Destinations

Exploring Wellington, New Zealand

Wellington - Mt Victoria Lookout View

Recently I have been sharing some experiences that never made it to the blog when they happened. My visit to Wellington, New Zealand in October 2015 is one of those posts.

After the Geocaching Mega event in Christchurch, I had four nights in Wellington. I did not have a lot planned for my time in Wellington, but by the time I left I had managed to see a lot of the city. So that means the good news is that I also have plenty of photos to share with you in amongst the story.

Charles Plimmer Park

Charles Plimmer Park made up part of the route that I took from the city to visit Mount Victoria Lookout. There are some walking trails through here, and while some of it is rather steep, it is a nice walk. Some of the areas here were used for the filming of the Lord Of The Rings Movies to depict Hobbiton Woods. While not in the pictures I capture some areas do have very much the look and feel from the movie.

Wellington - Charles Plimmer Park

Mount Victoria Lookout

In many cities, I quite like to visit the observations deck to get a view of the city. However, when it comes to Wellington, they have an even better option relatively close to the city in Mount Victoria. The walk from the city is not that great, but the last bit up the slopes of Mt Victoria is a bit of a push.

Wellington - Mt Victoria Lookout View

Wellington Cable Car

Getting around the CBD of Wellington is relatively easy, but there is minimal stress where you do not have to tackle a hill. To save yourself a little bit of the uphill battle you can take the Cable Car from the city to the top of the Wellington Botanical Gardens. There is also a great view from here facing in the opposite direction to Mt Victoria.

Wellington Cable Car

Wellington Botanical Gardens

If you like walking or gardens in any way, a visit to the Wellington Botanical Gardens is a must. I visited different parts of the gardens on two separate days, and I am sure there is plenty that I missed.

Wellington Botanical Gardens

Different areas of the gardens give very much different impressions. There are some closed in areas where the canopy comes over and shades the area quite completely. While other areas can feel much more open with grassy areas.

Wellington Botanical Gardens

You also find that there is plenty of water running through the gardens. Some of it is just in lakes or ponds, while there are a couple of areas like the one below with more interesting water features.

Wellington Botanical Gardens

Also incorporated into the gardens is The Lady Norwood Rose Garden. Which is a circular garden area with over 100 garden beds of roses, with grass in between. I, unfortunately, was here at the wrong time with not many flowering at all.

Wellington - The Lady Norwood Rose Garden

City Fountain

Wandering around the city of Wellington at times you come across some interesting spots. This fountain was one of them.

Wellington City Fountain

Wellington Harbour

The city of Wellington sits on a rather large harbour. Around the foreshores of the harbour, it is possible to walk the entire way. Some of it such as the section below is an old dock area, but further, around the other side, there are some rather nice newly created areas as well.

Wellington - Harbour

Riding Wellington To Petone

On my second full day in Wellington, I decided to find a place to rent a bicycle and complete the ride from Wellington to Petone. In the end, I rented a bike through AvantiPlus On Yer Bike Wellington and set off on the ride which would be around 30km round trip. One of the main reasons for the ride beyond the scenery was to do some Geocaching.

Wellington Railway

The first segment of the ride is rather uninteresting passing through the city of Wellington and a section along the Freeway. However, there is a roughly 4-kilometre section of path that runs parallel to the train line right on the edge of the harbour.

Wellington - Matiu Somes Island

Along the way, you have a view of an island in the harbour by the name of Somes Island. It is possible to visit the island which can be accessed by ferry. You can find out more information on the DOC website. Originally I had planned to visit the island one day but changed my plans when I decided to complete the ride from Wellington to Petone.

Wellington - Petone Wharf

Petone is a rather nice small town, and I explored along the main street a little. But I also enjoyed heading out on the wharf which you can see above with Wellington in the background.

Jervois Quay Pedestrian Bridge

There is a rather interesting Pedestrian Bridge over a street name Jervois Quay. In some ways, it resembles a wooden ship, not exactly in proportion but I can see it if you look at it the right way.

Wellington - Pedestrian Bridge - Jervois Quay

Wainuiomata Recreation Area

On my last morning in Wellington, I decided to rent a car so that I could access one particular Geocache. The oldest Geocache in New Zealand is located in the Wainuiomata Recreation Area. I must say it is a beautiful area to walk around with the Wainuiomata River running through.

Wellington - Wainuiomata Recreation Area Wellington - Wainuiomata Recreation Area Wellington - Wainuiomata Recreation Area

Heading To The Airport

The last spot that I visited before going to the Airport was an area known as Moa Point. There are some beautiful views from this area to the south and the water that pass between the north and south island.

Wellington - Moa Point

A Great Trip

The time that I spent in New Zealand did turn out to be a lot of fun. I could have easily spent more time exploring as there is a lot more not far outside of Wellington. But with only a few days it can be difficult to know what to focus your time on. It would be great to hear your feedback on this post so if you have the time you can leave a comment below or get in touch on the contact page.

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