TranzAlpine Railway -- February 26, 2019

Relaxing day today. We got up somewhat early but a reasonable time, and at 7:15 am, we drove to the railway station in Christchurch.  We boarded the TranzAlpine Railway and at 8:15 am, we were off, embarking on a journey across the skinniest part of the South Island, heading to Greymouth, spending an hour, and then heading back to Christchurch.  Excellent content on the audio during the trip, and for the most part, we listened to it twice – going to Greymouth and back.  It was a beautiful trip, and we took tons of pictures – more than I want to upload, but I have a few hundred or so for you (just kidding).

                                           
Harold, dutifully listening to the audio narrative.  Not sure why Gil wasn't being dutiful.

First, though, I’ll share some tidbits from the audio commentary, as well as a few tidbits of our own.

The first part of our journey was through the Canterbury Plains, the alluvial plain created by glaciers eons ago.  Take away the tall, thick hedgerows and one would think one was in central US:  wheat, canola, peas, barley, oats, rye.  Ninety percent of the grains for human consumption in New Zealand comes from this area, as does 80% of the grains used for feed.  Also lots of sheep and cows, but sheep count has dropped 60% in recent years because of synthetic fibers. Result – more cow pictures than sheep pictures!

the irrigate too!

A sculpture of a moa and her baby

 

Lots of cattle herds, largely angus and Herefords

Red  deer -- we saw several massive herds

Very few sheep, but in massive numbers wherever we saw them

Next, we moved into the foothills – rolling hills, which became higher and higher until we saw snow-capped mountains.  We were never in snow though, which we all somewhat expected.  We were in the area of three rivers, plus lots of smaller ones; we also saw a few waterfalls, learned some about the buildings of the railroad and the digging of the tunnels.  The longest tunnel (Otira) was 8 kilometers which took us 12 minutes for us to get through.  The tracks on either end were not at the same level, so the grade within the tunnel was 1 to 33.  It worked because there was no bump or lurch at either end of the tunnel for us.  Whew.

The uplift visible in many of the rocks was enlightening

Erosion is occurring also 

One interesting little (literally) community was Otira.  Originally, the community started with  prefabricated houses, with all houses the same, but the weather is harsh there (20 degrees below in winter with no sun for several months), and everyone moved.  A corporation bought it and created a housing zone for people who wanted to live "differently."  There are now 45 people living in the community with all 18 houses basically the same on the exterior, not sure about the interior.

“Arthur’s Pass” -- Another interesting tidbit is the rainfall. 200 inches on the west side of the country, but on the east side of the mountains, rainfall was only 62 inches which then dwindled down to about 12 inches.

When we got to the western coast – Greymouth – we ambled around the town for about an hour.  Deborah and Gil ate, and Harold and I (sort of collaboratively) bought jewelry.

the river walk in Greymouth

a sculpture honoring those killed in coal mining accidents

I loved the sign here:  New Zealand -- A New Land

We re-boarded our train and headed back the same way.  The repetition of the audio was beneficial, and we also spent some time in the open railway car which afforded wonderful views.
All was good.

Came home, had a cocktail, went to eat at the Pub in the hotel, and then went to bed!