Alison Gutsche
(sorry this took so long! If you'd rather the word document, I attached that as well.
Hamilton:
Hamilton is a city located on the North Island of New Zealand and is part of the Waikato region. The University of Waikato is located in Hamilton and the city is known for its student population and its affect on the city. Hamilton is also home to the Waikato Museum (http://www.waikatomuseum.co.nz/page/pageid/2145842684/Home), which is known for its science exhibits and its exhibits on Maori culture. A major tourist attraction is the Hamilton Gardens (http://www.hamiltongardens.co.nz/). It has numerous different collections, which are then split into different garden types. Also slightly outside of the city is the Hamilton Zoo. Hamilton is also home to the Waikato Stadium, where many rugby matches are played. It is not home to the most famous rugby team of New Zealand, the All Blacks, though. Seddon Park (http://hamilton.co.nz/images/701.jpg), also located in Hamilton, is the main arena for many cricket matches. Hamilton is one of the largest urban areas in New Zealand and has a plethora of different places to visit within the city.
Taupo:
Taupo is a town located in the center of the Northern Island and is in the southern part of the Waikato region. The town lies on New Zealand's largest lake, Lake Taupo (http://feodyssey.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/03/lake-taupo-28761-lge.jpg). The lake was formed after a very large volcanic explosion thousands of years ago. The volcano has not erupted in a very long time and is considered dormant. The Huka Falls also are formed from the draining of Lake Taupo into the Waikato River. From the town, you can also see the Tongariro National Park across the lake. The town is well known for skydiving, bungee jumping, and different water sports. Many different interesting sporting events take place in Taupo including Ironman New Zealand (http://www.ironman.co.nz/) and the Lake Taupo Cycle Challenge, which involves a bicycle race around the entire lake.
Wednesday, October 14, 2009
Tuesday, October 13, 2009
NZ Locations
Katherine Fochesto
1. Christchurch, New Zealand is located in the Canterbury region of New Zealand. Christchurch was founded by English colonists and was originally named Christ Church, after a college at Oxford University in England. It is has been abbreviated Christchurch since the 1880s and is now the largest city on the South Island of New Zealand and the second largest city in the entire country.
The city is filled with Gothic-style architecture and graystone buildings. Christchurch has been nicknamed "the Garden City" because of the many parks and gardens, such as Hagley Park and the Botanical Gardens, that can be found throughout the city as well as the Avon River, which runs through Christchurch.
Cathedral Square is at the center of the city and surrounds Christ Church, the Anglican cathedral. The area around the square, including the four major avenues of Christchurch, is known as the central business district. This area of the city is also the cultural center where many festivals and cultural arts events take place. The Arts Center, former home of the University of Canterbury, now has many shops, studios and art galleries. The World Buskers Festival attracts thousands of people to the Arts Center every January. The World Buskers Festival is a festival in which 40 artists from around the world perform for the public.
An interesting area of Christchurch is Lyttleton. Lyttleton is located on a harbor and is connected to the center of Christchurch via tunnel. It was originally the port of call for Christchurch and was where the first British migrants landed. Lyttleton has a variety of shops, cafes and restaurants and a Farmer's Market on Saturday mornings.
http://www.christchurchnz.com/
http://www.christchurch.org.nz/
http://www.christchurch.nz.com/
http://www.christchurch.nz.com/lyttelton.aspx
http://www.christchurch.nz.com/arts-centre.aspx
2. Havelock, New Zealand is a small, coastal village on the South Island in the Marlborough region of NZ. It was named after Sir Henry Havelock during the Indian Rebellion of 1857.
The village is located near State Highway 6 between Nelson, NZ and Bleinhem, NZ. Havelock is often called "the Gateway to the Sounds" because it is located at the head of the Kenepuru and Pelorus Sounds and is close to the Queen Charlotte Sounds. Havelock is also called "The Green Mussel Capital of the World" because it is the world's leading supplier of Green Mussels.
The population of the village was estimated to be only 486 in the 2006 Census which makes it a great destination for those looking to get away from bigger cities. Many tourists visit Havelock for the Mussel Festival, usually held in March.
http://www.fourcorners.co.nz/new-zealand/havelock/
http://www.havelocknz.com/
Our Travel Destinations
Ethan Beswick
Bay of Islands & White Island
The Bay of Islands
On just our third day (let's hope for no jet-lag) we will be stopping at the Bay of Islands where we will take an afternoon cruise around the bay. While there, we will be witness to the splendor that the great author Zane Grey described nearly a century ago (check this out), although, this inlet, located near the northern-most extent of the North Island, was first named by Captain Cook on his circumnavigation in 1769.
We will hopefully be able to see some of the many exotic species that inhabit these parts including whales, dolphins, and marlin, amongst many others in our time to the bay. But if birdwatching or big-game fishing don't seem like your ideal time then perhaps one of the one-hundred dive sites or boat rental or gourmet food sound a bit better. For those of you who like golf, there is a local course that is said to have some of the most magnificent views anywhere.
The cliffs on the golf course to the jagged shores of the 150 odd islands present themselves quite stunningly in this 16 km wide natural harbor. The bay has a few notable arms in the mainland which were very important during the Cream Trip (yes, transporting cream between islands) and, even though it's not my topic, we must not forget that we will continue on to the jut of land at the eastern side of the island, Cape Brett. Oh and did I forget to mention that a 2006 study found that The Bay of Islands had the second bluest sky in the world behind on Rio de Janeiro? Pretty sweet huh?
White Island
By the time we get to White Island, we should be pretty well settled in with the Kiwis, and if not, there is nothing like a morning boat ride to an active volcanic site to create a little more excitement. The island, situated some 48 km off the north east coast of the North Island. It is erupted from the sea and stands nearly 2000 m off the sea floor. The island's monitored volcanic activity can be found at http://www.geonet.org.nz/ . Although there have been large eruptions in the past, most recently in the mid 80s, the volcano is normally at the lower end of an alert scale on eruptions.
White Island was named by Captain Cook and, like the Bay of Islands, is known for its big-game fishing. There have been attempts at sulfur mining in the past, but the deaths related to them have forced their abandonment, so most of the island remains both tourist and geological attractions.
A small fun fact: a dino figurine was glued to a rock in front of the Geonet volcano camera on the island. Geonet decided not to have it removed, assuming it was a plastic toy and would not survive long in the corrosive environment, but as of the fall of last year, the figurine still remained.. maybe we will get to see it? who knows
Man I can't wait to get there...
NZW10 Study Abroad Two Sites Info - Emily Olson
Dr. Trembanis,
Attached is the info for my two sites from the study abroad homework. Only 80 more days until we leave, and I can't wait!!!!!!!
See you Thursday!
- Emily Olson
PS: I tried to find your AUV demonstration at Coast Day, but someone had told me it got cancelled?? Did I miss it? :(
Monday, October 12, 2009
Assignment #1
Rina Binder-Macleod
Assignment #1: Tongariro and Whitianga
Tongariro
We will be doing the Tongariro Alpine Crossing on January 28th, then staying the night in the Tongariro National Park.
The Tongariro Alpine crossing is rumored to be the best one day hikes in New Zealand one of the top ten day treks in the entire world according to http://www.tongarirocrossing.org.nz/. I guess we will have to see for ourselves! But, from the looks of it, a trek that takes you across such a wide variety of landscapes and offers you magnificent views of mountains and the Emerald Lakes (named because of their color due to leached minerals) as well as paths along streams and on ancient lava paths sounds like it might as well be one of the best day hikes in the world!
To learn about the geological history of the region, I would recommend looking at these links: http://www.teara.govt.nz/en/historic-volcanic-activity/3 and http://www.tongarirocrossing.org.nz/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=23&Itemid=38. These sites explain the history of the eruptions in the area and explain that Mt. Tangariro is not a single volcano, but it is a series of craters. There has been volcanic activity starting 300,000 years ago. 100,000 years ago was the beginning of the Ice Age, when these early eruptions were suspended. Valleys were formed when the ice retreated. Of particular note in the area is Mt Ngauruhoe, which is the youngest vent in the area with activity starting about 2500 years ago and last erupting about 35 years ago in 1975.
Last but not least, to please the eye, I recommend this website: http://www.panoramio.com/photo/650621. If you click through the photos on the left, the image on the right shows you the corresponding point on a Google Earth Map. This is an interesting way to compare the aerial view of the topography to an image taken from the ground. It gives you a better sense of the varied geography of the region. I think it is especially interesting to see the green turquoise lakes (filled in craters) in both images.
Whitianga
We will be staying 2 nights in Whitianga , starting on January 8th. According to the Whitianga entry on Google Earth, this location is pronounced "Fitianga" and it is a small fishing town on Mercury Bay on the North Island of New Zealand. The pictures on Google Earth show the shore in town to be lined with palm trees and the water is dotted with sail boats. The tourism site, http://www.whitianga.co.nz/gallery.html, has some beautiful photos of the region.
Here is some history of Whitianga, according to this site: http://www.whitianga.co.nz/history.html, Whitianga has a history rooted with the sea and seamen. In about 950 AD, the Tahitian explorer and sailor Kupe landed in Whitianga and called it, "TE WHITIANGA-a-KUPE - the crossing place of Kupe". Later, in 1769 Captain John Cook landed in Whitianga. He spent a little under 2 weeks taking astronomical data and observing Mercury and determining the location of the Bay (currently known as Mercury Bay). Currently, this area is a fishing town as well as a tourist destination.
As for the geology of the region, the book "The Field Guide to New Zealand Geology: Rocks, Minerals, and Fossils" on Google Books: http://books.google.com/books?id=t-cOAAAAQAAJ&pg=PA151&lpg=PA151&dq=Whitianga+geology&source=bl&ots=-iYefY_Z35&sig=YAx6Of6PbLGveYAAOKu3PH1wjHU&hl=en&ei=IobTSuu-GYrflAeEoM2oCg&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=8&ved=0CCYQ6AEwBw#v=onepage&q=&f=false offers an in-depth explanation of the geology of the region. The rhyolite of the region ranges in age from 3 million to over 6 million years old. The rhyolite in the region is "often flow banded (banded by layers in flowing lava) "(152). Also prevalent in the region is andesite that has been altered due to hot water flowing through the cracks and pores and depositing dissolved minerals within the andesite. For more detailed information, I would recommend checking out the book link it has tons of diagrams and information.
christina liaskos NZ geol/mast Raglan/Tane Mahuta
Tane Mahuta
Tane Mahuta, located in the Waipoua Forest of New Zealand, is the largest kauri
tree known to stand today. It is estimated to be between 1250 and 2500 years
old. It's Maori name means "Lord of the Forest."
Measurements:
Trunk girth 13.77 m (45.18 ft), Trunk height 17.68 m (58 ft), Total height 51.2
m (167.98 ft), Trunk volume 244.5 m³, Total volume including the crown 516.7
m³
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Tanemahuta2.jpg
http://static.panoramio.com/photos/original/2114134.jpg
------------------------
Raglan
Raglan is a beautiful coastal town located on west coast of the North Island in
New Zealand, it has become one of New Zealand's most popular places to visit
and live.
Raglan's world famous breaks are found at 3 points: Manu Bay, Whale Bay and
The Indicators. This is the hottest surfing mecca in NZ, if not in this part of the
planet. Manu Bay (Waireke) is 8 kms from Raglan. This famous surf break, also
known as The Point, as it is said to have the longest left hand ride in the world.
Artwork is abundant in the cafes of Raglan and a must see is the Aqua Velvet.
Things to do in Raglan
: Tramping (hiking or bushwalking)
: Surfing
: Kite surfing
: Fishing and boating
: Kayaking
: Swimming
: Golfing. (Try not to hit the sheep!)
: Paragliding
: Mountain biking
: Sightseeing (by land or sky)
: Kite flying
: Blow carting
: Sky diving
http://www.raglan.net.nz/Images/street.jpg
http://irontraveler.net/Media/Images/Gallery/Raglan,%20New%20Zealand.jpg
http://www.dailystoke.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/09/raglan2.jpg
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