Day 113 Port Chalmers

Today I started walking the streets in Port Chalmers where I walked 7 streets

1532. George Street
1533. Beach Street
1534. Peninsula Beach Road
1535. Victory Place
1536. Wickliffe Terrace
1537. Albertson Avenue
1538. Blundell Avenue

Port Chalmers is the main port of Dunedin and has a lot of history which I was able to see through some of the historic buildings that I walked past today.  It is in Port Chalmers in 1844 that  the local Ngai Tahu tribe sold the Otago Block to the New Zealand Company. 

 

A few years later in  1875, Port Otago was started and in 1882 the first frozen meat shipped from New Zealand to the Northern Hemisphere left from here.  Today the port is still very much a major part of the township and is evident by the main street ending at the Port Otago yards with the container cranes dominating the view. 

 

Very close to the town hall is where the first sailing ship, the John Wickliffe landed and the first settlers disembarked in 1848.  This building was built in 1888 and was not just the town hall but also home to the Fire Brigade, the Police Station (including the Sergeant’s residence and cells), Court Rooms, Customs Office and Government Shipping Office. There was also a morgue that occupied a backroom downstairs.  Today the bottom floor houses a public library and the top floor is available for functions.

 

Across the road from the town hall is the old Post Office built in 1877.  The building now houses the maritime museum. Collections at the museum cover commercial fishing, shipping, Antarctic exploration and social history.

During my walk, I crossed the Port Chalmers railway line which is the first railway line built in Otago in 1873.  The railway line goes through a tunnel to finish at the port.  This railway line is well used for taking containers and logs to and from the port to the city.  

The port is a busy place with containers and logs.  Today I didn't see any ships being unloaded but I was able to see the time ball on the hill overlooking the port which has stood on the hill since 1867 with the ball dropping at 1pm each day so ships officers could set their  chronometers used in navigation.  The time ball was used up until 1931. 

 

I walked around, past the port to Back Beach.  Back Beach is at the 'back' of Port Chalmers and isn't much of a beach.  It is more of a place to launch boats and has a number of boat sheds.

The view from Back Beach is beautiful looking across to Goat Island, Quarantine Island and the hills of the peninsula behind.  It is from here the water taxi leaves to make the journey across the harbour to Portobello. 

From Back Beach, the road winds it's way around the bottom of Port Chalmers, close to the water of the harbour.  This is a narrow, gravel road that is a popular walk for locals. 

This road is a good place to be able to see in both directions down the harbour. It also shows how narrow parts of the harbour are and why Port Chalmers is the preferred port for large ships. This pictures shows how close Port Chalmers is to Goat Island and then a small gap to Quarantine Island. The road I am walking runs around the base of Port Chalmers, close to the water.

I was able to look across to the hills of the peninsula and Harbour Cone which is the pointy hill on the right.  The houses below Harbour Cone are part of Portobello and are streets that I have not walked yet.

And then I was able to look down the harbour towards the city.  The habour really opens out the further you travel down to the city where it narrows again. 

As I rounded the corner and walked back towards the township of Port Chalmers, I was able to look across to Sawyers Bay where I had been walking yesterday.  I have walked all the streets that I could see. 

Then I was back into the streets with houses and I was able to look across to streets that I have not walked yet.  This is the area that I will be walking over the next few walks as I near the end of my challenge to walk every street in Dunedin.

One area I walked past was this spot where the steam ship 'Pride of the Yarra' sank in July 1863.  Thirteen people drowned here, including the first rector of the new Dunedin High School (now Otago Boys High School), Reverend Thomas Campbell, his wife and and five children who had just completed a 3 month journey from London.

On my walk around from Back Beach, I followed the Writers Walk which is a trail of 11 concrete plinths each bearing poetry written by a member of the Writers Group. 

I walked past two pieces of art today.  The first is huge and  is on the side of a Port Otago warehouse and is of a boat on the back of a whale which I thought was great.  I am not sure what the second piece of art is but it is interesting none the less.

This map shows the streets in Port Chalmers that I have walked are highlighted in red

Distance walked:  5.5 km         Walking time  59 mins   

 

Total distance: 938.2  km          Total walking  174 hr 57 mins 

Day 105 Mosgiel

 My goal for this evenings walk was to complete more streets in Mosgiel and I walked 14 streets.

1393. Brown Street
1394. Bush Road
1395. Aitken Place
1396. Carlyle Road
1397. Mallard Place
1398. Goodall Street
1399. Silverstream Drive
1400. Glen Place
1401. Esk Place
1402. Duff Place
1403. Eden Street
1404. Gordon Road
1405. Forth Street
1406. Forfar Street  

While I walked nearly 10km tonight, I didn't take many photos as I was again walking the flat streets of Mosgiel.  One of the good things about this walk was that I managed to finish walking some of the long streets which I had walked parts of over the last three days of walking. 

About the only view I saw tonight was Saddle Hill.  Tonight there was no cloud covering the hill and I have enjoyed seeing it from this angle. 

I walked along the streets that bordered the Silver Stream walkway.  This walkway runs alongside the Silver Stream This small stream starts on the southern slopes of the Silver Peaks and flows for 30km

One street I walked in Mosgiel is lined with lovely blossom trees and the ground is carpeted in pink blossom.  If I had been here a few weeks earlier, the trees would have been spectacular. 

This is the first painted telephone cabinet that I have seen in Mosgiel.  It painted with the three layers of the land, the base with rocks followed by trees and finally the hills and mountains.  A bit unusual I thought as Mosgiel is so flat. 

Distance walked:  9.8 km         Walking time  1 hr 47 mins   

 
Total distance: 869.3  km          Total walking  162 hr 37 mins 

Day 104 Mosgiel

 Today I was back walking the streets of Mosgiel where I walked 11 streets.

1382. Park Street
1383. Bishop Verdon Close
1384. Laing Street
1385. Cargill Street
1386. Church Street
1387. Glasgow Street
1388. Irvine Street
1389. Argyle Street
1390. Lanark Street
1391. Montrose Street
1392. Berwick Street

 

Like yesterday, the streets I walked today are long, straight and flat.  Today there was cloud/fog covering most of Saddle Hill. 

Whichever direction I walked today, the views were pretty much the same.  Walking the flat can become monotonous as each street starts to look the same and I need to concentrate to make sure that I don't miss any streets. 

I walked all of Church Street today and in Church Street is this impressive Presbyterian Church dating back to 1912, which I am guessing the street is named after.  It looks like there have been some modern touches added with the glass front.

Also in Church Street is the St Mary's School.  Originally founded in 1892, the catholic school was held in the church until 1912 when this building was available and the school with around 50 students moved in.  In the 1950's the roll had grown and a new school was built nearby.

Another interesting building that I walked past is the old fire station that has been turned into a theatre and is home to the Taieri Dramatic Society. Founded in 1949, the Taieri Dramatic Society held two shows a year in the Mosgiel Coronation Hall until it purchased the old fire station in 1989 and now has it's own home.

I walked past this tanawha painted on the side of a building.  Maori legend has it that Saddle Hill is the remains of the tanawha Matamata which was the guardian of a Maori chief and warrior who lived in a village beside the Otago Harbour.You can see that the back and head of the tanawha are in the shape of Saddle Hill.

 I also walked past this wall that is a beautifully painted ANZAC memorial.  The painting is very large as the soldiers are painted in life size. 

I have not seen many interesting letterboxes lately so I was very pleased to see this fun All Blacks letterbox during my walk today.

This map shows the streets I have walked in red.  It is easy to see how many streets in Mosgiel I have walked compared to the streets that I still need to walk.

Distance walked:  8.5 km         Walking time  1 hr 30 mins   

 
Total distance: 859.5  km          Total walking  160 hr 50 mins 

Day Ninety One Ravensbourne

Another lovely day in Dunedin so I took the opportunity for an evening walk and returned to walk some more streets in Ravensbourne.  Today I walked 13 streets.

1205. Manuka Street
1206. Matai Street
1207. Junction Road
1208. Adderley Terrace
1209. Short Street
1210. Hinau Street
1211. Monowai Road
1212. Wanaka Street
1213. Wakatipu Street
1214. Totara Street
1215. Seddon Street
1216. Athol Place
1217. Ohau Street

 

Ravensbourne is on the side of the harbour that loses the sun in the evening, however the views more than made up for walking in the shadows. 

The streets of Ravensbourne are narrow and wind their way around the side of the hill.  One of the benefits of being on the hill is that I was rewarded with great views from every street I walked tonight.

As I walked the streets on this side of the harbour, I was able to look over at the sunny side and know that I have walked all the streets that I could see. I had walked the streets opposite in January and at the time, my challenge to walk every street in Dunedin seemed like an impossible task. Now I have walked around 3/4 of Dunedin's streets.

It was a lovely evening to be out walking and as I made my way down the hill, the city and harbour views continued to open out.  

Eventually I made it back to the bottom of the hill and walked along beside the road and railway line as the sun was setting. 

As I walked along beside the harbour and railway line, I was able to look over at Macandrew Bay which was still in the sunshine.  I have walked along the road as far as Macandrew Bay but I haven't walked the streets in Macandrew Bay yet. 

And finally I finished my walk by walking up a couple of the steep, narrow streets.  This photo doesn't show it, but this street is steep and a good challenge for the legs and lungs.

 

Today I walked past the Ravensbourne fire station.  This is a small fire station which is run by volunteers who give up their time to train and fight fires.  Even though it is still in the city, the volunteers would be first at a fire or car accident.  The fire bell out the front is a memorial to firefighters who have died while still being on active service.

I didn't see any interesting letterboxes on my walk today but there were a number of houses in Ravensbourne that had interesting things on their fences.  The residents of this house had lots of small windmills as well as ornaments on their fence.

And I am not sure why the residents of this house would have a fly stuck in a spider web as their fence. 

The residents of this house look like they have made their own unique fence ornaments.

The railway line runs through Ravensbourne and the Ravensbourne bus stop is cleverly painted as a tribute to the railway line.  One one side is the walking bridge over the railway line.  The way it is painted, it is made to look like you could walk over it and the other side has a lovely steam train.

The other street art that I saw on my walk today was this fox painted on a garage door. 

Distance walked:  4.5 km         Walking time  56 mins  

Total distance: 745.3 km          Total walking  139 hr 44 mins 

Day Ninety Seacliff & Karitane

Continuing on from my blog yesterday, today's blog post is about the streets that I walked in Seacliff and Karitane which are small townships further along the coast.  I walked the streets of these townships/suburbs as they are in the boundaries of Dunedin City.  I walked 24 streets.

1181. Russell Road
1182. Kilgour Street
1183. Palmer Street
1184. Barvas Street
1185. Halkirk Street
1186. Parata Avenue
1187. Rawhiti Street
1188. Kamura Street
1189. Seaforth Street
1190. Sulisker Street
1191. Roneval Street
1192. Harris Street
1193. Rona Street
1194. Karitane Reserve Road
1195. Scarp Street
1196. Grimness Street
1197. Stornoway Street
1198. Eris Street
1199. Kerr Street
1200. Barra Street
1201. Bernera Street
1202. Pentland Street
1203. Dunnet Street
1204. Coast Road

The second part of my walk today, saw me walking the three streets at Seacliff.  In 1884, the Seacliff Lunatic Asylum was opened.  At the time it was the largest building in New Zealand and housed 500 patients and 50 staff.  In 1889 Truby King was appointed medical supervisor and 'prescribed' fresh air, exercise, good nutrition and productive work to the patients.  By the 1940's the hospital became more like a prison where the treatment would be considered cruel today.  The old hospital grounds are a reserve and thought to be haunted by patients who were locked in their rooms and died when a fire broke out at the hospital in 1942.  The Seacliff Lunatic Asylum closed in 1971.  Today the small settlement has a quiet and peaceful feel to it.

After leaving Seacliff, I drove to Karitane to continue walking the streets.  Before reaching Karitane, I stopped at a lookout which gave me a good view of the township which is in the middle of this picture.  The Huriawa Peninsula is to the left of the township and juts out into the sea.  The peninsula was home to the Huriawa Pà which is a Maori fortified village. 

Karitane is a small seaside settlement located near the mouth of the Waikouaiti River and is within the boundaries of Dunedin City.  The river mouth is tidal and is a popular place for kayakers and boaties. 

At the end of some of the streets in Karitane are walkways to the beach.  This was useful to me as it meant I could walk along the beach to the next street, rather than rewalk some of the streets.

Dunedin is lucky to a large number of readily accessible beaches and as a result, there are a lot of beaches for people to use.  This often means that beaches are deserted and it is a pleasure to have a beach to yourself. 

 Some of the streets in Karitane are right on the beach.  There are houses just across the road so the owners have the beach literally on their doorstep.  I imagine it will be a magical place to have a home during the summer months.

In other parts of the town, the road runs beside the tidal Waikouaiti River.  On a calm day, it is a very picturesque and peaceful place.

The views of the river mouth from this road was quite spectacular on such a calm day. 

Not all the views were of the beach and river mouth.  Parts of the township looked over farmland with Mt. Watkin in the distance. 

Overall though, most of the houses in Karitane have views of the river mouth. The township is popular with day trippers from Dunedin City and it is easy to see why. 

On my walk today, I walked past these gates at Seacliff reserve which are a war memorial to the fallen soldiers of the Seacliff area. 

 Later in my walk, I walked past these gates in Karitane which are a war memorial to the fallen soldiers of Karitane.

 

At the entrance to Karitane is this cute whale welcoming people to the township.  This whale is everywhere as it has been made into street numbers for the houses. 

 

I saw some unusual sights during my walking today.  I came across this pile of old fishing pots at the end of a street. They look like they have been here for a while.

This boat looked like it wasn't going anywhere anytime soon.  It was almost like it had just been parked on the side of the road and forgotten about by it's owners.

And I don't known when this car was last driven but it's certainly been here for a long time.

This giraffe is very cleverly made out of old junk but it looks quite realistic. Whoever made it has put a lot of thought into it.

During my walk today, I walked past the Karitane public toilets that have wildlife found in the area painted on all sides.

 And lastly, I have included a map of Karitane with the streets that I have walked highlighted in red.

Distance walked:  11.9 km         Walking time  2 hr 12 mins  

Total distance: 740.8 km          Total walking  138 hr 48 mins