit large (100-300k usually) so keep this in mind if you lack a broadband connection.
Jim and Barb Calvin (Ashley's parents) took Ashley and Tim on a wonderful Down
Under odyssey from 1 to 17 June 2003. Our first stop was Sydney, in New South
Wales on the SE coast of Australia. It is the largest city in Australia and is
situated along a huge natural harbor. We arrived early in the morning on 3 June
(Australia time) and spent a full day exploring, including a harbor cruise.
Next we had lunch next to the harbor, some of which was stolen by a very sneaky
and unusual bird. We also took a tour of the world famous Sydney Opera House.
That night Jim arrived via Europe and Asia, and the next day (4 June) we flew to
Cairns, Queensland, on the NE coast of Australia. From there it was a
one-hour coach ride to Port Douglas, situated well within tropical northern
Australia. We stayed at the Radisson Treetops Resort, an amazing complex
nestled in its own little rainforest, with a saltwater pool decorated
with a waterfall. We saw a lot of bats in the trees, even during
the day! It was a short walk to Four-Mile Beach, which was incredibly empty
despite it being well after jellyfish season.
On 5 June, we took a semi-organized tour of the rainforest, taking the Skyrail
gondola near Cairns, which goes over the rainforest canopy. There were a couple
stops along the way where we could get out and check out the natural
surroundings, including Barron Falls. During the wet season these falls are a
torrent, but going into winter they are a mere trickle as you can see.
At the end of the Skyrail is Kuranda, a small touristy town with lots of shops
and stuff to do. We went from here to the nearby Rainforestation, a mini-park
with rainforest tours via WW2-vintage amphibious DUKW vehicles, as well as some
aborigine spear and boomerang demonstrations
Later the aborigines put on a series of tribal dances, even getting Tim on stage
with them at one point!
The final part of rainforestation was the mini-zoo they had set up, complete
with the standard Australian reptiles and mammals.
The highlight for Barb though was the koala exhibit, where we could hold and get
our pictures taken with a koala. After this we took a vintage train from
Kuranda that meandered down the picturesque Barron Gorge, before rejoining our
motor coach in Cairns and returning to Port Douglas
The next day (6 June) we did a snorkel trip to the Great Barrier Reef, just off
the coast, via the Poseidon boat. We packed a few underwater disposable
cameras with us to catch all the fish and coral.
***UPDATED 5 July 2003 with 30 new pics!***
Additional pics added 5 July 2003:
On 7 June we rested with some shopping in Port Douglas itself, and on 8 June we
were slated to leave for Sydney again. But first we visited a much bigger and
more authentic zoo called the Rainforest Habitat, filled with all sorts of rare
and endangered animals. Here Barb got another koala fix.
Then we visited the kangaroos and their cousins the wallabies. There were a ton
and you could pretty much hang out with them and feed them. We even saw some
males boxing over a potential mate, and when that fight ended the victorious
male proceeded to claim his prize, so to speak. Unfortunately, those pictures
didn't turn out. :)
We rounded out this place with more crocodiles and big birds.
Our trip back to Sydney was brief but fun. We stayed in the Hyatt right on the
harbor, with marble floors in the bathroom and views of the Opera House right
from our window. Gotta love Jim's Hyatt points!
After one night in Sydney, on 9 June we caught a flight to Christchurch, on the
South Island of New Zealand. We got a wonderful view of the Southern Alps
flying in, then we wandered about Christchurch a bit before retiring for the
night.
We had rented a van upon arrival, so on 11 June we commenced our tour of the
southern half of the South Island via automobile. We crossed over Arthur's Pass
in the Southern Alps to reach the western half of the island, then stayed at a
home stay on a farm near Whataroa. There we got to heard sheep with the farmer,
while his wife cooked a fantastic corn beef dinner.
The next day (12 June) we got a late start but soon found ourselves at Franz
Josef Glacier, just a short distance south.
After a quick look at the glacier, we continued on to Lake Matheson, which
had some wonderful hiking in the temperate rainforest that dominates the western
half of the island. There also were incredible views of the reflections of
nearby mountains (Mt. Cook and Mt. Tasman, some of the tallest in New
Zealand) on the lake.
After lunch, time was running short before nightfall so we hustled with a
minimum of stops, reaching Queenstown after dark. Along the way though we saw
Knight's Point and some waterfalls, as well as more beautiful mountain views.
The trip from Whataroa to Queenstown could have been made over several days,
there were tons to see. A good excuse to go back!
The first full day in Queenstown (12 June) was spent doing some shopping, taking
a jetboat ride in the Shotover River, and witnessing some bungy jumpers at the
world's first bungy jump location.
There also were some gorgeous natural sights, including the Remarkables mountain
range (featured in the "Lord of the Rings" movies) and Lake Wakatipu, both of
which we could see from our hotel room balcony. The hotel even had a framed
NZ$5 bill that featured and was autographed by that notable Kiwi, Edmund
Hillary, the first to ascend Mt. Everest.
We changed our itinerary a bit to stay in Queenstown an extra night, so we could
do a boat tour of Milford Sound in Fjordlands National Park on 13 June. It was
a long coach ride to Milford itself, but with a lot of beautiful sights along
the way as the landscape change from the arid eastern side of the mountains to
the drenched west side. Chalk one up to the rain shadow effect!
Once in Milford Sound we caught a boat cruise that traveled the entire length of
the fjord to the ocean. Unfortunately, it was overcast and drizzly this day so
we couldn't clearly see Mitre Peak, the most famous landmark in the fjord. But
we did see lots of waterfalls and even a seal! We were supposed to fly back via
a small plane but flights were canceled due to the weather. Milford Sound
averages >6 m of rain during the year so I suppose that wasn't a huge
suprise. Anyway, we returned to Queenstown via another multi-hour coach ride.
On 14 June Jim left us for business in Korea, while we left Queenstown to go
Dunedin, on the east coast of the island. There are lots of wildlife
sanctuaries there, including penguins along with an albatross colony. However,
we arrived too late to catch a penguin or albatross tour, so we had to settle
for checking out some Fur Seals and Shag birds. We finished the night with the
best meal of the whole trip, dinner at a restaurant called A Cow Named Berta.
The next day (15 June) we headed up the coast and saw lots more seals and Shags
at a place called Shag Point.
That night we stayed at a Bed and Breakfast in the town of Methven near Mt. Hutt
ski area. The inn was owned by the sister of the builder of Barb's and Jim's
Breckenridge house. On 16 June we took a short trip into Christchurch and began
our circuitous air route back to the States, via Auckland, Singapore, Tokyo,
Seattle, and finally Denver. That's what happens when you fly on airline miles,
you never get exactly what you want! :) But it was all business class the entire
way back, so it wasn't so bad. Singapore Air's business class is especially
nice, with fully reclining seats and tons of movies, songs, and games on demand
with the personal TV system. We had a 10-hour layover in Tokyo on 17 June,
where we hired a taxi and saw Narita Temple along with some other sights. Then
we returned and hung out in one of the nicest business/first-class airport
lounges around, with great shower suites to wash off 1+ days of air travel.
We arrived back in Denver the afternoon of 17 June. We lost 2 June going over due to the International Dateline, but in recompense we got to experience 17 June twice! Return to Home Page |
