Thanks for the comments guys, we got back on the 25th Feb so I'm afraid its to late to take advantage of Portpatrick's tips, so now to Napier the Art Deco capital rebuilt after the 1931 earthquake. Loking at last nights weather map on the news I'm glad I'm not out there at the moment, hope that those of you that are, are all OK.

City pics



and originally home of the "Silver Slipper" nightclub











Offering rides round the city were the Vintage car hire company, lovely old ars in superb condition.





and a local character, note the number plate! I think he was a tourist guide.



It was here with our motor lodge a little out of town that we asked our landlords advice on where to eat, he recommended "Thai Chef" a short walk away. The meal was superb I would highly recommend as well, this was the place whose restaurant we had walked past in Wellington, if only we had known! They also have outlets in Auckland, New Plymouth and Mangonui.

Next stop Taupo, cheers  David

In our 2011 visit we must have photographed many of the same views and buildings.  In 1996 the place was almost starting to look a bit seedy and down at the heel.  however in 2011 a lot of restoration had been done.  We and our friends stayed in a motel on the main front road - their eldest son was detailed to do the milking etc at the farm.  Their youngest is Downes syndrome and lives in a community near Napier.  I found it amazing to realise how much their quake in 1931 changed the landscape in the locality.

I get quite excited when I get an email saying "Walking Upside Down", as your pics are so clear and full of good subject matter, while holding a lot of memories for me.

Napier is one of the few places in NZ I haven't visited, so it'll be on the agenda for the next visit. All those Art Deco buildings look really cool.

Keep 'em coming, buddy!! 

George

On the road to Taupo we stopped for coffee and saw this little beauty,



Throughout our trip we saw beautifully restored cars & m/cycles being put to good use including 2 lovely Velocette Venoms winding their way up an alpine pass.

and the Tui brewery at Mangatainoka (try saying that after a couple) really nice bar & tasting room with good food and their own cider (Rosemary's favourite), apparently the founder Henry Wagstaff stopped on the site to make a cuppa which tasted so good he decided the water could be put to better use (wise Man) and the famous tower



In Taupo we stayed in a lakeside hotel, view from our patio



took a flight on a floatplane, fabulous



some views







The lake is large, apparently Singapore island would fit in there with water all round!

one of many golf courses



The state higway and from bottom right to middle part of the pipe run that feeds steam from the geysers to the power station.



Huka falls from the air



and from a river boat



After that I needed a beer



and at the other end of town the "Crafty Trout" brewery



McDonalds airlifting supplies! neat landing!



Next off to Rotorua, cheers for now  David

Fantastic photos, David. That flight you took looks great - will definitely be on the agenda for my next visit! I think I've been in that pub - is that the one one the lake front at Taupo that advertises all day breakfasts?

Looking forward to Rotorua! 

On the road to Rotorua the thermal area at Waiotapu



and nearby mud pools



and so to Rotorua
If you fancy a paddle!



or a flight



the De Havilnd Otter was shipped over from Canada and then rebuilt, would have liked a trip in that!

The "Blue" lake



and the "Green"



Popular picnic spot at Lake Tarawera



on to the Skyline



View from the top over the town



fancy a swing?



Time for refreshments and yes I did have a beer, they had to open the bar for me!



The main Bar & Restaurant street with an excellent bar & eatery called "The Brew" with it's own craft brewery, very good



and at the other end of town the old police station, now put to much better use!



and serving craft beers!
next stop the Coromandel Peninsula, cheers  David

Coromandel! Can't wait.

You sure you're not a professional photographer, mate? Your pictures are very good! I really like the first one there where you have framed the subject with the ferns.

There are some good pubs in Rotorua - I'd forgotten about that police station one!

I'll be interested to hear how you found the drive up the Coromandel Peninsula... I thought it was scary.

George

As Bealman pointed out the road north was very interesting, unfortunately I didn't take any pics too busy watching what I was doing!

View from our room at Whitianga



Mercury Bay opposite



We took the "Scenic" ? 309 road to Coromandel town, it's actually a dirt road with bush along both sides so you see very little, we came back on the northern loop of highway 25 which is scenic. However we did stop at the  Kauri grove, these magnificent trees were used for house and boat building and are quite rare.



further down the road were these picturesque falls and river





and on to Coramandel, views from Wharf road





Excellent Beer and food to be found here, the original Star & Garter was demolished against the wishes of most of the towns people and an enterprising couple converted this former store. They play host to Classic car and bike rallies as well as the "Harley set"



The former Bank opposite



A very nice small town, just outside we found the "Driving Creek Railway" that'll be in the next post,
cheers for now  David

Great, great thread! Great advertisement for New Zealand

A bit of useless railway-related info' about Coromandel:

In the Nineteenth Century there was a tramway running from the wharf through the township (which at that time had two distinct sections 'Upper Town' and Lower Town'). Running along Wharf Road (from which point you took that photograph) the tramway was horse-drawn and while primarily used for goods transportation, it also ran an hourly passenger service, using a 4-wheeled carriage for the purpose.

This passenger service was designed to connect with the 'commuter' steamer service which at the time connected Auckland with the various gold mining settlements dotted at intervals down the Firth of Thames. While the township of Thames was the focus of these services, the steamers  (known locally as 'Coaster's') also went as far south as Paeroa (pie-ro-ah) on the Waihou (Why-how) river.

Glad you enjoyed the experience.

Komata

"TVR - Serving the Northern Taranaki . . . "

Great pics, yet again! 

I thought that pub was bit pricey, but that might just be me being picky.

Looking forward to the Driving Creek Railway! 

Driving Creek Railway was built by Barry Brickell a NZ potter to transport clay and wood to his kiln, it took 26 years in stages to achieve what can be seen today, he did a lot of the work himself getting specialist help for bridges tunnels and major earth works. At one stage his bank manager pointed out that the idea of a loan is that the bank gets its money back! He suggested taking passengers to raise funds this was done and the money used to buy more rails! It was 3 years before the bank received a start on the repayments! He is also a conservationist and has planted a Kauri forest and set up a nature reserve for native species.

Anyway the terminus



Approaching the lower level of the double deck viaduct



at one of the reversing points



the track from one of the bridges



At the upper terminus, the timber legs support the viewing point known as the "eye-full" tower, shows I'm not the only one with a dodgy sense of humour!



The reversing loop viewed from the tower



View from the top



The diesel powered train at the top



The "Eye-full" tower from the reversing point. It is modelled on a lighthouse in Auckland harbour.



One of the tunnels showing some of the bricks and tiles produced on sight



The double deck viaduct



One of the reversing points used as you can see to gain height



Both Rosemary and I thoroughly enjoyed the trip, hope you like the pics,  next stop our last in NZ Auckland, cheers for now  David

Wonderful pics, as usual, David!

The website of that wonderful railway for folk who may be interested is:  www.drivingcreekrailway.co.nz/

We rode on it when we were there too, you can see my pics here:

http://www.ngaugeforum.co.uk/SMFN/MGalleryItem.php?id=1192
http://www.ngaugeforum.co.uk/SMFN/MGalleryItem.php?id=1193

and there are a few more in Bealman's album. It's a great trip! The bloke who built it, Barry Brickell, must be getting on a bit by now. Do you know if he's still alive, David?

Hi George

Barry Brickell is very much alive, he was checking passengers onto trains when we were there and is a very fit 78 year old, you can check him out on Google.

Cheers  David

On the way to Auckland we stopped for a coffee at this café!



Great food and drink and vey good sense of humour  celebrating those Oh B****R moments my favourite pic was this



went through some hills





one of the beautiful beaches we passed



Rosemary wanted me to go up here on my birthday



as I've already mentioned heights are not my strongpoint and it doesn't look any better close up!





The glass windows are on the outside of the lift shaft, aware of the light flashing past I turned to see terra firma rapidly disappearing looked down to find a glass floor showing the lift shaft, spent the rest of the ride staring at the wall. Arriving at the top walked into the main observation level shuffled round hugging the centre and got back in the lift while Rosemary explored further up, the lift stopped at the next floor down marked café & BAR so I got out and sank a few quick pints and feeling better took a few pics.





What looks like a vertical scratch in those 2 pics is actually the wire tether for the free-fall that you can do if you've really lost your marbles. above the observation deck you can see the 1.2 metre wide "Sky walk" if you fancy a little fresh air!

Our hotel was the brown building just this side of the pier







The building in the centre above the crane is the war memorial building on the Domain



and looking back from the war memorial museum


after the tower refreshment was needed and we found this spot in a side street full of bars and restaurants



There's more to follow but it's beer time so I'll finish off later including a trip to the Steam workshops at Parnell, cheers for now  David