New Zealand is especially known for its beautiful natural scenery.
From coast to mountains, one can encounter landscapes of outstanding beauty,
so special in their wildness.
Fierce seas and high waves are characteristic of the coast along the west of both islands. In Muriwai gannets breed on the cliffs while waves pound below. The birds hover in the strong winds which are forced upwards.
Flowers soften the stony coast at Sinclair Head near Wellington. Winds
through the rough Cook Strait can reach high velocities, so that no tall-growing
vegetation can establish at the coast.
Not in its natural form, Lyttelton Harbour near Christchurch still looks impressive
ringed by dry hillsides.
On the east coast of the South Island a seal eyes approaching humans curiously.
Seals live in colonies like this one at Shag Point near Palmerston, where ocean
currents provide good feeding grounds.
The noise can be heard from far away, but even
more noticeable is the smell, even in strong winds.
In the centre of the North Island the mountains rise above the Central Plateau.
The cone-shaped Ngauruhoe stands tall beside Mt Tongariro. Both mountains were once
active volcanoes and volcanic activity in the area certainly has not died away.
Further south the Tararuas merge into the Rimutaka Ranges. With their steep mountainsides
of regenerating bush they form a barrier at the very southern end of the North Island.
In some places the bush is so dense, that, as with this picture, one has to climb trees
to get a view.
A pair of endangered and rare Blue Ducks (Whio) swims on a pool in Kellys Creek in
the Southern Alps near Otira.
The Southern Alps run like a spine down the length of the South Island.
The Two Thumb Range rises behind Fairlie, about 60km inland. Here the rolling
countryside goes over into the wide valleys and steep mountains of the Southern Alps.
Deer graze in the paddocks around Fairlie, while the mountains in the background, have received a new cover of snow, perfect for skiing.
Here a weary tramper carries his heavy backpack along the North Huxley River on a rainy
day. Tramping in the rain among the cloud-covered mountains has its own charm, as long
as one can get dry in a warm hut afterwards.
These are mountains in the Ohau area. To the left is Belfry Peak, in the middle Bruce Peak
and to the right Steeple Peak. No wonder I felt as if I were standing among a whole lot of
churches. The picture was taken from Frank Pass, so named after the intrepid brothers
who crossed that gap in the mountains in 2005.
Crossing from the South Temple Valley over Frank Pass one reaches the Justus Valley, so
named after one of the aforementioned brothers. This is a high alpine valley. Waterfalls
tumble down from all sides. But there is only a small stream on the valley floor that soon
dries up. All the water drains into a subterranean stream only to reappear further down
the valley way past a moraine. Not many people have explored this hidden gem.
Spring has come to the mountains. Characteristic of the Southern Alps are the wide
river valleys running between steep mountainsides. Here is the Caples River Valley in the
Wakatipu area with the Ailsa Mountains in the background.
Streams and rivers drain the water falling in the ranges. This stream
makes it way through the dense bush of the Pureora Forest Park, west of Lake Taupo.
In late autumn it can get below freezing level in exposed part of the Forest Park,
but in the protected valleys in the forest temperatures do not sink as quickly.
Sometimes the water flows over cascading waterfalls, as in the Waitakere Ranges.
Larger rivers drain the more extensive rangens. The Tauherenikau River
starts its journey in the Tararua Ranges before flowing into Lake Wairarapa.
Passing by steep bluffs and gentle meadows the river floods quickly in heavy rain.
Manmade watercourses, too, can have a certain beauty. This view shows the
Waitakere Dam near Auckland on a winter's evening.
The farmland shows the traces of human hands clearly. It is just as much part of the
environment, just as much part of "nature" we humans should care for. We have to see
that "wilderness" areas do need our care as well as "production" land and that farmland
is also to be respected for its intrinsic worth.
A barn on the Otago Peninsula blends into the farmed landscape.
Central Otago is a bleak landscape with hardly any trees to soften jagged scenery.
Tussock covers parts of the land, but other parts have been converted to pasture.
Often the grass is burnt in this dry area, but in early spring the grass still grows green
on the hillsides and valleys.
After a heavy downpour of showers has just passed, sheep stand in the shelter of the remaining wall of a farm building while a rainbow lights the sky near Lake Roxburgh.
Here an old discarded truck sits beside a Macrocarpa tree near Mauriceville in the
Wairarapa. This is a typical New Zealand rural scene.
There are ten times as many sheep as people in New Zealand. The export of wool and
meat has for many years been the mainstay of New Zealand's economy and has only been
recently eclipsed by dairy and forestry exports.
Here a flock of recently shorn ewes and wooly lambs gets herded along a road in the Catlins.
The majority of New Zealanders live in cities. The biggest of these is Auckland,
where about one third of New Zealand's population lives. The suburbs
stretch for kilometres. The continuous sea of houses loses itself in the rain when viewed
on a wet day from Mt Albert.
Auckland can also show itself in brilliant sunshine. The central city, as seen
from the Harbour with high rise building and the Sky Tower.