More weather changes …..
Again we woke to weird weather – we were woken by heavy rain but within half an hour the sun was out again !
After breakfast we packed up the car to set out to our next stop at the southern end of NZ in Invercargill. With a quick stop for petrol we set of firstly towards Manapouri before branching off.
We stopped at an overlook of Mararoa Weir. This Weir regulates the flow of water in Lake Manapouri, even diverting water back “up” the river. This was all developed when the hydro power project was planned in the 1960’s to ensure the least impact on the natural lake system.
Our next stop was planned to be the Rakatu Wetlands, a wetlands regeneration project established construction of the power station. However with all the recent wet weather it may have become too wet as the gates were shut and a closed sign front and centre.
Undeterred, we drove on to Clifden and the Clifden Suspension bridge. Built in 1899 it was in use until 1978 when a dual lane bridge was built downstream. The original wooden beams & decking is still in use for what is now a pedestrian bridge.
The weather continued to change wildly from bright sunshine to bright sunshine with steady rain to bleak clouds and driving rain. We stopped briefly in Tuatapere – the sausage capital of the world – to get a photo of the “big sausage”.
This was to commemorate the local butcher who in the 1980’s created a sausage which bought people from far and wide. At its peak the butchery was selling 1 ton of sausages per week. Unfortunately the weather seemed to have turned off visitors and we drove on.
As the rain came and went, we reached the southern edge of NZ and the sea. It was pelting rain and wind gales so after a quick photo we gave up on a visit to Gemstone Beach where it is said gems have been found to wash up on the beach.
The Giant Paua Shell in Riverton was a bit of a disappointment as it must have been under renovation. Paua shells are known for their iridescent blue, green & purple colour and are often used in jewellery. This one has lost its lustre !
Undeterred, we drove on to Invercargill – with a slight delay at one point when a house came driving up the road – and on to the further southern town of Bluff. It is the main port for Invercargill and one of the earliest locations of European presence in the area. Again we battled the wind and rain , hoping not to be blown to one of the cities on the sign post !
It was a bit early to check into our hotel and Adrienne had one more option on her list – The Bill Richardson Transportation World. We didn’t expect much but ended up spending few hours there ! The complex takes up a whole city block and the museum covers 15,000 square metres in total. First stop was the cafe for a bit of lunch – The “Grille” Cafe is setup like a classic american diner and has various transport memorabilia throughout. We had to have a classic american hot dog and fries to go with the location and then headed into the museum.
Bill Richardson had a transport company which grew into a very successful business. As a side, he started collecting old trucks in 1967 and at the time of his death in 2005 his collection had grown to 150. His family also had their own collections and after his death his daughter and her husband started up the museum.
The collection includes restored and original condition trucks and cars from America and Britain – some very rare, early Fords covering all but the “Model B”, classic and modern race cars, Kombi vans and various sundry collections from oil cans, petrol bowsers, Matchbox cars to 1,500 McDonalds meal toys. Quite fascinating !
After this we went to the hotel. Invercargill is only a small city and we stayed at the relatively new “Langlands Hotel” pretty much in the heart of town. We went for a walk but the wind was so strong and cold we gave up after a block or two then retreated to the hotel. We went up to the top floor bar – the 360 – which has commanding views in all directions. You can even see that about 4 blocks west the “city” becomes rural land again ! With the wind and if course rain still hanging around, we decided to eat in the hotel restaurant – Meld. Asian “fusion” style it was very good – we tried their wonton version and shared a couple of curry dishes.
The weather forecast is looking a little better so we will see what we get tomorrow.