Auckland

After traveling New Zealand from the far north to the far south, all the way east to all the way west, mountain tops to sandy beaches, the majority of the sealed roads, a handful of metal (kiwi for washboard) roads, for a total of about 15,000 km we decided it was time to move Black Betty on to a new adventure and head for home. But first we visited Stanley Point for a great view of the city.

The Harbor Bridge that goes over the Waitemata Harbor.

The city in the distance.

Auckland is the city of sails. It’s the largest boat ownership per capita in the world.

We found a great deal at Chifley Suites in downtown Auckland to use as a base while we got Betty ready for her new home.

This is the view toward the harbor from our balcony.

One more adventure for us before Black Betty met her new owners. She got sucker punched in the parking garage down the street from our hotel! A slight detour to Smith and Smith for a new window.

John and Phil exchanging paperwork.

Phil and Sara with Black Betty. They are ready for their adventure with Black Betty:)

We are enjoying our last week in the city of sails. We had a hot date to see Avatar 3D at the only IMAX theater in the country. Wow! Great movie! Then a wonderful sailing trip to Waiheke Island. One of about 50 volcanic islands in the harbor. This is the sail boat we took, Pride of Auckland.

John’s driving. Wohoo!

We enjoyed a picnic lunch on the beach by the small town of Oneroa.

We got a pretty good view of Rangitoto Island on the way back to Auckland. Rangitoto is the youngest volcano in the harbor.