The only item on our agenda for our second day in Auckland was reunion with a family friend from Boise, Jason, who has lived in Auckland for the past 15 years. We had a couple of hours to kill in the morning before our lunch meetup, so we grabbed some coffee and wandered into Albert Park. Among some statues and monuments there were some impressive Ficus macrophylla trees. Love the hanging roots!
We caught up with Jason for lunch in the Auckland suburb of Titirangi, and after wandering the downtown a bit we drove to Mount Eden for a short walk to a lovely 360 degree views of Auckland. Mount Eden is one of many volcanic cones scattered around the Auckland area. Many were flattened during construction booms in the past but they are all protected sacred sites now.
Having earned a pint, we traveled down the hill to Churly’s, the home of Behemoth brewing. Jason and his wife are friends with the owners, a husband-wife team who are both equally impressive - the husband brews some excellent beer and the wife is a world-renowned butcher ((link?)). After sampling a few beers and some marvelous biltong (South African beef jerky - but don’t call it that!) we said farewell to Jason and headed back to our hotel.
We turned around quickly and dashed back to the docks to catch the ferry to Devonport for a short hike up the Devonport Head and dinner. Devonport is a small town just across the bay from the city, at the end of the long peninsula opposite Auckland. The short ride offered nice views of the city behind us as well as the active Port of Auckland.
We disembarked from the ferry and walked along the beaches towards North Head Historic Reserve. This grassy hill on the tip of the peninsula hosts old gun emplacements, barracks, and tunnels from its days as a strategic stronghold facing the bay. The setting sun impeded our views back towards the city, but we got a good look at Rangotito island, a large volcanic cone just off the coast.
After looping North Head we trekked back down to the main Devonport drag and sat for a quick Vietnamese dinner. One ferry ride later we were back at the hotel, tired after the 9 miles of walking. A good test for my still-healing ankle as we prepare for our long trek next week.