Motutara Farm and Homestead is located just 40 minutes from downtown Auckland. The region is in the Muriwai Valley, and just 7 minutes from Muriwai Beach. The farm’s history dates back to the 1880′s. The Homestead has been renovated, with an open plan, but retains the Colonial ambiance. The farmland is typical New Zealand pasture, parts with hills and parts flat. There’s an impressive view of the valley to be seen from the South West highground, and from behind the farm buildings there’s a good 240 degrees of uninterrupted horizon. A quaint stream (naturally vegetated) bisects most of the property. This is Okiritoto Stream (the same stream which flows out to Muriwai Beach).

There are numerous sheds and buildings dotted around the farm (all in close range to the Homestead). Tractor sheds are filled with typical farming equipment…(and old “junk” !!!). The farm woolshed was built in 1930 and is still in original condition supporting holding pens, 2 shearing stands (with Lister brand shearing plants), wool-bins and a manually-operated wool press (1950).

The farm carries 150 sheep and during lambing season (July – Dec), there are lambs (usually ones to bottle feed too). Many of these sheep are tame. There are also working dogs.

During a busy film shoot there is often the requirement for refreshments, so an on-site catering service is available. Donna is Food Handling Certified and has over 25 years experience in cooking for shearer’s, and 11 years experience catering for high-end Cruise Boat passengers. “All-day” tea /coffee, and finger food can be supplied for an extra charge if required.

PAST WORKS INCLUDE:

Mercy Peak (New Zealand Television series)

Japanese film promoting wine and local attractions

Kansai TV (OCEAPRO Production)

Italian Popular Magazine

“Design Your Lifestyle” Korean Magazine (like House and Garden Magazine)

Fashion shoot with Korean actress Miss Kim

New Zealand TV4 Heartland

Kiwibank New Zealander of the Year 2013 promotional photo shoot

Japan NHK Educational with actress Mika Hijii

Here is Dame Anne Salmond – Kiwibank New Zealander of the year 2013

Please contact us: info[at]coast2coastnz.com for any inquiries regarding using our property as a film location.

If you are disembarking from a Cruise Boat, or arrive in Auckland before Hotel check-in time, or have large bags that you don’t want to carry around with you for the day, what do you do with them???

There are very little luggage storing facilities in Auckland!

Hotel check-in time is usually 2pm (many Hotels will store your bags until this time), however, it does mean finding your way to your Hotel first to drop off your bags, before continuing on with your day!

The Britomart Rail Centre (Downtown) does have a few coin-operated lockers
…but there aren’t very many, so they will most likely be occupied anyhow!

33 SMALL lockers at $1 for the first hour, and 0.50c per hour (upto 18 hours)

12 LARGE lockers at $2 for the first hour, and $1 per hour (upto 13 hours)
Note: these prices may be subject to change!

Coast to Coast Tours can accommodate a few passengers with luggage.

Optional Airport transfer is available at NZD25 per person

Please contact us if you require your luggage to accompany you on your tour (as space will be limited!).

Nov 7 is WTM World Responsible Tourism Day for 2012.

Coast to Coast Tours has recently been selected as an approved official supporter of WTM World Responsible Tourism Day, and means we are also eligible to display the exclusive WTM World Responsible Tourism logo. From gaining this approval it acknowledges our tourism business is operating responsibly.

To celebrate WTM WRTD we have planted a New Zealand Native tree in our farm’s own Carbon Credit Reserves which is tagged number E07

Our tourism business is a “extension” to our every-day lives. Our philosophies are integral to our tourism business, as is our community where we bring our visitor’s to, for without these actions we feel we would not be operating responsibly.

Responsible tourism = Sustainable Tourism

It’s late November and we have just shorn our lambs.

Remember Naomi (black lamb) that was born this year? Well, here is a a video of her having her first hair-cut!

Even though our tours are small and personal, unlike other tour companies, we are NOT solely tour operators!

So why would this be of interest to you? Well, these days many travelers want to get closer to the people of the places they are visiting. Our tours provide this aspect of reality as we are able to share our “other-side-of-life” with you which is one of this country’s most famous icons; the New Zealand sheep farm! You’ll visit our farm and see inside our historic Homestead and enjoy [other] New Zealand icons on our “famous” Epicurean Tasting Platter for afternoon tea, while getting to learn what it’s like to also be a sheep farmer!

We LIVE at Muriwai…infact our family were its early pioneers!

But how will this add value to your tour? Well, today there are many Auckland tours that drive out from the city to “visit” Muriwai Beach. By seeing the Muriwai area with us as long time residents, you’ll get the fist-hand knowledge and also see historical photos back at our Homestead. So if you want to see Muriwai Beach and the gannet colony,
be sure to get the real McCoy…tour with the company that actually LIVES there!

Our family has lived and farmed in the Muriwai region since 1922.

Some Auckland tour companies belong to a Carbon Offset scheme and it’s highly likely that this offset fee will be passed down to you in the cost of your tour. However, Coast to Coast Tours is the only Auckland tour company with their own Carbon sink-tank Reserve on their own farm!
So, what does this mean for tourists on our tours? Well, to offset our tour emissions, we plant a tree for every tour we do. Our guests then become joint-custodians of the tree-of-the-day. It just makes sense that since we’ve “footprinted” in this area we “replace” in this area. It’s also special for our guests to be able to zoom-in on the Reserve areas via Google Earth and know “their” tree is fully protected on the farm they have visited by NZ Government Law!

Sustainable

We live and breathe LOCAL, and it’s the same with our tours.
So why should this be important to you? Well, to be able to give back to the west Auckland region where we draw our business from keeps our operation sustainable, and because we wish to remain sustainable, we solely operate in our home region. (-Proud finalists in the 2009 Hospitality Awards for Sustainability).

Even though you may not be a marathon runner, if you can step-up into our vehicle then you are welcome to join us!

Ah…FREE food is great! But don’t you want to know it has been prepared, cooked and stored correctly so it is safe to eat?

For our tours, I took it upon myself to become Food Handling Certified (even though there was no legal requirement for me to do so), and, as you also come into our home, you are able to see where the food was prepared.

This is our extra commitment to ensuring your safety, and we trust that you can appreciate our quality difference!

Sorry… there’s NO “Under 5 year-olds travel free if not occupying a seat” on our tours!

Operating this type of transportation is illegal. Passenger vehicles have a maximum number of passengers they are allowed to carry.
Thus, ALLpassengers (be they 1 day old or 110 years old) are required by Law to sit in a seat and wear a seat-belt (in vehicles that have seat-belts fitted). Really, in today’s vehicles, what vehicle doesn’t?  Why would you put your child’s safety at risk?

Coast to Coast Tours is REGISTERED with the Auckland Council to take tourists to Parks.

If you book with a tour company that advertises they visit Auckland Parks and Reserves but who is not registered, you are supporting an illegal operator!

Being sheep farmers as-well-as tour operators
makes for a very interesting life!

Here is our latest news post…(and you can keep even more up-to-date by following us on FACEBOOK)

LAMBS FOR 2012

Read our past news articles here..

Girlie Lamb

Our Orchard

2010 ‘Season’s Greetings (+ Fireworks video)

Epicurean Tasting Platter for Afternoon Tea

Wool-break in sheep

Tecomanthe speciosa

Rugby and 2011 – Important information!

2009 ‘Season’s Greetings’

Massey University Sustainability Conference ’09

Happy Birthday ‘Stevie’

Prime Minister John Key meets our Shore Excursion group

Finalists in Manaakitanga [Hospitality] Awards

#C09 Tree planted for Conservation Week 2009

‘BooBoo’ has her lambs

New Zealand baby lambs Spring 2009

Winter Food for Birds

Auckland Tours

Sad News

Auckland’s Best Attraction

The Fabulous FEIJOA fruit

Earth Hour 2009

I.Y.A 2009 – Night Sky Stars

2008 ‘Season’s Greetings’!

Crutching sheep

What a find!

Tamarillo Chutney time

Tornado tree

Spring is here!

Muriwai Blowhole: she was blowin’

Storm casualties

First orphan lamb (‘Penelope’)

Newborn lambs

Tornado hits our farm!

AUCKLAND TOURS (home)

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FAQ’s

• TOUR OPTIONS
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    • shore excursion availability
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  • Exclusive (PRIVATE) tours Auckland
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TOUR HIGHLIGHTS

• Waitakere Rainforest & Arataki Reserve
  • bush
  • Auckland’s two harbours
  • Coast
  • Weta insect
• Shopping for New Zealand crafts
• Lunch
• Afternoon tea Pavlova recipe
  • Tamarillo Chutney
  • Feijoa jelly
  • Afternoon tea enhancement
• Wine-tasting
• Honey-sampling at BeesOnline
• Muriwai Beach
  • Gannet colony
  • Muriwai beach blowhole
• Our mini bus
  • the Coast to Coast Tours logo

OUR FARM

• New Zealand sheep farm
  • woolshed
  • crutching sheep
  • newborn lambs
  • first orphan lamb (08 ‘Penelope’)
  • storm casualties
  • NZ baby lambs (Spring 2009)
  • ‘BooBoo’ has her lambs
  • Wool-break in sheep
  • NZ baby lambs (Spring 2011)
  • our orchard
  • Girlie lamb
• LATEST NEWS Auckland tours
  • tornado hits our farm
    • tornado tree down
  • Spring is here
  • Harakeke (‘Flax’)
  • Our Orchard
  • Night sky stars, Southern Cross constellation
  • Tecomanthe speciosa

ABOUT

• history
• mission statement
• our policies
• our credentials
  • Auckland’s best attraction
  • 2009 Hospitality Award finalists for Sustainability
• testimonials

OUR ANIMALS

• sheep
• birds
  • winter food for birds
  • Happy Birthday ‘Stevie’
• dogs
• cats
• sad news at Coast to Coast Tours

CONTACT US

• Season’s Greetings 2008
• Season’s Greetings 2009
• Season’s Greetings 2010
• 10% DISCOUNT
  

COSTS

CARBON CREDITS

• check your tree
  
• A01 – A10, A11 – A 20, A21 – A30, A31 – A40, A41 – A50, A51 – A60, A61 – A70, A71 – A80, A81 – A90, A91 – A100
• B01 – B10, B11 – B20, B21 – B30, B31 – B40, B41 – B50, B51 – B60, B61 – B70, B71 – B80, B81 – B90, B91 – B100
• C01 – C10, C11 – C20, C21 – C30, C31 – C40, C41 – C50, C51 – C60, C61 – C70, C71 – C80, C81 – C90, C91 – C100
• Earth Hour 28 March 2009
• #C09 tree planted for Conservation Week
• Massey University Sustainability Conference ’09
• TIES PDF – Coast to Coast Tours Native tree planting

USEFUL WEBSITES

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• Areas of Auckland
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THINGS TO DO

• Attractions & activities
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ECO-FRIENDLY

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ALL THINGS MAORI

• Information about Maori
• Matariki (Maori New Year)

ACCOMMODATION

• Auckland city hotels
• other Auckland accommodation

TOURISM SITES

• NZ Tourism information
• NZ ECO-tourism sites
• Auckland, NZ, & worldwide travel sites

AUCKLAND SHORE EXCURSION TOUR

Get your friends together…

we give a FREE TOUR to the “organiser” of 6+ person groups

JUMP TO TIMETABLE

“MINI” Shore Excursion tour option (11.30am – 3.30pm)

Pick-up very close to your boat …(-or Sky Tower)

REGULAR Shore Excursion tour option (9.15am – 4.15pm)

Pick-up very close to your boat …(-or ALL inner city accommodations)

Our Shore Excursion tours are geared to have our Cruise Boat passengers back to their boat well within departure time.
But…you don’t have to be a Cruise Boat passenger to book our Shore Excursion tours!

Please be aware though
[- that if required-]
we will be returning to Auckland early on cruise boat days

We do limit these tours to a maximum of 24 persons, and depending on numbers
LUNCH on our “regular” Shore Excursion Tour is either at a local restaurant
-OR- is a (New Zealand) light lunch at our farm…both include a wine/beer!

Please note: On the “mini” Shore Excursion option there is NO Lunch
only the the Tasting Platter is included.

LUNCH at our Homestead for our Ultimate tour and Auckland tour is the “Kiwiana-themed” BBQ Bookings essential

Payment is at the END of the tour…
(NZ$ preferred), but yes! we can take $US…(exchange rates worked out on the day).

…and don’t forget we give a 10% DISCOUNT for CASH !!

Cruise Boat passengers…please rest assured,
at NO TIME are you any more than 40 minutes from Auckland.
…We’ve never had a missed return in over 10 years we have been operating, BUT…
“”IF”" a worst scenario happens we can easily get transport to take you back to your ship.

>>>> We GUARANTEE to get you back on time!! <<<<

Want to make your Shore Excursion PRIVATE ??
…check-out our Auckland Private Tours website!

>>> Remember <<<

to GUARANTEE availability

we advise you to

!!! >>> BOOK EARLY <<< !!!

Find our costs page HERE

Like to make this tour PRIVATE?? visit our Auckland Private Tours website

HOME :: GO TO FAQ’s :: LATEST NEWS :: What’s an ECO-TOUR?

Ultimate Auckland tour :: Auckland tour :: Shore excursions :: MINI tour :: Private tours :: Wine tours :: Conference groups

AVAILABILITY TIMETABLE:

UNLESS YOU ARE NOT OFF A CRUISE BOAT
and/or BOOK US PRIVATELY
THE FOLLOWING TIMETABLE WILL APPLY ON THESE DATES:

 >>> Depending on availability…
we may be able to TAKE YOU (with luggage)TO THE AIRPORT after YOUR CRUISE

Airport Transfer fee is NZD25 per person

Get your friends together…

we give a FREE TOUR to the “organiser” of 6+ person groups

#### OCT ####2013

11….Boat sails at 6pm….SHORE EXCURSION or MINI TOUR options only

19….Boat sails at 8pm….ANY tour option available

20….Boat sails at 6pm….SHORE EXCURSION or MINI TOUR options only

#### NOV ####2013

2….Boat sails at 6pm….SHORE EXCURSION or MINI TOUR options only

9….Boat sails at 5pm….MINI TOUR option only

10….Boat sails at 6pm….SHORE EXCURSION or MINI TOUR options only

11….Boat sails at 6pm….SHORE EXCURSION or MINI TOUR options only

12….Boat sails at 6pm….SHORE EXCURSION or MINI TOUR options only

16….Boat sails at 8pm….ANY tour option available

17….Boat sails at 8pm….ANY tour option available

23….Boat sails at 9pm….ANY tour option available

25….Boat sails at 6pm….SHORE EXCURSION or MINI TOUR options only

26….Boat sails at 10pm….ANY tour option available

#### DEC ####2013

1….Boat over-nighting sails at 1pm on Dec 2…ANY tour option available on Dec 1 only

6….2 boats in port, ….ANY tour option available

7….Boat sails at 6pm….SHORE EXCURSION or MINI TOUR options only

8….Boat sails at 6pm….SHORE EXCURSION or MINI TOUR options only

10….Boat sails at 8pm….ANY tour option available

18….Boat sails at 6pm….SHORE EXCURSION or MINI TOUR options only

20….Boat sails at 5pm….MINI TOUR option only

21….Boat sails at 6pm….SHORE EXCURSION or MINI TOUR options only

23….Boat sails at 6pm….SHORE EXCURSION or MINI TOUR options only

26….CLOSED

31….CLOSED

 #### JAN ####2014

2….CLOSED

3….Boat sails at 8pm….ANY tour option available

4….Boat sails at 7pm….SHORE EXCURSION or MINI TOUR options only

7….Boat sails at 6pm….SHORE EXCURSION or MINI TOUR options only

10….Boat sails at 6pm….SHORE EXCURSION or MINI TOUR options only

12….Boat sails at 6pm….SHORE EXCURSION or MINI TOUR options only

16….2 boats in port, both sail at 6pm….SHORE EXCURSION or MINI TOUR options only

17….Boat sails at 6pm….SHORE EXCURSION or MINI TOUR options only

19….Boat sails at 4pm….MINI TOUR options only

27….2 boats in port, as 1 sails at 7pm… SHORE EXCURSION or MINI TOUR options only

29….Boat sails at 6pm….SHORE EXCURSION or MINI TOUR options only

31….Boat sails at 6pm….SHORE EXCURSION or MINI TOUR options only

#### FEB ####2014

1……Boat sails at midnight….ANY tour option available

…………….2 …ULTIMATE TOUR (Large group…only a few spaces available)

3…….Boat sails at 8pm….ANY tour option available

9….2 boats in port, as 1 sails at 6pm… SHORE EXCURSION or MINI TOUR options only

11….2 boats in port, as 1 sails at 6pm… SHORE EXCURSION or MINI TOUR options only

12….3 boats in port, as 1 sails at 5pm… MINI TOUR options only …(1 boat is over-nighting)

13…Boat sails at 6pm… SHORE EXCURSION or MINI TOUR options only

16…..2 boats in port, 1 sails at 6pm… SHORE EXCURSION or MINI TOUR options only

19…..Boat sails at 10pm….ANY tour option available

21….Boat sails at 8pm….ANY tour option available

23….2 boats in port, as 1 sails at 6pm… SHORE EXCURSION or MINI TOUR options only

25….Boat sails at 6pm….SHORE EXCURSION or MINI TOUR options only

26….Boat sails at 4pm….MINI TOUR option only

27….Boat sails at 4pm….MINI TOUR option only

#### MAR ####2014

2……Boat sails at 5pm….MINI TOUR options only

3….Boat sails at 6pm….SHORE EXCURSION or MINI TOUR optionsonly

7……3 boats in port, ….ANY tour option available…(1 boat is over-nighting)

8…..Boat over-nighting sails at 6pm SHORE EXCURSION or MINI TOUR options only

10….Boat over-nighting sails at 6pm SHORE EXCURSION or MINI TOUR options only

11….Boat sails at 6pm….SHORE EXCURSION or MINI TOUR options only

12….Boat sails at 7pm….SHORE EXCURSION or MINI TOUR options only

13….2 boats in port, as 1 sails at 6pm… SHORE EXCURSION or MINI TOUR options only

17….Boat over-nighting sails at 6pm SHORE EXCURSION or MINI TOUR options only

20….Boat sails at 8pm….ANY tour option available

21….Boat sails at 6pm….SHORE EXCURSION or MINI TOUR options only

22….Boat sails at 8pm….ANY tour option available

23….Boat sails at 6pm….SHORE EXCURSION or MINI TOUR options only

26….Boat sails at 6pm…SHORE EXCURSION or MINI TOUR options only

28….Boat sails at 6pm…SHORE EXCURSION or MINI TOUR options only

#### APR ####2014

2….Boat sails at 8pm….ANY tour option available

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LAMBS ARE HERE for 2012

It’s August, and our sheep are having their babies! Despite the very wet weather, lambing season here at Auckland’s Coast to Coast Tours sheep farm is going fairly well. This year, we are seeing quite a bit of black-colouring coming through into our lambs…
Check-out these cuties!

True, they are cute (an I love black sheep!), but did you know, black wool is a big “NO-NO” on a wool-producing sheep farm like ours!

That being so, people are asking; “Where does the black-colouring come from?”

You see, originally (back in time), sheep were BLACK [which was the dominant gene].
Man has selectively-bred the white sheep (for the wool industry), but the black gene is still forever present in the white sheep. Black wool often appears as a freckle or patch, and every-so-often a full black lamb is born.

We are going to have to be extremely careful at shearing times, so as not to “contaminate” our white wool with any black wool fibres!
(Imagine white wool being made into a light coloured product, and fibres from black wool get mixed in
…the product will be rejected!).

Meet “Princess Lambina” (Oh, what a name!!),

  but such a wee thing that was on death’s door
and had to be fed via a tube for 2 days, is deserving of a little status!!!
She’s growing very nicely now, and has teamed-up with “Herc”, (a super-giant lamb …same age!!)
we have been nursing as well.

Currently, (and this could likely increase!) we have 18 lambs on-the-bottle… (Yes…this is now 22 )
With us needing to bottle-feed them (at least) 4 times a day, this is keeping us rather busy!!!

Why have we accumulated so many lambs this year?

• The weather has been good (so none have died),
• We are not “over-stocking” (carrying too many sheep on the land),
• The sheep are in very good condition, (there is plenty of food),
• Some mothers are having triplets, and can only cope with 2…(sheep only have two nipples on their udder).

 >>> BACK TO LATEST NEWS PAGE <<<

RELATED POSTS:

 New Zealand Sheep Farm    Our woolshed

Our fruit trees have blossomed, and the fruit has started to “set”, so I made this little video to show you some of the things that are going on…

Check-out our  RECIPES for the  things shown in this video.

…and there’s more info on the FEIJOA

MARCH 2012 We had a bumper crop of peaches!!

Every pot and available element was in action while we preserved these fruits (this took us 2 days!!).

BACK TO LATEST NEWS POSTS

RELATED POSTS:

Spring is here

Many of you will remember ‘Girlie’ (one of Penelope’s lambs) born 15 Aug 2011. She was sooo tiny, and required a lot of care and attention. She [had to] accompany us on a Presentation into Tourism Auckland a couple of days after she was born as she needed to be fed while we would have been away.
Dressed in a baby’s nappy (yes!!), she got nursed and cuddled by many Tourism Auckland staff, who today, still talk and ask how Girlie is doing!!

Here is the video of Girlie being shorn…

Here is the birth of Girlie…(her mother was Penelope)

get more info & pictures on the weta HERE

Read what New Zealand Herald says about latest Giant Weta find…

and here’s another blog about this story (recommended!)

Other posts of interest:
- WOOL-BREAK in SHEEP

- ‘STEVIE’ our (18yo) BLIND Magpie

- Our historic SHEEP FARM (from 1922) has great info & sheep shearing video!

…and other Real-time video ‘snippets’ from our everyday lives!!

What a find!

I wanted to use some wooden boards the other day (which were stored under some trees). I had used these boards before and found a weta in them on that previous occasion, so I was ‘cautious’ (mainly because I am scared of creepy-crawly things!!). To my astonishment I found an entire population ….11 in total!!

The Maori call the weta wetapunga [translated this means "a God of ugly things"], and the word weta is only a New Zealand word.

The giant weta is a flightless grasshopper and its species name Deinacrida, literally means Demon Grasshopper. It is one of New Zealand’s few protected insects. Giant wetas can grow over 50mm long and weigh as much as 25grams.

The ones shown below are NOT the GIANT weta, but ones typically found in the common NZ garden environment.

Although it looks fearsome, they are actually quite docile…but they can give you a very hard bite from clamping jaws! I wore gloves when I plucked them off the wood, but the female dug her jaws in strongly. I replaced the wetas back into the area where they had come from so they could find another piece of board to reside in. If you see a weta while you are traveling around New Zealand, please respect and care for this insect. If it is on a pathway and likely to get trampled upon, just pick up a stick and flick the weta into a safer region. (They can also jump, so use a long stick!!). Their diet is largely vegetarian, and they lead a solitary, nocturnal life, spending the day hidden inside hollow logs or under large rocks.

Here, you can see a weta’s ears…(the white ovals, located on the front legs).

LATEST GIANT WETA FIND MAKES WORLD NEWS…

But read what the NZ Herald says about this find!!!

and here’s another blog about this story (recommended)

Here’s a video as we hunt for the NZ tree/bush weta!

And…take a look at Janet Andrew’s stunning artworks (there’s one of a weta!) http://www.southlight.co.nz/WildThings/ These artworks are available for sale ($3,250 for an original framed painting, $100 for A3 prints). Half the proceeds of the painting sales will be donated to the New Zealand Forest & Bird Society. Contact Janet on +6421 164 2655, or Janet@southlight.co.nz

Peter Jackson, the film Director of the ‘Lord of the Rings’ and ‘King Kong’, calls his company ‘WETA productions’. During the filming of King Kong, he magnified a weta and used it in a scene where a giant insect attacks some people. It was very impressive as it gave you a close-up view of this awesome insect.

On a recent vacation in New Zealand, we visited an Art Exhibition in Kohukohu, Hokianga, Northland. Here was a most impressive wood carving by artist Allan Gale. We knew we just HAD to have a piece of his artwork, and now we are the proud new owners of “Wetapunga”

• PAVLOVA RECIPE

• TAMARILLO CHUTNEY RECIPE

• FEIJOA JELLY RECIPE

‘Coast to Coast Tours’ recipe for mini PAVLOVAS

INGREDIENTS: 2 Egg Whites. A pinch of salt. Vanilla essence (about 1tsp). White sugar (almost 1cup).

UTENSILS: A clean bowl. A cup (I use a white one because it will show-up any yolk that may have gone in by mistake). A measuring cup. An egg-separator. A spoon. A spatula (scraper). An electric egg-beater.

AND, your baking tray, lined with non-stick paper (or silicon sheet).

Using the egg-separator, separate the yolk from the white (taking care not to get any yellow into the whites, as this will prevent them from beating)

Whip/beat the egg whites and salt using an electric egg beater,

until the mixture is stiff and no large air bubbles remain. (About 1-2 minutes). Then SLOWLY add in small amounts of the sugar, beating all the time. (Another 2 minutes)

Add in 1 tsp. Vanilla Essence with the last amount of sugar

– this mixture will start to turn glossy.

Spoon small sized amounts onto a baking tray that has been lined with NON-STICK baking paper. (Do not attempt to make meringues without this paper (or silicon sheet), as they WILL stick!)

Bake in the oven for 10 mins at 150 C then turn heat down to 110 C for a further 60 mins. The pavlovas will rise and turn a very pale golden colour. *Oven temperatures and times may vary!

At the end of cooking, turn off the heat, and leave the pavlovas in the oven.
DO NOT OPEN THE DOOR for at least another 60 mins.

(They must ‘cool-down’ and must NOT be warm when you put whipped cream on them.)
USE Double cream, that has been “whipped” / beaten with an egg beater.
TO STORE: Put in an air-tight container, OR, they can be frozen! (Put in a strong box for protection).
These are a great dessert to make ahead-of-time.

Enjoy your Pavlova’s for a special dessert! …try to use sour fruits to give contrast to the sweetness.

AND NOW, my mini Pavlovas comes as part of our new Epicurean Afternoon Tea tasting platter!

TIP: what to do with left-over egg yolks???

…Seal them in a container of water and put in the fridge. These will last for 48 hours!

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‘Coast to Coast Tours’ recipe for TAMARILLO CHUTNEY

INGREDIENTS:

1Kg Brown Sugar, 1T mixed spice, 1D salt, Large pinch of cayenne pepper, 600 ml malt vinegar

24 tamarillos – these need to be skinned, and the best way to do this is to place into a large bowl and pour boiling water over them. Wait for a few minutes, then start peeling. This is a bit of a messy job, and your hands may get stained slightly brown…but it’s not too bad!

600g granny smith apples ['green/cooking' apples]

600g brown onions

Apples, onions, and tamarillos all get finely minced.

Put ALL ingredients into a large ‘preserving’ pan.

Mix everything very well, bring to the boil then cook on a low-med heat. (Do not boil ‘hard’ as the mixture will burn, you just need a gentle movement of heat). Cook for 3-4 hours, stirring very frequently! [at the start of cooking, this mixture is a RED colour but changes to a brown colour during cooking]

1 hour into cooking…see the mixture is thickening and has turned slightly brown

and now after 3-4 hours…no ‘liquid’ seeping through the slots of the spoon

Sterilise medium sized-jars by baking in the oven (180C for 20 minutes)

Bottle the mixture. Both the mixture and the jars need to be reasonably hot.

Seal with the screw-top lid….and now the hard part is to store it (for at least a month) to mature!!
you can eat it straight away, but the flavour certainly improves with age

SERVING SUGGESTION: we use our tamarillo chutney on cold-cuts of meat, but our favourite is on BBQ lamb,
so if your group has lunch at our Homestead, I will serve this chutney.

AND NOW, my Tamarillo Chutney comes as part of our new Epicurean Afternoon Tea tasting platter!

TOP

‘Coast to Coast Tours’ recipe for FEIJOA JELLY

Cut up the washed fruits and put into a large pan. Add just enough water to barely cover the fruit.

Cook until very soft. Strain, but do NOT squeeze!

Re-strain this juice using a fine sieve. Measure (in cups), how much juice there is.

Bring this liquid back to the boil

Add 1 cup of sugar to each cup of juice you have and the juice of a large lemon (to assist setting)

Keep stirring while this is simmering It produces a lot of ‘scum’

but just keep removing this periodically. Keep testing for setting (by placing a little bit of the jelly into the fridge).

Cool slightly and pour into small-sized sterilised jars and seal.

AND NOW, my Feijoa Jelly comes as part of our new Epicurean Afternoon Tea tasting platter!

TOP

This year, 2011, Matariki will be 4 June – 4 July

It is when the star cluster known as “The Pleiades” (or M45), rises in the north-east. The precise date also depends on the moon, (i.e. the next new moon after the appearance Matariki), which is why Matariki does not have a fixed date.? 

Traditionally, it is a time of celebration; a time to prepare for the year ahead, and a time to reflect and learn from the past. It is a time for sharing and being with family.
Since it is the time when all crops have been harvested, it was an important signal to the M?ori people that they needed to be prepared with sufficient preserved food stocks to last them through to the next harvest.

Matariki was also a time of ceremonial offering to the land gods Rongo (the god of cultivated food, especially the k?mara [sweet potato], which was a staple food for Maori), and Uenuku (the god of rainbows),  in the hope of a good harvest in the year to come.

Today, the tradition of Matariki continues and is very much alive!
Concerts, festivals, exhibitions, and cultural displays are among the many events that take place throughout New Zealand during the celebration of Matariki. Some of the performances in Auckland can be found on the Matariki Festival website.

NZ Post is celebrating with a special stamp release. “Hei Matau”, or fish hook.

…and what’s ‘Peanut’ (our new rabbit) upto???

Here are some Frequently Asked Questions.

Have we have covered yours?…if not PLEASE send us an inquiry.

Get your friends together…

we give a FREE TOUR to the “organiser” of 6+ person groups

# Do you operate every day?
- ULTIMATE TOUR: (operates 1 Oct – 30 April) and AUCKLAND TOURS (operates all-year-round) Everyday except; Dec 24, 25, 26, Jan 1, 2, Good Friday, and April 25. There MAY be other days during the year when we have to close to attend to our farm work…(so a quick email to us is all that is needed to find this out)

# How many people will there be on these day trips?
- Our tours are normally small group (our regular Auckland tour is no more than 11 persons) and probably between 4 and 8. This way, you will get personal service! If you require EXCLUSIVE tour, please refer to our ‘Exclusive Experiences’ option. If you require LARGE GROUP tour, please refer to our ‘Group Tours’ option

#I’m not in New Zealand yet, can I still make a tour booking?
- YES, please email us to make an inquiry.

#I get a bit car-sick, will there be plenty of stops during this Auckland day tour?
- YES, this is what makes us so appealing! We stop at least 7 times during the trip…and you don’t have to get out of the vehicle if you don’t wish to either! (There are also toilet facilities at each stop.) We are understanding, and always drive accordingly.

# Is there a lot of walking on this tour?
- NO, the only ‘walk’ [...and this is a stroll...]  is out to the sea-bird colony…and then you don’t have to do this if you don’t want to.

#Could this sightseeing tour be affected by the weather?
- Hmm…if only we could control the weather!! We carry coats, and there are boots to wear when we do our farm activities. Most of the outdoor activity is when you arrive at our farm, and if you cannot get outside to see the animals…well, we will bring some of the animals to see you! If you are in New Zealand for a few days, please check the long-range weather forecast…(it’s usually fairly accurate!)

#We’re staying outside your free pick-up zone, can you still pick us up?
- We are really sorry, but you will have to make your way into the City. The reason for this is because of time; -as others need to be picked-up in the morning. (…But DO ask us, because if you are just outside the pick-up zone then we MAY be able to drop you offafter the tour!)

#Where do your day trips leave from?
- We pick-up from ALLinner Auckland city accommodation. The Sky Tower (Hotel part), Ferry Buildings, or Britomart railway are other places for people staying ‘out-of-the-city’ to meet us at. Your pick-up location can be easily arranged at booking time.

#Are there any extra costs on this tour?
- NO!…this is an ALL-inclusive day tour. All entry fees, lunch, wine & honey tasting, afternoon tea, transport, is INCLUDED. Your only costs come from what you choose to buy during the tour. Please note that you will have opportunity to shop on this tour, but in no way will you be pressured into doing so. (We receive absolutely no commissions or payments for taking you to the places we stop at).

# What is this Carbon Credit Native Tree planting, and do I HAVE to participate?
-WE plant a Native tree for every tour we do, and a numbered tag is designated for each tree. This tree then becomes ‘tree-of-the-day’ which our guests become joint custodians of. We also have trees available if anyone wishes to purchase an individual tree, but this tree planting is entirely over to you, and if you do not wish to participate in it, no pressure will be put on you to do so.

# What is the cost of these tours?
- Firstly, we want you to get value for your $. We have had positive feedback relating to this. But, please compareour itinerary and price with other Auckland tours…(bearing in-mind that they may or may not include lunch, and may only take you to one or two places during the to). Also, to our knowledge ‘Coast to Coast Tours’ is the only tour company in the Auckland area where you will visit the operator’s own farm, come inside their home for afternoon tea, and have the opportunity to plant your own carbon credit Native tree to make your tour carbon neutral. Please refer to our COSTS page for a full breakdown on our prices. For individuals, we do not take deposits, nor sting you with a cancellation fee or re-scheduling fee!! We give 10 % discount for direct bookings (via email or telephone) where payment is in CASH [paid at the end of the tour]. We accept Visa/Mcard…but sorry no discount for payment via this method. We do NOT accept American Express.

#Can you provide an in-depth wine tasting tour?
-Our ‘Coast to Coast’ wine tasting tour combines Auckland sightseeing, and an historical overview of Auckland’s original wine producing region of Kumeu. Although we’d love to have you join us on one of our Auckland tours, if you are a wine connoisseur and want expert guiding in wine tasting, we do suggest other Auckland wine tours.

#Can you provide multi-day tours?
-We are really sorry, but our tours are ONE day tours only. There are a few excellent Auckland NZ tours available, with many companies travelling to other regions on an Auckland bus tour. Alternatively, there is the Auckland Rotorua Tour, or other Auckland coach tours which can take you on multi-day tours.

Please refer to our COSTS page for a full breakdown on our prices.

You get 10% DISCOUNT off our AUCKLAND TOURS

for DIRECT bookings and when you pay in CASH (at the end of the tour)

- LUNCH on our Auckland tours

# Is lunch included in the tour price?
-YES, lunch is included on ALL of our tours.

# What kind of food is available?
- We stop at an upmarket cafe that serves a variety of NZ-european style foods. The choice is entirely upto you.

# Can I have an alcoholic beverage with my meal?
- YES, a glass of wine, beer, juice, soft-drink, tea OR coffee is included with the lunch. However on our Exclusive tours lunch beverages are at your own expense.

# Can you cater for my dietary/religious requirements?
-YES, if you discuss this with us at time of booking, we will do our best to accommodate your requirements.

# Are children’s meals available?
- YES, (but we ask that you pay the cost of the lunch for your under 5 year olds. Lunch for children over 5 years is included)

# What is the ‘Kiwiana-themed’ lunch?
- This is a themed lunch which includes a lamb BBQ, and is held at our farm Homestead. It is for group tours; (minimum 16 and maximum 24 persons). Prior bookings for this are essential.

You get 10% DISCOUNT off our AUCKLAND TOURS

for DIRECT bookings and when you pay in CASH (at the end of the tour)

- Shopping at the CRAFT MARKET

# Will I be pressured into buying items from this shop?
- Certainly not!! The only reason we stop at ‘CraftWorld’ is because the items sold there have been made in New Zealand. We do not receive any commission or other incentive for bringing visitors to this store. (You don’t even have to go into ‘CraftWorld’ if you don’t wish to).

# What kind of crafts are there at this market?
- ‘CraftWorld’ has hundreds of different booths, each containing a different NZ crafter’s wares. Anything (and everything!) from NZ greenstone (pounamu), knitting, woodwork, quilting, carving, jewelry, pottery, paintings, ceramics…to name but a few.

# Have these crafts been made in New Zealand?
-YES, this is the reason why we favour this shop.

# Will these crafts be any cheaper than the souvenir shops in Auckland city?
- In some instances yes. However, many of these products are ‘one-offs’ and are not mass produced. Most of these items are unavailable in regular souvenir shops anyway.

# Oh! I saw an item I liked but my size/colour wasn’t there for me to buy on the day, what should I do?
-Talk to one of the sales assistants and place an order. Leave your contact details with us also.

# Are there any more places where we can buy other products on this tour?
-Absolutely! There will be items for you to purchase at just about every stop; (Arataki Information Centre, wine, and honey.) We even have a few products for sale at our Homestead (some of these include; lanolin skin care, our Carbon Credit Native trees, and the irresistible manuka honey candy which you will sample!)

#I’m not really interested in crafts, are there any other shops to look at instead?
-YES, within a few metres there is ‘Farmer’s’ (a department store), ‘No.1 Shoe Warehouse’ (a bargain shoe shop), ‘The Warehouse’ (a bargain department store), ‘JB HiFi’ (an appliance shop), ‘Noel Leeming’ (another appliance shop), ‘Starbucks Coffee’. (…and complimentary tea/coffee is also available inside the ‘CraftWorld’ store, along with toilet facilities). Plus, there’s even a Pet Shop close-by !!

# If I buy any products on this tour, will they be safe if I leave them in the vehicle?
- Most certainly! We have a lockable compartment in our van, and we always lock the vehicle if it is unattended.

You get 10% DISCOUNT off our AUCKLAND TOURS

for DIRECT bookings and when you pay in CASH (at the end of the tour)

- Auckland WINE TASTING

# What winery will we be visiting?
- We usually go to the Nobilo and/or Matua winery because we have had a long affiliation with them. We feel that they give our visitors the best service, (AND…their wine is pretty good too!!)

# Can we purchase wine from these wineries?
- Most definitely! Not only can you sample a huge variety, these are also available for you to buy.

# Would there be enough space in your vehicle if I bought several bottles?
- Certainly. The staff at the winery will also package it for you!

You get 10% DISCOUNT off our AUCKLAND TOURS

for DIRECT bookings and when you pay in CASH (at the end of the tour)

- BEESONLINE (Honey-tasting)

# Do I have to pay to taste the honey at BeesOnline?
- NO!, this is INCLUDED on your tour.

PLEASE NOTE: As from Feb 1 2011 ‘BeesOnline’ will be closed every Monday + Tuesday. (We can have an alternative honey-tasting if required)……..sorry! but this situation is beyond our control!!

# What kind of honey products are available here?
- Almost everything! (check out the BeesOnline website)

# If I purchase honey, can I take it back into my home country?
- Most countries are fine, but the staff at BeesOnline are best to answer this, as some regions have regulations. We do have a Customs Document though, which we will issue to you if you forget to pick one up with your purchase.

Real-time ‘snippets’ from our everyday lives!!

Here is a  wool baling demonstration…

Here’s the 2011 New Year’s eve fireworks at the Auckland Harbour

RELATED POSTS for extra information: Season’s Greetings 2010

Here is a sheep shearing demonstration…

RELATED POSTS for extra information: Crutching sheep ::  Woolshed ::  NZ Sheep farm

Here are our sheep dogs ‘Dawn’ and ‘Roi-Roi’ rounding up sheep to go into the pens…

RELATED POSTS for extra information: our dogs

Here is Stevie Magpie with a cicada…

RELATED POSTS for extra information: our animals

This shows a paraglider at Muriwai Beach…

RELATED POSTS for extra information: Auckland’s two harbours

Here we are gathering firewood from our farm…

Here is Stevie Magpie coughing-up a ‘pellet’

RELATED POSTS for extra information: our animals

This shows you the drought conditions in many regions during the summer months…

Here’s the 2010 New Year’s eve fireworks at the Auckland Sky Tower…

RELATED POSTS for extra information: Season’s Greetings 2009

These are ‘BooBoo’s’ lambs…

This is the lower part of our Forest Reserve where we plant people’s trees…

RELATED POSTS for extra information: bush ::  carbon credits

This is ‘Stevie’ our blind pet Magpie as she sings the Television One Network news jingle…

RELATED POSTS for extra information:  our animals

This is ‘Kingston’ our male King parrot…

This is ‘Queenie’ our female King parrot…

This is feeding our lambs…

RELATED POSTS for extra information:  ‘Penelope’ orphan lamb ::  storm casualties ::  newborn lambs

Here is ‘Midget’ -one of 2009′s pet lambs…

Here’s what we do to feed baby lambs…

SEE OUR RELATED POSTS

The New Zealand sheep farm

‘BooBoo’ has her lambs

’09 baby lambs

’08 baby lambs

baby lambs storm casualties

‘Penelope’

our woolshed

crutching sheep

]]> http://www.coast2coastnz.com/?feed=rss2&p=2901 0 http://www.coast2coastnz.com/?p=3302 http://www.coast2coastnz.com/?p=3302#comments Wed, 03 Nov 2010 11:05:50 +0000 Donna Hamilton http://www.coast2coastnz.com/?p=3302 With the Harakeke thrusting forth their new flowers, it is fitting to do a brief post about this missed-named plant.

Actually a lily, (of the Phormium family), this plant is one of New Zealand’s oldest species. Named Harakeke by the Maori, it was called ‘flax’ by the early European explorers because the plant has fibers very similar to ‘true’ flax plants of the world.

Harakeke was used extensively by Maori for weaving (raranga) such things as mats, baskets (kete), fishing nets (kupenga), bird traps and clothing, to name but a few. It is no wonder that this plant is  a taonga (treasure) and traditionally strict protocols (tikanga) were followed when harvesting the leaves.

Before harvesting, a special prayer (karakia) is recited to give thanks to the Harakeke, the surrounding area, and life (Mauri) in general. Picking is only carried out on fine days, and during the hours of daylight. Picking (or rather cutting), is a clean-cut at an angle close to the base of the plant. (See picture). The plants are also likened to whanau (family) and only the outer, older ones – the ancestors (tupuna) are picked. The next leaves – the parents (matua) and the most inner leaves – the baby (pepe) remain. (See picture).

When it comes to weaving and making an item, again strict protocols are observed. Menstruating or pregnant women are not allowed to cut or weave the Harakeke, children were not to touch or step over the leaves, nor is any food placed around the working area. Sacred songs (waiata) and proverbs (whakatauki) are recited while working.

For a novice weaver, the first completed article is always given away.

Harakeke was also used as a medicine. Its sticky gum and root juice was used on sores and wounds. The nectar from the flowers was used as a sweetener.

Harakeke is a wonderful plant to help against soil erosion. The plants love the wild conditions of the New Zealand coastline and the nectar and pollen from the flowers is a great source of food for many native birds. Harakeke produce heaps of seeds which are dispersed when the seed pods dry and crack open. These sprout very easily where ever they fall.

I have only given a brief overview on this plant, but there is a lot of information available.

Harakeke is often used to create decorations, and one of the first items a new weaver learns how to make is a simple flower (putiputi).

Here is a video where I demonstrate how to make one!

…It sure doesn’t look very nice, does it?

This loss of wool is called “wool-break” and it is a natural response
to a stress situation the sheep has recently encountered.

I went to vist our good friends Eric & Vicky (who graze some of our sheep on their farm) because one of the sheep was losing its wool. Vicky recalls the sheep had gotten its head stuck in a fence about 2 months ago. A situation like this is a probable cause of wool-break.

We are often asked; “What happens if you don’t shear a sheep?”, well a wool-break could happen, depending on how “stressed” the sheep would be from not having its wool removed. Not all sheep will do so, but it does show a stress factor was the cause. Ideally, a sheep with wool-break should be shorn as soon as possible (since it wants to shed its fleece any how!). This wool is not used as it has been damaged (within the fibre).

As wool-break does not happen very often, I jumped at the opportunity to share these photos on our website. (And thank you Eric for such great pictures!)

This year seems to have gone ever so fast…probably because we were overseas, escaping 5 weeks of our winter months, enjoying a full-on trip to Hong Kong, London, Paris, Holland, Athens and Mykonos. Not only did we catch up with family and friends, but we were also able to engage in being  “the tourist” for this time. This is important to experience when one is in the business of Tourism so as to keep in-touch with both sides of the coin. We observed some excellent features which we are incorporating into our own business.

Our tours remain steady, still having most of our visitors from overseas. It is worth noting, that we are one of the few Auckland-based tour companies that are still able to operate their tours inside of the Auckland region.

-just 40 minutes from downtown Auckland!

New Zealand is known to have a lot of sheep…– approximately 10 sheep to every person!

Although our farm was originally a diary farm (from 1922), it has been a working sheep farm since 1940 due to the change in climate conditions. Over the years, we have subdivided quite a few times, and today, we have around 250  sheep on 47 acres (19ha) of land.

See this video of sheep shearing:

Our farm would be considered very small if compared with other sheep farms in New Zealand (which on average would be thousands of acres, carrying several thousand sheep!!), however, since our farm is situated just 40 minutes from downtown Auckland it is quite unique to still find a working sheep farm just minutes away from New Zealand’s largest city.

On our farm, we only do our shearing once per year, in early January (although you can shear a sheep 2 times a year; in January and June). There are also about 3 times per year when we have to do a “tidy-up” of around the sheep’s bottom area…called CRUTCHING.

When all of the wool is cut off the sheep, -a term called shearing,

we get a professional man to do the shearing, -he is called a shearer.
He is paid by the number of sheep he shears, (about $2.40 per sheep)

The wool from a sheep is called -a fleece.

We put about 60 fleeces into a big bag and machine press them into -a bale. One bale weighs 400lbs (180kg)

We send the wool to auction, under our own wool brand name; ‘Motutara’

See this video of sheep shearing and how we BALE the wool:

The first sheep to New Zealand came from England and were transported (by boat) by Captain Cook in 1773.

About 60% of the sheep in New Zealand are the ‘Romney‘ sheep breed, and this is the type of sheep that we have on our New Zealand sheep farm. This is a good all-round breed, good for both meat and wool production, although the Romney wool is not usually used for clothing manufacture as the wool is too coarse. Most of this wool goes to China to be spun into carpet yarn. The yarn then comes back to New Zealand where it is woven into carpets.

Romney sheep on the Coast to Coast Tours farm

Wool that is good for clothing is from the ‘Merino‘ breed of sheep. This wool is very soft and fine, in fact one single fibre from the Merino sheep is thinner than a human hair! This breed of sheep lives best on dry ground; (wet soil give these sheep very sore feet, like Athlete’s foot, and the sheep get sick), so they are usually found on South Island farms in New Zealand. You would also find these sheep in Australia.

When you come on our Auckland Eco-tour, you will also be visiting our working sheep farm. We will show you inside our woolshed (built in 1930), where we have a wool display. You will also be able to feed and touch friendly sheep, and from August to January you will be able to bottle-feed lambs.

We will show you the special oil that is in the sheep’s wool. This oil is called lanolin and is extracted from the wool when the wool is washed, a term called scouring. This lanolin is sold to pharmaceutical companies where it is manufactured into beauty cremes and ointments. This oil is extremely good for our skin, and research has shown it to be very beneficial for people with sore skin who have diabetes.

We give samples from the Merino skin care, and you can also purchase these products while at our farm.

We have many other animals for you to see and touch on our tour,
or you may like to experience our other tour options.

…The Coast to Coast AUCKLAND TOURS

are highly rated on

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on a NEW ZEALAND SHEEP FARM

The term “crutching” means to shear the wool off around the sheep’s bottom area. This is a necessary job as it especially keeps the sheep clean of faeces (pooh!) and reduces the risk of ‘flystrike’ -when a fly ‘blows’ (lays its eggs) on a sheep. [more about this on our SHEEP page]

Crutching is done 2-3 times a year (depending on the breed of sheep and locality of the farm). Sheep with longer wool need to be cleaned more regularly, and farms in cooler climates aren’t as at much risk of getting flies. On our Auckland sheep farm we have to crutch our sheep about 3 times a year.

One of the most important times for crutching is a few weeks before the sheep are fully shorn. This tidies the sheep up and allows the shearer to go much faster. While the sheep are being handled, we also do ‘Drenching’ (-administering worm medicine). Another important time for crutching is several weeks before the ewes (mother sheep) give birth. Then, the baby lambs can find the udder full of milk! While the sheep are being handled, we also vaccinate the mothers, and this medicine is passed through to the unborn lamb.

During the summer months we have to keep a watchful eye out for flystrike, and if a sheep is dirty, we will crutch it yet again. Below are pictures of Stuart crutching a sheep. The pooh wool that comes off the sheep are called ‘dags’. Dags are processed into a pelletised form and used as organic fertiliser….great for aiding the growth of your fruit and vegetables!

See these other interesting pages about New Zealand sheep, and our farm;

Penelope orphan lamb :: our woolshed

The woolshed is generally where all aspects of sheep-tendering takes place – it’s not only for shearing! There are pens and yards adjacent to the woolshed, and these are to ‘draft’ (sort) the sheep into different categories as there maybe lambs, older sheep, rams, etc. to separate when all the sheep are ‘mustered’ (gathered and brought in) off the farm.

During the summer months many farms suffer badly with fly-strike. This is where a fly will ‘blow’ (lay its eggs) on a sheep. This is a very annoying part of farming and it is very debilitating to sheep (who will die if left untreated, as the eggs hatch into blood-thirsty larvae and eat the sheep’s flesh causing a massive sore and often results in septicemia…yuck!). A daily check of the stock is a MUST during these months. Unfortunately, there is only one cure and that is to bring the sheep in, shear the infected area and douse the maggots with insecticide. There are about 2 other times per year when we have to bring the sheep to the woolshed and this is to ‘crutch’ (shear the bottom area) of the sheep; once just prior to shearing time, (for us shearing is in December/January), the other is just before lambing, (for us lambing is about late-July).

The wool from ALL of the shearing’s is used. It does not go ‘off’ if it is left for the year, so we store it (in a bale) and send it away to auction in early February, with our main shearing . Wool is not worth a lot of money these days…shearing is a job which has to be done.

During our main full shearing (in December/January), the woolshed is a VERY busy place…it virtually becomes a production line! Shearers are a dying breed these days (as no one wants to do the hot, dirty, and back-breaking work), so when you find a good shearer - go full-out to keep him!! Remember Mother’s saying that “The way to a man’s heart is through his stomach”?, well, the same applies to a Shearer, (and why I maintain that the second most important place on a NZ sheep farm is the Homestead kitchen!!!) No truly, a Shearer needs fuel to do this type of work…as it’s kind of like running a marathon!

So, first-up at shearing time, the sheep are pushed into the holding pens inside the woolshed. Usually we do this the evening before, (making certain the sheep are not too tightly packed and that the lights are kept on throughout the night). Many people think it cruel that the animal is without food or water for 24 hours; -but it is not. The sheep are required to ‘empty-out’ (fast), and as they are doubled-over in an uncomfortable position while they are being shorn, it is much kinder and safer to them to have an empty stomach, (much like when a person goes to hospital for an operation!)

Our woolshed was built in the 1930′s (and is still in originnal condition!). It can hold about 100 sheep at a time, and this is also good if it is likely to rain; you cannot shear wet sheep, because you cannot bale wet wool…it will combust spontaneously, (many woolsheds have burnt to the ground simply because the wool was baled when it was wet). The Shearer will drag a sheep (on its hind quarters) out onto the shearing ‘board’ to shear it. Here, there is a lot of sweeping away of wool, and you have to keep out of the Shearer’s way…he get’s paid for every sheep he shears, so he will be going as fast as he possibly can! We are fortunate that both of our daughter’s (Mary & Emma), help us at shearing-time. They ‘know the ropes’ and can practically run the shed by themselves…(mind you, they had good teachers!!)

After a sheep has been shorn, the fleece is thrown onto the sorting-table where any dirty pieces of wool are stripped away. (All wool can be used, it’s just a different grade). Remembering that the Shearer is continuing to shear, (hurry, hurry!!), the fleece on the sorting table is rolled-up and put into the wool-press, where, when about 60 fleeces have accumulated, the bale will be pressed. Since our farm is very small, only doing about 12 – 15 bales per year, we just have a manual wool-press, (bigger farms have electric presses).

And here’s a video of the whole baling process…

A bale of wool weighs about 180Kg (400lbs). We sell it at auction and that is the last we see of the wool.

The breed of sheep we have on our farm is Romney.

They are good all-round sheep, and the most common breed of sheep in NZ (50 – 60% of all NZ sheep are Romney’s). Their wool is generally used for carpets as it is strong and hard-wearing. (Too coarse for clothing…it would be very prickly and itchy next to your skin).

When you visit our farm during our Eco-tours, you will visit our woolshed where we have a display about wool and NZ sheep breeds.

All finished….for another year!

…The Coast to Coast AUCKLAND TOURS

are higly rated on

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[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yxac1GLc2AM[/youtube]

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fUVjZod9Vd0[/youtube]

AUGUST 15 2009 - We are still having good weather and all of our baby lambs are growing nicely. We have separated our orphans into 2 ‘sets’. 1 are the bigger (normal-sized) ones, of which there are 5 lambs, including Tahi & Rua, and running around our backyard we have our tiny little ones, of which there are also 5, including Midget. In this group of tiny ones, we have a lamb (which we have named Fred), who has a high proportion of Poll Dorset in him. Our sheep are Romney, but we sometimes get a ‘genetic throwback’ to other breeds which we have used in years gone by. In these pictures, you can see just how short Fred’s wool is; (with the pinkness of the skin through the wool)….this is the reason we are keeping a cover on him until he fattens up a bit!

We have had another lot of triplets born…this sheep was a pet sheep, and thankfully she is an excellent mother! We have put her and her 3 babies very close to our house, so we can look out to see they are feeding OK.

It is well and truly Spring on our Auckland sheep farm now with the arrival of our lambs! Favourable weather conditions have been great, and meant we haven’t had any weather-related deaths…(unlike last year’s storm casualties). Our sheep have had lots of twins (and we have had some sets of triplets!!). Sometimes we have to remove one of those weaker lambs to hand-raise as it could die from not enough to eat.

Here you can see Stuart giving lambs a feed from a sheep; (this sheep is not their mother, but had a good supply of colostrum, which is essential that newborn lambs have in the first few hours of life). We can buy powdered colostrum substitute, but nothing beats the real thing!

Two days ago we found this tiny little lamb… it is so small!! Just compare the size of her head with the others…she is 2 days old, the others newborn! It is very rarely that lambs this small survive, but ‘Midget’,  (as we have named her), seems to be a real fighter, and she now has the other lambs to keep her company.

It has just been Maori Language week in New Zealand, and to celebrate, we have given our first orphan lambs each a Maori name. ‘Tahi’ which means one, and ‘Rua’ which means two. We had to assist their mother during the birth (as the lambs were breech), and after the ordeal the mother did not want anything to do with the lambs…could you really blame her??

…and 2 days later

…and here is Tahi, Rua, (and Bert, who was a lost lamb).

The first lambs for 2008 have been born on the Coast to Coast Tour’s Auckland farm. …No orphans yet, (but keep a watch for our updates)

….these mothers are very proud!

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28 AUGUST 2009

‘BooBoo’ our mascot sheep has had her babies!

BooBoo is currently the sheep we use in the photos we take of our tourists, so many people will recognise her. The past few weeks as she has been heavily in-lamb, it has been exciting anticipation to guess what (and how many) lambs she would have. It had quite bad weather so BooBoo took herself under the woolshed to give birth. She had a boy (ram) and a girl (ewe) and both are doing very well.

Here are some photos…
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dr70sI0n20U[/youtube]

UPDATES on our other lambs…

Yes, all are doing well.

This is Midget…she is a very “cheeky” little lamb, always jumping over things and squeezing into places she shouldn’t be!!

We have found a couple of older lambs which were obviously lost. As they were not getting adequate milk, we have brought them home to bottle-feed. These lambs have had little contact with humans, and because of this they are quite wild. They are in a small enclosure and we are having to re-train them how to suck again!…very time consuming, but if we left them in the paddock they would just die.

…and who is this???

Yes Penelope, last year’s lamb.

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Cyclones from the Pacific are generally rare at this time of the year, but this one, moving down onto Auckland at late morning, certainly packed a punch! We had several power interruptions, and then we finally lost the power by lunchtime (it stayed off until 2145). Luckily we have a generator to keep us going. All-up we brought 6 chilled lambs home to ‘dry-out’.

We put coats on the lambs for a little while to help keep them warm.

ALL SURVIVED!!

>>> UPDATE ON PENELOPE…

We are pleased to report that Penelope is doing fine…she had a slight reaction to the milk formula, so we had to give her some medicine. As you can see, she has a little friend. His name is Thomas. Thomas is a bit ‘slow’ and we have to take extra care of him…he now wears a coat to help him keep warm.

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Our first orphan lamb was found tonight, (in the Pine tree paddock). It is a little girl, and we have named her Penelope.

As her mother was nowhere to be found, we have brought her home to bottle feed. We would prefer not to have to do this…”their own mothers make the best mothers”, but sometimes the lamb gets lost, or the mother wanders off, and it would be a shame to leave these babies to die. Hopefully Penelope will adjust to the special milk formula that substitutes sheep’s milk. Most lambs find it agreeable, but there are some that have problems with it (-usually diarrhoea)…we will wait and see, and keep you up-to-date!

We have started Penelope off on a colostrum substitute; (colostrum is the first ‘rich’ milk that a mammal produces, and it’s full of antibodies). Then we will be feeding her the milk formula, little and often, for the next couple of days (100mls every 2 hours), increasing this amount only when we can be sure she won’t have any reaction to the substitute milk.

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To the east of Auckland City, there is the WAITEMATA HARBOUR, and to the west of Auckland, there is the MANUKAU HARBOUR.

The Waitemata is literally translated to mean; wai: waters, te: the, mata: obsidian, flint, quartz. i.e. “waters smooth as obsidian” and is popularly called “sparkling waters”. This harbour is an ancient drowned valley system (of the Miocene Age, some 15-25 million years ago). There are many islands at the entrance to this harbour, (including Rangitoto Island, the conical-shaped extinct volcano, which lies about 4km from Auckland!). Although Captain James Cook made note of these islands in 1769, he sailed past the harbour without venturing inland. It wasn’t until 1820 when an American officer named Clark bordered the vessel ‘Prince Regent’ and took a journey from the Bay of Islands (in Northland), down the east coastline to Auckland. He disembarked on Motukorea (Browns) Island from where he made his way up to the head, then crossed to the west coast which he followed back up to Northland again. (This journey took 25 days).

The first large sailing ship to have come into the harbour was the French ship Astrolabe. Commanded by Jules Sebastian Cesar Dumont d’Urville on 25 February 1827. D’Urville explored the inner harbour in a whaleboat, setting foot on the North Shore (near the present-day Devonport Naval Base).

The Waitemata Harbour has become the predominant harbour for Auckland due to it being a safer and calmer harbour compared to the Manukau Harbour’s waters. During the early 1900′s the foreshores of the Waitemata were a bustling industry of ships and trade. There was a lot of loading of the native Kauri timber done from here, logs coming from the Waitakere Ranges. At Saint Mary’s Bay, (which has now been reclaimed to form the southern approaches to the Harbour Bridge), there was Auckland’s two largest Kauri saw mills. These were; The Kauri Timber Company, and Goldie’s Saw Milling Company. Some of the timber for these mills was sourced from an area of land at Muriwai, owned by Sir Edwin Mitchelson, (and the original owner of Coast to Coast Tour’s sheep farm ).

Today, the harbour is the venue for the largest single day regatta in the world, on Auckland City’s anniversary day, 29th January each year. More than 900 yachts and launches compete in many racing events, on this region’s public holiday. It is no wonder that Auckland has coined the name “City of Sails”! At this harbour’s outer shore spans the Auckland Harbour Bridge, (opened in 1959). Across to the upper harbour is another bridge linking Hobsonville on the west to Greenhithe on the east. Traffic flows around Auckland are always hampered during rush hours due to the narrowness of the Auckland landmass; (as Auckland is an isthmus).

PHOTO: Rangitoto Island (Left), Auckland Harbour Bridge (Centre), Auckland City (Right)

…and more views can be seen on our Coast to Coast ECO-tour.

The Manukau is literally translated to mean; manu: bird, kau: wading (or swimming). Even though this is a relatively shallow harbour, (hence its name), it is a large harbour, and boasts being the second largest harbour in the Southern Hemisphere! This harbour opens up into the Tasman sea, through a narrow (and treacherous) channel. Because it is the shortest distance between New Zealand and Australia, it was the most popular route of sea-travel, but due to the shifting sand bars resulting in shipwrecks, (with many lives lost), a longer, more safer route is now favoured; that of going around the top of the North Island and down the east coast to Auckland.

According to Maori history, the ancestral canoe Tainui was the first of the great canoes to reach the Manukau when it was hauled over the Tamaki isthmus from the Waitemata Harbour in the 14th Century. Many Maori made their villages around the shores as this was a valuable fishing ground for shellfish and flounder. It is probable that the first European to see the Manukau was the missionary the Reverend Samuel Marsden, who described the harbour in some detail when he crossed the Auckland isthmus in 1820.

When the NZ Wars broke out in 1863 there were supporters of the Maori “King Movement” who were living around the southern shores of the Manukau. These supporters were suspected of attempting an attack on Auckland, so the Auckland Coastguards, (later the Auckland Naval Artillery), chased the occupants and took posession of 21 large canoes, (presumably the transport for the attack). A further expedition some months later found more canoes, but the prize find was the 25 metre historic wake taua (war canoe), Toki-a-Tapiri (the axe of Tapiri) which is now exhibited as the centre piece in the Maori Hall of the Auckland Museum.

Later in history, this harbour was also used for timber trade.

It is amazing how different Auckland’s two harbours are, and we are very fortunate to be in such close proximity to enjoy them both!

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Auckland is on an isthmus;
on the West coast it has the Tasman Sea, (which is the sea between Australia and New Zealand), and on the East coast it has the Pacific Ocean. The South West Pacific Ocean is a very large area of sea with not much landmass in it. The nearest largest landmass to New Zealand is Australia (to the West), and to the East is the country of Chile in South America, (which is many thousands of kilometres away).

Coast to Coast Tours is based at our own sheep farm on the West coast of Auckland in the region known as Muriwai, (just 40 minutes from downtown Auckland)

This area is also where the Takapu (gannet) makes it home, and is one of only a few places in the world where these sea-birds nest on the Mainland, making The Muriwai gannet colony a world-famous attraction!

On our tour, you will see this coast and the gannet colony. It is a very wild and rugged coast compared to the beaches on the East coast of Auckland. Although many people go swimming on West coast beaches, this is very dangerous and for recreational swimming (and with children), we advise you go to the East coast beaches as these beaches are much safer.

In early times, sailing ships used to arrive on the West coast of New Zealand (since it was closest to Australia), but due to the ferocity of the West coast and the shifting sands (especially at harbour entrances) of this coastline, many ships became wrecked (with large losses of life!) Nowadays, most ships sail around the top of New Zealand’s North Island and arrive at ports on the East coast. This is a much safer route, even though it is longer.

Most of the sand on New Zealand’s North Island West coast has originated from old volcanoes and makes the sand BLACK. On New Zealand’s East coast, the sand is WHITE. West coast black sand has a very high metal content and New Zealand has an industry which extracts the iron from these sands to manufacture metal. Some of this sand is also shipped overseas for processing.

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“…the land, the sea, and the Pohutukawa tree”

When we formed our Auckland Eco-tour Company, we wanted a logo to symbolise the things that were going to represent not only ourselves, but also our area; North West Auckland.

These elements were;
[green] -the land (which comes from our farm),
[blue] -the sea (which is Muriwai Beach, on the West Coast of Auckland where we live), and
[red] -the Pohutukawa tree (which is very special to us as it was the first tree which Stuart’s mother planted on our New Zealand sheep farm when she arrived in 1922)

It is also fitting that there are three pieces to our logo, since the number three is very important in Maori Theology; (representing the three ‘baskets of knowledge’)

We named our company; ‘Coast to Coast‘ because we begin on the East COAST of Auckland, and travel over to the West COAST of Auckland when we operate our Auckland Sightseeing Eco-Tours.

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The recent enhancement to our Coast to Coast Auckland tour is an Epicurean Tasting Platter which incorporates iconic NZ fare.

On our tours, you will be able to indulge in my home preserves of Tamarillo chutney and Feijoa jelly.

Accompany these with the latest innovative product of sheep’s milk cheeses.

Team this off with our world-famous Pavlova and your ‘hard day on the farm’ will be complete.

[Coast to Coast Tours is Food Handling Certified] assuring you that the food you are consuming outside of mandatory Health Department regulations, is safe to eat!

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The TAMARILLO is native to many South American countries. It grows fairly abundantly in New Zealand, however, it is frost tender, so not very suited to areas where frosts are. On our farm we have several tamarillo trees growing because we LOVE them made into chutney!

GET THE TAMARILLO CHUTNEY RECIPE HERE

…..but be warned, once you try this chutney you’ll be hooked!!
(Cook’s hint: because you will probably need to make several batches of this chutney during the year, [and tamarillos are not available all-year-round], when the fruits are plentiful, skin them and put them in bagged portions into the freezer. This recipe requires 24.)

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A lovely way to harness the flavour of the Feijoa is to make jelly (‘clear’ jam).

GET THE RECIPE HERE

The FEIJOA is in season now in New Zealand. The feijoa is not native to New Zealand, (it originated in South America), but it’s a fruit tree that almost everybody had growing in their backyard. Often grown to form a hedge, the hardy shrubs had the added bonus of bearing fruit! My husband does not like the taste of the feijoa fruit, he finds it too ‘perfumed’ in flavour. (Don’t let this put you off, I’m afraid he is out-numbered here!!) …if you are visiting New Zealand during this time, do take the opportunity to experience the flavour of this fabulous fruit. It’s a little bit like banana, pear (along with the same texture of a pear), and slightly lemony/pineapple. There are several varieties with the sizes of the fruit varying significantly. When you eat just the fresh fruit, don’t eat the skin, just cut the feijoa in half and scoop out the flesh.

Unfortunately, feijoas don’t have a very long season, but if you take on of our Auckland tours during this time, we will have the fresh feijoa fruits available for you to sample! You will also be able to see the trees growing when we walk through the orchard on our sheep farm, and taste the jelly on your Epicurean Tasting Platter for Afternoon tea.

]]> http://www.coast2coastnz.com/?feed=rss2&p=761 0 http://www.coast2coastnz.com/?p=241 http://www.coast2coastnz.com/?p=241#comments Thu, 21 Feb 2008 03:22:26 +0000 Donna Hamilton http://www.coast2coastnz.com/?p=241 Even though New Zealand is surrounded by the sea, our oceans are in crisis.

We need to make better choices as to which seafood species we are going to fish. Making the best seafood choice is not easy as all fishing has an impact. However, as consumers we need our fish supplies to come from ecologically sustainabnle fisheries.

Forest & Bird provides New Zealand consumers with the Best Fish Guide 07-08.

New Zealand has an extensive range of fish varieties.

The Auckland Fish Market is an ideal place to experience freshly caught seafood, fruit, vegetables, delicatessen goods and premium-grade meat. This market even has a seafood cooking school!

During a Coast to Coast Eco-tour and Farm Visit, we visit the wild and rugged West Coast and Muriwai Beach. Sometimes local fishermen can be seen fishing off the big flat rock and blowhole that is at Muriwai Beach. This is very dangerous and quite often a huge wave can come and sweep them off. We do not encourage swimming at this beach as West Coast beaches are very rough and unpredictable.

Bush is the collective word for the New Zealand Native woodlands.

The word was first introduced after the early European Pioneers found difficulty in finding a correct definition for the vast areas of the New Zealand Flora.

The word ‘Forest’ did not apply, since a forest consists mainly of tall trees. Likewise, the word ‘scrub’ was inappropriate, as this word denotes sparse plantings of low lying shrubs.

So, after delving into the English language, these Pioneers found the word ‘bush’. Then, wherever their travels took them, they used this word to describe the woodlands. Hence today, as well as New Zealand using the word ‘bush’, so too is it used in Australia, regions in the Pacific, Africa and Canada.

During the Coast to Coast Eco-tour and Farm Visit AUCKLAND TOURS you will see different types of New Zealand bush. We will show and explain about many types of Native trees, then, later in the afternoon when we arrive at our nz sheep farm we will give you the opportunity to buy and plant your own Native tree to offset the Carbon emissions from your tour.

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One of the most famous Southern Hemisphere constellations is the Southern Cross (Crux Australis).

In New Zealand, this group of stars are visible during all the seasons (i.e. year round). They are not visible in the Northern Hemisphere, so consequently don’t have any Greek or Roman legends about them.  However, there are many legends throughout the Pacific. The Maori name for Crux is “Te Punga” – “the anchor”, as it is thought of as an anchor of  Tama-rereti’s waka (canoe), symbolised by the Milky Way, where the Pointers are its rope. [The Pointers are 2 stars nearby the Southern Cross].

Along with the stars of this constellation, is the ‘Coalsack’, a black-looking ‘cloud’ (visible in the bottom lefthand corner of the photo). The countryside is an ideal place to view the night sky stars of the Southern Cross as you will be well away from the city light “pollution”, and be able to see the Coalsack set amongst zillions of stars! Strangely, the winter time is a good time to see the Southern Cross as it is higher up in the sky during these months. When the skies are clear, I always show our visitors when they are leaving to go home after their Auckland tour.

Why not incorporate a stay in the countryside at Calico Lodge Bed & Breakfast Kumeu accommodation or Willow’s Reach Luxury B&B if you want to see the Southern Hemisphere night sky and the Southern Cross constellation at its very best!

2009 – The International year of Astronomy.

2009 marked the 400th year of modern observational astronomy, when in 1609 Galileo first used the telescope to observe the stars!

…she was blowin’

Tide, wind direction and swell, all have to be perfect for the blowhole at Muriwai beach to operate, and yesterday all these conditions were there for this to be seen in spectacular form. These pictures speak for themselves…

Our Auckland tours visit Muriwai Beach on EVERY tour, where you will see the unique black sand, and the world-famous gannet colony. We explain all about this beach’s history, and as local residents you will learn some interesting stories!

The Coast to Coast NZ sheep farm is just 7 minutes away from here.

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July 27 2009

For anyone caring for an insect-eating bird, the winter months are a hard time to find enough adequate food. During the summer, I had an abundance of cicadas (like a small locust) that I could catch out in the field (for free!!), but now that these have all gone, I have to buy mealworms. These are very clean bugs, (not at all like maggots…no way could I even touch them if they were!!). Mealworms eat bran, a little bit of apple & carrot & potato.

These worms are quite slow to grow, so 2,000 of them last a while. Stevie loves to eat them and along with any bug which may come our way, she keeps quite well. I buy these mealworms from Biosuppliers.

It’s always neat to hear the first cicada chirping as it means an abundance of food is again not too far away.

You can see our birds when you come on our Coast to Coast Auckland tours.

October 25 2010

It was during the Labour weekend (in 1994) when we found our Magpie ‘Stevie’. She was just sitting under a tree, (obviously having fallen out of the nest). More on Stevie’s story.

Recently, Stevie had taken a tiny chip out of her beak, so we had to take her to the vet to ask his advice. The vet wonders if Stevie has a slight mineral/vitamin deficiency?? (as she is blind she is 100% dependent on what I give her to eat). Stevie now has a small amount of extra minerals & vitamins added to her diet. The vet has recommended leaving Stevie’s beak alone as it is not worrying her.

…come & join Stevie on Facebook: (yes! she has her own page!!)

Our “Tornado tree” had become a concern. Every time the wind blew strongly, more branches would come down on our farm, and our woolshed -so we finally had to have it cut down. What a mission, because it was so tall, (with one of the 3 main trunks hanging over the woolshed). A local earth moving & digger company; Boler Construction, officiated with the removal. These pictures show the process.

>>>UPDATE ON PENELOPE As you can see, Penelope has grown…a LOT!! (and getting too heavy to lift). She still has 3 full bottles of milk per day. All of our orphan lambs go out into a big paddock where there is plenty of grass, and they come running when it is time to have their bottle!

… and, remember this picture??

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(…an unusual occurrence, so this was quite interesting for us!!)

As it was raining (and we couldn’t do any work outside on the farm), we went out on business. We went over to Silverdale (on the East coast of Auckland). When we left (about 1245), there was some loud thunder and we saw some fairly blinding lightning while we were driving…but that was about all.

We arrived home about 1630, and as we drove up the driveway Stuart said he was certain he hadn’t left the attic windows open THAT far!!…then we saw the damage to the trees…I raced around the back of the house as I was terribly worried about the aviaries – (thankfully everything was OK!) But on investigation, we found some pretty bizarre things;

* TRELLIS GATE…this had been pushed right back on its hinges, BEHIND the catch (-see gouge marks on wall)

…one screw was half out, but this one was the one (on right) which was still in the latch!

* A heavy rubbish bin’s lid had been opened and some of its contents ‘sucked-out’ and scattered around the other side of the house, piled up onto the front deck, and yet a box of papers (not 4m away) had not moved one inch.

* Visitors who have had their photos here, will recognise this!!!

* This tree – torn in two but a delicate shrub (not 2m away) wasn’t even touched.

* A heavy deck chair had been dragged 6m along the deck, and yet a tall tree in a small plastic pot was still standing upright.

* Leaf matter was everywhere ….even up under the veranda ceilings.

* Woolshed window had been blown OUT, and all of the glass was in a neat little pile (several metres away)

* AND OH!! WHAT A MESS…

A couple of our neighbours witnessed a ‘cloud’ appearing in our locality. They both said the wind was very intense with tree branches flying up in the air. it lasted all but 5 minutes! Although we have had storm damage before, this is one of the worst ones we have ever experienced. We know this is nowhere near the damage that occurs with ‘twisters’, but if our damage is anything to go by, our heats go out to everyone who has ever lived through one.

Sadly, later that night on the TV news, we learnt that a man and his horse had been struck by lightning (in Dargaville, Northland) – this was the same weather bomb that moved down the West coast and moved inland to our area.

We have ‘rescued’ many birds from the wild, and most of these have been successfully re-established back to their natural habitats, however, some of our birds have suffered severe injuries and cannot be released back to the wild because they simply could no longer fend for themselves.

We do have pet Australian parrots, but, we do not breed for this industry. These birds are our companions, and we like to be able to share them with our visitors as we explain about birds.

So, in what order am I going to start listing the birds we have at Coast to Coast Tours? …(the polite way is; “oldest comes first”!)

‘STEVIE’

-Australian Magpie (Female) DOB~1/10/1994
but Labour Weekend marks her “arrival” Birthday date!

Perhaps the poem I wrote about Stevie will best describe her story!

Your life began its usual way; high-up in the tree-tops,
but that breeze did sway!
Then all at once
you hit the ground!
when you came our way.
With out-stretched hands we welcomed you,
(if only for the night)
then hidden beneath your beauty
we discovered impaired sight!
So now…
“How could you fend alone?”
was the question on our minds.
Without any eyes for flying,
Without any eyes for food,
You needed a protective wing to gently caress you.
We try to foster freedom,
We dig up all the grubs,
But wish that we could give you
what you’d truly love.
So – “Whatever’s in the future?”
I SAY THIS BLACK AND WHITE TO YOU;
“Thankyou for your friendship!”
in Magpie-talk so true.

-by Donna Hamilton

As you have probably deduced, Stevie is blind. We found her on our farm after a storm. She was a very young bird and she had a very bad infestation of lice and had literally had scratched her eyes out! (one eye was popped, the other was damaged). This year Stevie turned 18 years old and is quite well-known in our community! Even now, she sometimes has to have antibiotics due to ongoing eye infections, (especially during her moult times). Unfortunately we cannot do an eye-removal operation as the eye structure in a bird is very close to the brain and it is just too risky to do. I’ve often wondered if it’s been cruel keeping her alive, but Stevie is a very happy little chappy, singing and chirping throughout the day. (Our Veterinarians are very amazed by her!). Magpies are extremely intelligent and Stevie is no exception! Actually, it’s only when she walks into something….which (of course should not be there!!!), that one ‘remembers’ that she is in fact blind. She recognises and acts on what we say, (like “up up onto your perch”, or “off now”), without any physical contact from us to prompt her into action. She loves the radio and her favourite singer is Celine Dion. (Ms Dion, if you are reading this, Stevie sings at the top of her lungs when you come on the radio!!) … and, Stevie was named after the singer Stevie Wonder.

Magpies have a bad reputation in NZ for harming our fragile Native fauna. They can also become very territorial (especially during their breeding season), and have been known to inflict injuries to humans! These birds are a very common site on pastures and are numerous throughout NZ. So prolific are they in some regions, that there has to be regular ‘cullings’ to control their numbers. Magpies are carnivorous (meat-eaters) and belong to the Crow family (which also includes Hawks and Owls). Every 12-24 hours they regurgitate a ‘pellet’ of indigestible rubbish. (These are the bones etc from their food; insects, baby birds, skinks etc). They MUST do this, and if they do not, then they get sick.

Here I have been lucky enough to capture this on a video!

As you can appreciate, Stevie relies 100% on us for her food. Over the years it has been a trial and error mission to replicate her diet as much as possible with one that she would get from the wild. [Here, I thank Sylvia Durrant of 'Bird Care' for her expert advise.] The base of Stevie’s diet is chicken necks which I mince finely; (the “awful” job!!!). To this I add hard-boiled egg yolk, or cheese, or some other offal; (heart, kidney, liver). Always [and always], I add chopped ostrich feathers (to replicate the fur/feathers from a ‘wild’ diet). Stevie also likes cicadas and other small insects when we can get them. She has to be fed about every 2-4 hours.

…come & join Stevie on Facebook: (yes! she has her own page!!)

PLEASE COME AND JOIN STEVIE ON FACEBOOK…there are lots more photos and videos!!!

‘KINGSTON’

Australian King Parrot (Male) DOB 14 Nov 2006

Mad antics of these birds in the rain…

‘QUEENIE’

Australian King Parrot (Female) DOB 14 Nov 2006

Our 2 largest birds are King Parrots. These are also from Australia; (mainly the Eastern parts), where they live in the dense forest, e.g the Blue Mountains. Our shearer is a bird breeder and we bought a brother and sister off him at the beginning of 2007. King Parrots have a lovely nature. Although Kingston & Queenie were parent-raised, they did have a lot of human contact and Kingston (especially) is now very friendly, coming onto your hand and shoulder. Kingston talks (although he does not speak in public!). I am not intending to breed these birds, however, if they do – they do!! [Being brother & sister you cannot breed their offspring!]

As you can see; …as a male King matures, it has more red around the head than the female.

Here, Kingston is not fully mature as yet, but these will turn completely red!

When Kingston was 2y5m he matured and developed his red head feathers – (this only took 1 month to change!!).

King Parrots require a lot of foliage to chew on. I aim to pick fresh branches (with ‘nibbly’ berries/seeds etc on them) at least 3x a week! They also love apples, carrots, pears, seed, grass-roots, dried berries (e.g.figs), peanuts, sweetcorn, silverbeet…to name but some! (I guess you can see, they are good eaters!)

Kings have beautiful feathers on the underside of their tail –

‘QUAILS’

Japanese Quail (DOB 2011)

We have recently bought 4 Japanese quail to eat the remnant food which is ever being dropped in the aviary by our other birds. These are the quaintest wee things, quite un-afraid of people walking around them; (and you have to watch you don’t step on one!!). They love snuggling up to the guinea-pigs, and on warm sunny days they are scratching around in the soil.

One of them laid a lot of eggs and started sitting on them! (Of course they were not ‘fertile’ as we did not have a male quail!), so I was lucky to buy-in some fertile quail eggs. The eggs hatched, and now we have several more quails!

There are two main types of working dog, these are the ‘Huntaway’ and the ‘Heading’ (or ‘Eye’) dog.

The Huntaway is [normally] a large black and tan-coloured dog. Often boisterous, it’s loud bark (which is sometimes hard to shut-up!!) is used to push (scare) the animals along. The Heading dog is a fine-boned, black and white, border-collie breed. Highly intelligent (and often anticipates its master’s commands!!), this dog remains quiet, and “eyes” the animals, gently guiding them into the yards. These two dogs often work as a team, receiving their commands from the farmer. A good working puppy can cost anywhere from $700 upwards, and is normally bought from a reputable breeder who has bred his dogs from ‘working’ stock. These puppies are eager to work and please. Many puppies begin their interest at working by rounding up chickens!

Our sheep farm has seen many working dogs, and we acknowledge them all.
Sadly, one of our best dogs died some years ago (of old age)….his name was Rob.
He was a different breed; (a Beardie), and he also became a lovely family pet.

This poem outlines his story….and this section of our website is dedicated to him…

ROB-DOG

We needed a new puppy to join our farming crew,

so went down to New Plymouth to give some dogs a view.

There were kennels all around us

housing bitches and their litters,

then out-of-nowhere came this little fury critter!

He followed us round; …all-the-way!! and simply would not go…

so, that’s when we decided; we’d just have to take him home!

We picked him up, the next day early,

and started on the trip…

and not far down the road….well…the poor thing, he was sick!!

We went to wipe his mouth clean, and pulled at something foreign…

and that’s when we discovered that his breakfast had been possum!!!

We all arrived home safely, and that was long ago,

and now our Rob-dog is a lovely handsome beau.

His work’s a pretty picture, and he’s a dandy cricket-mitt…

but when there’s noises in-the-air, he really needs to split!

and Rob-dog is a Beardie, a faithful one in fact,

we love him oh-so dearly…and that’s the end of that!

-by Donna Hamilton

We also have a little house-dog. His name is ‘Manu’  (which means bird in Maori). Manu is part Pekingese, part Yorkshire terrier and part Japanese Chin. He loves to cart his bed around with him and in the evenings he sucks at it like a baby! He follows me everywhere during the day, and also likes to dig holes in the garden and bury his bones! His hair is very long, but I have to keep him clipped because he gets dirty.

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See our other animals BIRDS :: CATS

at

Coast to Coast Tours farm

We have 4 cats, (or should I say 4 cats have us!!). It is considered an asset to have cats on a farm because they keep the rodent population under control…….not that our cats catch very many, they are too busy demanding that WE feed them!!

We like ginger-coloured cats, and have always had a cat like this on our farm. Our recent ginger cat is called Patrick (Paddy for short) because we bought him on St. Patrick’s Day (March 17). Paddy is a house cat and doesn’t wander very far from his feed bowl. Paddy was born mid January 2004.

Donna’s cat is called Oliver (Ollie for short). Ollie is a bit ‘weird’ as he likes to lie and hang upside down at every opportunity. He also likes to suck at your clothing when he is being cuddled. Ollie wanders quite a way and likes to sleep in the garden under the trees. He was also born mid January. We bought Ollie & Paddy together, (but they are not related).

Our other cat is a stray cat we found as a little kitten in 1994. She was very skinny and frightened, and even today she is still rather timid, only appearing for her tea at night. We called her Sepia because she is that colour.

When you come on our Auckland tour and visit our sheep farm, you could see at least one of our cats….

Ollie also has a liking for jumping up onto your shoulders…(alright when you are expecting it!!!), but he’ll sit there quite happily as we are walking around.

Our daughter Mary rescued a cat from a vet this year. We named him Pablo. He is part Bengal, and gets on exceptionally well with our little dog Manu

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Also see our other animals… DOGS :: SHEEP :: BIRDS