In July my dear mum died. Feeling sad and a bit down in the dumps, the only thing for it was a change of scenery.  That was the impetus behind our trip as well as having heard about stories from my guests who seem to know the rest of New Zealand better than me!

First stop was where Jo hails from; Wellington. It is always great to catch up his his sister Sooze. Having my bike was great! Straight off to the cities best viewpoint, Mt Victoria at 196 m. This ride affords a good puff and a reminder of all there is to love about this place. With many hilly walking trails, beaches,  birdlife and the ferry on it's back door to the South Island, Wellington is an excellent place to be.

The trouble is deciding which way to go with East, West and middle of the Island all boasting good options for places to see. We hit on Napier and the East Cape so then it became clearer. First stop, Pukaha, Mt Bruce and its Wildlife Centre which is a captive-breeding sanctuary for some of our threatened birds. Located in a pocket of ancient forest, we wandered past rimu, rata, kahikatea and tawa for a couple of hours enjoying lunch with a view. We surveyed the wildly playful kaka tearing strips off the tree, takahe, monster eels and brown trout that live under the bridge; as well as saddlebacks, stitchbirds and resident kokako. The park also includes a kiwi house and a wetlands area with pāteke or brown teal. This cute dabbling duck was a highlight to see for the first time with its narrow white ring around the eye.

A landmark of Napier is Bluff Hill this is where we stayed for the next few nights in what was once the fam­ily home of one of Napier's finest Art Deco archi­tects. We overlooked the Port of Napier, one of New Zealand’s busiest ports, transporting timber, local fruit and meat products to worldwide destinations. The scenic ride on our bikes started in Napier, following the coast before heading inland and south into rural wetlands that used to form part of the inner harbour. The trail wound round the airport, through wetlands where viewing hides encourage bird spotting – around 70 species live or visit here. ​

The 1931 earthquake saw Napier rebuilt in line with the times. New Zealand’s largest earthquake of the 20th century shook the centre of Napier to rubble. Fires then burned out of control. Out of the ashes, Napier’s citizens built what they hailed as “the newest city on the globe,” modelled on the latest architectural fashions: Stripped Classical, Spanish Mission and, most notably, Art Deco. When I was growing up it seemed Napier’s heritage was not really appreciated but since the 1990's the town has enjoyed a tourist boom. We discovered the fascinating story of Napier’s heritage with the Art Deco trust's walking tour.  Our enthusiastic and knowledgeable guide gave us an insight into the history of Napier and the characteristics of the Art Deco style of architecture. 

 Onward to the East Cape with Gisborne the launch for the trip. This was to be a taster of the area, because as it was August, accommodation options were very slim. The coffee in the caravan en route took over half an hour to eventuate (surprisingly good!) That sort of speaks of the attitude on the Cape! It was a fantastic day as we headed north to a couple of obvious stops. The historic longest wharf in NZ at Tolaga Bay wharf. It still exists thanks to restoration efforts that began in 1999 by locals of the Tolaga Bay Save The Wharf Charitable Trust.

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Water
We collect our own rain water and as such all drinking water is safe, fresh and delicious. So bringing plastic bottled water is not necessary.
Rubbish and recycling
We follow the three Rs in relation to the environment – reduce, reuse and recycle.
We buy goods in bulk to reduce packaging and reuse when possible. Recycling is fostered by composting all suitable
materials, separating bottles, plastics and cardboard to be sent to our local recycling facility. Any
remaining rubbish is sent to an approved local body landfill. We also pick up rubbish along our local roads
(piccie Julie with rubbish) (garden & compost bin)
Sustainability
We monitor where goods are coming from to ensure sustainable best practice is used. We support initiatives such as Fair Trade and buy and support local whenever possible.
We have a large and prolific garden at with nut trees, berry bushes, a tunnel house and raised vegetable garden plots.
There is nothing quite like getting fresh berries, herbs and vegetables from our own garden. We also preserve our garden surplus by freezing and making jams and pickles.
​Energy
To further reduce the environmental footprint we monitor our electric and water usage and reduce
both as much as possible turning off appliances, switches etc, using energy efficient electrical items
and invite guests staying at Ribbonwood to do the same.
Environmentally Friendly
We use environmentally friendly in-room toiletries and cleaning products and donate any unwanted
items to charity. To reduce packaging, we make our own bar soap from sustainable accredited
components
Local environment and native wildlife
Over the 20 years we have owned the property we have planted more than 500 trees and shrubs.
Some were for firewood, many for shelter and also long lived native species, which hopefully will still
be growing in 500 years time. Where possible the trees were grown from locally sourced seed, or
transplanted from self seeded sources. These have encouraged prolific bird life, which in turn bring in
more native seeds which germinate and enhance our species diversity.

It's hard to put a finger on the one thing I liked the most about staying at Breakers. Jan and Stephen's place is situated on the West Coast's Punakaiki Coastline on the Great Coast Road. With absolute beachfront on the West Coast's beautiful Punakaiki coastline, Breakers overlooks the Tasman Sea.  We seldom encountered anyone else on our walks on their wild beach. Lucky enough to be there during low tide in the early evening, we were treated to a sublime sunset and a fascinating rock pool walk. Looking up to the backdrop behind Breakers is lush subtropical rainforest with spectacular alpine tops. We know from experience, fantastic tramping opportunities abound up there. Each of their four guest rooms have a fantastic sea view, so the hardest part is choosing which one to book. As always though, it is the hosts that play the major role in making sense of what we were experiencing and they made our stay very special with their warm welcome. Staying longer than one night gave us a chance to get off the beaten track. Jan and Stephen took us up the 10 Mile Valley where the mines and relics were fascinating, we loved exploring this wild and remote place. Our guide regaled us with stories from his deep interest in mining history. The extraction of coal was evident from relics and mine entrances set in the lush forest. We could only begin to imagine the characters toiling here, where daily life would have been a struggle with the cold, rain and strenuous work. 
Punakaiki has many colourful local crafts people with  jewellers, carvers, painters and potters. Tourism activities include canoe adventures, horse trekking, knifemaking and cave rafting to name just a few. The West Coast is famous for its  friendly hospitality but Jan and Stephen at Breakers went above and beyond all our expectations to give us a truly wonderful time during our stay.  ​

​​One of my favourite rides is to the Douglas Walk in the Glacier Valley. The bike is abandoned, jogging shoes donned and off round the 4 km loop taking in these fab views. I can never take enough photos of the moods of Peters pool, a lake which reflects the glacier. It was created by the retreating glacier dropping a chunk of melted ice that formed into a kettle lake about 1800 AD.

​Visiting the glaciers in New Zealand is unique as they are within easy driving and walking distance from the main highway.

When we first arrived in Franz Josef in 2000, we would don our boots and walk up to the terminal face. There we would put on our crampons and head up onto the ice, following the guides tracks and cutting our own. In the 1900s tracks and bridges were built to provide access onto the glaciers. Early photos show hikers with some nails in the soles of their shoes and women in long dresses exploring with mountain guides! In 1955 a photo shows my mother being guided onto the ice with far more suitable equipment and clothing.

Up until 2010 it was still possible use crampons to hike up on the ice from the terminal face without needing a helicopter flight. Foot access onto the Fox and Franz Josef glaciers is now limited to helicopter flights. Despite an advance in the mid 2000’s, both glaciers have been shrinking and the terminals of the glaciers receding. The rocky terrain below each of the glacier terminals is too dangerous to traverse on foot.
Both glaciers have periodically advanced, but are several kilometres shorter than the maximum extent reached during the mini-ice age of the 1700’s. During the previous global ice age which finished approximately 15,000 years ago, these glaciers reached nearly to the current coast line, 15 kilometres west of the present glaciers extent.

Walking access to view the glaciers has remained problematical, caused by storm events and river erosion of the valley floor. Franz Josef access track has been re-routed as the river flowing from under the glacier has changed course, requiring construction of new tracks on the valley walls. In 2017 at Fox glacier, a massive debris flow from Mills Creek, a side creek in the valley, forced the main river to cut into the west bank where the access road was and is now closed.

While glaciers around the world are retreating, the Franz Josef glacier is still the most accessible to visit in the world. It is an easy walk along ancient river beds through valleys with steep mountain sides. One of the most impressive features is the bed rock with vertical stripes, contrasting with the horizontal gouges caused by rocks imbedded from when the glacier scraped past. It remains a favourite walk for us though we have to leave our crampons behind.

​Roberts Point Track has great views of the glacier from the viewing platform, rainforest and fascinating historical features.

Over the years tramping this track, we have always set off in good weather conditions but invariably the afternoon cloud arrives with hill showers, though the village not far away stays bathed in sun! The track then becomes slippery with slow progress. Whenever we walk it, we have a chance to think about our surroundings, and marvel on the old and new.

Roberts Point track was constructed in 1906, funded by a grant from the “Department of Tourism and Hot Spas”, which was set up to promote tourism. Providing access to the Franz Josef glacier, which was higher and terminated much further down the valley than it is today. A technological feat in track building, 'Hendes Gallery' was a cantilevered or suspended walkway which traversed a steep section of bedrock. This gallery is still in use with the wooden steps replaced in the 90’s. The supports are made of forged iron, driven into holes that were drilled into the bedrock and secured with molten metal and still in excellent condition today. 

The impressive new Roberts Point Swing bridge (111m) replaced a wooden staircase which was destroyed by a rockfall. Swing bridges like these are common on New Zealand tramping tracks. They are suspended from two metal cables, and can span a considerable distance over a river or gorge.
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A new observation deck and picnic table high above the glacial ice is a welcome respite at the end of the track and affords magnificent views of the Franz Josef glacier, towering rock faces and waterfalls.

Climbing Alex Knob will reward trampers with some the best views of Franz Josef Glacier. This is not a stroll in the park though, it will take  eight hours with a steady uphill climb of over 1000m.  This is a tramping track with rough terrain so you will need to be prepared climb over windfalls and watch out for obstacles (I have been known to forget to look upward and banged my head on branches jutting out.)  The track zig zags endlessly on, but the thick forest and bird life are good reasons to stop and take rests. Rata Lookout is the first welcome respite with good views of the glacier far below, then further on Christmas Lookout and views up ahead of the summit. The next part is our favourite with the sub alpine plants making a picturesque garden including shrub daisies such as Leatherwood, Dracophyllum  Hebes and Coprosma, continuing on climbing and zig zagging  to the 1303 summit. 360 degree views await here, with the Southern Alps, the Tasman Sea, the tiny village below,  while the whole Franz Josef Glacier lies before you. ​