5 January 2025

Sorry, this is so late. I had 888 photos and video to go through, (and I still haven’t checked them all), which is why it’s taken me so long to update. We’ve been doing, not writing!

According to the weather forecast last night, it was supposed to be fine today.  We awoke to a wet view outside and a weather forecast saying morning showers. Heavy morning showers as we walked to the railway station.

I got up when my alarm told me to, but I let Pen sleep for another twenty minutes. This meant that, in the main, we had plenty of time to get ready, without bothering one another.

Ready for a ride on the TranzAlpine train!

We had to be at the train station at 7.55 am and Google Maps was telling us that it would take us 23 minutes to walk there. I was planning on buying my breakfast on board, whish saved a bit of time, but not really knowing where we were going was a hindrance. So, I wanted to leave early enough that if we took a wrong turning, it wouldn’t be a problem.

As we hadn’t been expecting rain, we only had our raincoats with us, and I wasn’t wearing my waterproof over-trousers. I was also using my mobile phone to give us directions to the station… Which was a bit disconcerting as I was expecting to walk out of the Jailhouse accommodation and turn right and it told us to turn left. But it should know what it was talking about… In theory.

It was doubly difficult because, due to the rain, we were having to keep our heads down, so we weren’t really able to take in local landmarks… like street signs. Not that Christchurch is any better at telling you where you are than any other town in New Zealand, like Thames.

It turns out that Google does know where its going, and we arrived at the station in sodden slacks and shoes at 7.55. Pen went to try and blot herself down in the ladies, and I, glad that my slacks were a quick drying material, (I wish I could say the same for my shoes), stood in the queue so we could check in.

We were given our tickets for both the outward (Carriage B, seats 15A & B) and return journeys (P 14A & B), and then we were permitted to climb aboard.

Obviously, our seats were side by side, but this time we had a table, and we waited for someone to sit down across from us. There was an announcement that the café carriage was open, and so I headed down there to get my breakfast.

There was already a queue, so I worked my way down to the end and waited. By the time I got to the food cabinet, there were only two fruit salads left, so I grabbed one, and a beef, cheese, and pickle sandwich for lunch, and told the train staff that there was only one fruit salade left went I got to the till.

By this stage the train had already set off and I was pleased to see, when I got back to our seat at the far end of the train, that no one was sitting awkwardly across from Pen. So, I took that seat, which meant we both had a window seat and room to put our gear on the seat next to us. Which was very much appreciated. So, I was able to eat my fruit salad and watch the world go by, and Pen was able to eat her Marmite swirl and do the same.

Both Pen and I love being able to travel in the observation carriage, and being right next door to it meant that we were able to see when there was room for us to nip back and enjoy the sights – and the chance to air dry our bottom halves.

And the scenery is pretty spectacular. So much so that I don’t think there is really much point in typing more about the outward journey, and I’ll just let my photographs speak for themselves. Sorry I can’t tell you about the locations of each photo. My camera doesn’t have GPS.

Arthur’s Pass

I see why they have seatbelts on the baby changing table.

The Southern Rata was just glorious this year. This is probably what the north of the North Island was like when Pōhutukawa forests blanketed the landscape.

We got to Greymouth and Pen was keen to buy herself some lunch. (I’d got hungry and had eaten my sandwich about 11.00 am.) So I left her at a Robert Harris Café looking for the great Kiwi pie, and went hunting for a pharmacy. I want to get some Gin Gin sweets for all the bus travel (bleurgh) that I’m going to have to do from now on.

What I should have remembered, from when D.C. and I did the TranzAlpine in 1992 (along with travelling by train from Auckland all the way to Invercargill) and stayed overnight in the town, is that Greymouth is dead on Sundays. I guess Thames isn’t much better, but at least we seem to have cafés keeping the place alive.

Not having managed to find a pharmacist, let alone one that was open, I rejoined Pen at the Robert Harris where she was getting herself a filo and a drink. When she received that, we went over to the bund that runs the length of the Grey River and sat up there, in the SUN(!), and she ate, whilst I checked out a memorial to all the miners who have perished down the mines since mining began on the West Coast. Including the Cave Creek 29. It was actually a “nice” memorial, having three miners standing in the middle of a constantly rotating, water coated ring.

Working for a surveyor, I’ve learnt one or two things about Deposited Plans. This is the site of DP 1!

Someone had laid a wreath and some flowers at its base, which were now dead. Another lady came along and removed them so she could take a photo, which I thought was a bit disrespectful. But then she carefully replaced them when she’d got her pictures, so that wasn’t so bad. Yet another lady, wearing a cerise pink lei, got out of a car, posed in front of the memorial so someone in the car could get her photo, told us they were on a scavenger hunt, and then scampered back into the car.

It was a short time later on that we decided that the outward journey was for the scenery. The return journey was for the experience…

We returned to the Greymouth Railway Station and positioned ourselves at the far end, anticipating that we were about to enjoy something a little bit special. The train pulled in and we still had to walk a couple of carriages until we got to Carriage P.

That’s “P” for posh.

WOW!

We’d decided to splash out and travel back on the “Scenic Plus” as opposed to “Scenic” service. Scenic isn’t cheap, it’s $249 per person, and the Scenic Plus is even more expensive at $499, but boy were we glad we did it this way!

I was expecting to have the same carriages, but with white linen and to be waited one with a preordained menu. It was so much more than that. The carriage was white with tasteful aqua lighting picking out the embossed relief reflecting the Great Journeys of New Zealand logo in the ceiling. The seats were grey to represent the stones of the river. (That was all I heard of the talk about the carriage.) I’m just thinking that I don’t even remember looking at what the flooring was like. The tables, already laid with white tablecloths, carafes of water and glasses ready for us to take a sip, and white cloth napkins and a knife, were hinged upwards, so that you could slide into your seat with ease.

Carriage B for “Basic Class”

Carriage P for “Posh Class”

The other three/four carriages had two people serving them in total, and you had to get up and go down to the café car if you wanted something to eat. Here, we had four ladies waiting on our one carriage, and they brought our meals to our table.

We spent the first half hour behaving like country hicks overawed by Buckingham Palace. Getting photos of everything (except the flooring) and marvelling at what we’d walked into.

Especially the observation carriage. The one we’d been using this morning was supposed to hold a maximum of twenty people, and when you were passing something of scenic interest a whole lot crammed on board and tried to get photos. We had an observation carriage of our own for the use of about a total of maybe twenty to thirty people.

Wow.

Once again, we were supposed to be sitting on the same side, and, once again, we sat opposite one another so we had a window seat each. This did mean some rearranging of the silverware, but I’m sure the staff get this all the time.

Soon after leaving Christchurch, we were served a complimentary drink. Pen treated herself to some Oyster Bay white wine, whilst I was more than happy with orange juice. (With lemonade added for that extra sparkle.)

Throughout this trip, I’ve done my best to wear a mask whenever in confined spaces. I have no plans to get sick part way through the journey if I can help it, and at the end of January I don’t want to have to have sick leave when I’ve already taken a week and a half more of leave than everyone else. I’ve got one mask that I can easily pull on and off when wandering through shops; and for transportation, I’ve got a 3M over the head type, like they use in hospitals, that should offer greater protection.

I decided that, if I was going to be forever taking it off to eat on this journey, there was no point in wearing it. So, fingers crossed!

A short time later, we were offered our starter. Southland cheese rolls. Well, one cheese roll cut into three for ease of eating. Plus green tomato relish. Cheese rolls are a slice of white bread rolled around grated cheese and sometimes other fillings and condiments and then toasted. It’s a Southland/Otago delicacy/staple, so I don’t know why a train travelling through Canterbury is offering it.

When that had had time to digest, we were offered our “Afternoon meal”. A “Grazing platter to share” of a “curated selection of local cheese, dips and hummus, dried fruits, cold cut meats, seeded crackers (these were yum!) and a warmed mini bread loaf.

The fence on the viaduct is to disperse the wind so it doesn’t blow the train off.

After a couple of hours of enjoying the scenery – and the observation car, we were given our dinner: West Coast inspired braised lamb shoulder – Served with seasonal green vegetables, garlic agria potatoes mash, and Monteith horopito jus. Actually, there wasn’t much in the way of “seasonal green vegetables”, just a sprig of watercress.

Dessert, served a reasonable interval later, when we’ve had the chance to digest our main course, was “Bush Honey Cheesecake” with ANZAC Biscuit base, topped with rhubarb compote and dried raspberries.

We finished off our repast with a hot chocolate. Plus a square of birthday cake which had been presented to one of the other Scenic Plus passengers

We didn’t need dinner that evening.

Yes, this was an expensive journey, but boy was it worth it. Kally and Scott were fawned over and we were made to feel special. The only complaint I think we’d have is that the lady explaining everything didn’t use a microphone and we didn’t hear everything.

I guess that, after that, we were nicked for impersonating toffs and sent back to jail.

Steps = 11850

Kilometres = 8