January 8 – 10, 2024

As mentioned in the last post, we turned in our rental bikes and walked to nearby Rosie’s Red-Hot Cantina and Taco Joint to grab a drink and a snack.  We wouldn’t need much as having learned from our experience the night before, I’d made a dinner reservation at a place not far from Adstock House for that evening.  One thing I forgot to mention about our Airbnb was that it was operated more like an old school Bed and Breakfast, with the proprietors on property and the provision of a robust continental breakfast, which included cereal, yoghurt, toast, and even eggs any style one day. 

Seated outside at Rosie’s with our acquaintances from the bike tour (I can’t remember their names, as likely they don’t remember ours) we ordered drinks, a margarita for Joanna, cider for Bev, house cocktail for Kim while Marty and I split a pitcher of the Naturalist, a local unfiltered Pale Ale and an order of the Monster Nachos (Corn chips covered in chili con carne, birria beef, chili con queso, melted Colby jack cheese, pico de gallo, pink onion, coriander, avocado crema, salsa roja, chipotle mayo & jalapeños), all of which we consumed in short order.  The tab for the five of us came to 119NZ ($77), prices comparable to what we would expect at a place close to the ocean in the States. 

After we finished, Joanna and Kim spent the afternoon visiting the nearby Wellington Museum which is housed in The Bond Store, an 1892 premium heritage building designed by leading architect Frederick de Jersey Clere.  Despite its grand exterior, it was primarily a bonded cargo warehouse; a holding warehouse for goods that required the payment of customs duty before they could be released to the importer.  Its exhibits include The Bond Store, which shows the layout of the historic museum building as it was in the late Victorian era, Telling Tales which explores the history of Wellington city throughout the 20th century, and among many more, the Maritime Gallery which showcases the nautical history of Wellington and includes a full-scale captain’s cabin, and a display commemorating Paddy the Wanderer.

In the meantime, I made my way back to Adstock House for some down time, reading and working on the blog.  Soon enough we regrouped and set off the not quite a kilometer’s walk to the Kelburn Village Pub for our six o’clock reservation.  Seated at a table by the window, we started with a round of drinks which included among others, a Strawberry Margarita for Bev, a Pina Colada for Joanna, glass of wine for me and a gin and tonic or two spread around the table. 

It was Taco Tuesday and so a couple of those showed up, as well as a spread of entrees that included Viet-Cajun Prawns (sauteed with fresh garlic, ginger, and Cajun spice), Southern Fried Chicken Burger, Beef Ribs, and Spring Fettucine (with chargrilled zucchini and parmesan cheese).  It was all good and as had been the case so far, just the right amount of food for all of us.  Best of all was the discount we received for staying at Adstock House which brought the tab to a total of 183.5NZ ($119), or roughly $25 per person including a cocktail apiece. 

The next day would find us touring Zealandia, another plant and animal sanctuary, recommended by the Quigley’s.  Formerly known as the Karori Wildlife Sanctuary, it was the first urban completely fenced ecosanctuary and is similar but at 560 acres, twice as large as Bushy Park in Whanganui.  Most of New Zealand’s ecosystems have been severely modified by the introduction of land mammals that were not present during the evolution of its ecosystems and have had a devastating impact on both native flora and fauna. The sanctuary, surrounded by a pest-exclusion fence, is a good example of an ecological island, which allows the original natural ecosystems to recover by minimizing the impact of introduced flora and fauna.

Historically about 60% of the Wellington region was covered with broadleaf forest and the whole sanctuary valley was covered with this sort of forest until European settlement of the area and the large fires in 1850 and 1860 that cleared the land to be used for farming.  The lower reservoir, retained by an earth dam, was completed in 1878.  Parts of the area continued to be farmed up until 1906 when the remaining catchment was purchased for the water works.

In 1993 a feasibility study for the sanctuary was carried out by the Wellington regional and city councils and after public consultation in 1994, the idea was given the go-ahead.  The most crucial aspect of the sanctuary is a pest-exclusion fence, designed to exclude 14 species of non-native land mammals ranging from deer to mice, which encircles the 5.3-mile perimeter of the sanctuary.  Construction of the fence was completed in late 1999 and all mammalian pests within the perimeter were then eradicated over a nine-month period.  This predator-proof fence is of great conservation significance, being a world first design to bar all terrestrial mammals from mouse size up.

We were able to catch a shuttle to the park from the cable car terminal not far from Adstock House and when we arrived it was determined that my limited ability to walk precluded my taking part in the guided tour that the others embarked on.  We all set off together, but I soon found myself on my own and would cover almost all the area inside the Lower Valley.  I walked up Lake Road until taking a path down to the Wetlands Area, crossing the upper section of the Lower Reservoir and then another path that took me to the Nest Boxes exhibit, a collection of wooden boxes that displayed the nests of many of the birds of the area. 

I returned to the Visitor Center and enjoyed yet another Latte while waiting for the group to return from their tour and we caught our breath while Joanna and I enjoyed a shortbread-based pastry and split a turkey and cranberry sandwich.  We’ll finish up our time in Wellington and the ferry ride to the South Island and Picton in the next post. 

Links

Rosie’s Red-Hot Cantina: https://www.stargroup.nz/venues/rosies-red-hot-cantina-taco-joint

Wellington Museum: https://www.museumswellington.org.nz/wellington-museum/

Kelburn Village Pub: https://kelburnvillagepub.co.nz/

Zealandia: https://www.visitzealandia.com/