These are some of my favourite places on the planet. I like to go and spend sometime in places to truly feel, see and hopefully capture something of their essence.
Great Barrier Island New Zealand
This island occupies a special place in my heart. I went there first in the mid 1970's for the NZ Herald and loved it then and have loved it ever since. In those days the roads had grass growing down the middle of them. Sure, its changed but islands are special. Its got to do with connectivity, cars and weather! These images are part of a book project I am working on with Kiwi photographer Rob Tucker.
“The Barrier”, New Zealand's third largest island has no reticulated power supply and only a few sealed roads. It is a place where Kiwis like to holiday or go for weekend breaks. It feels like returning to their roots, to the 1950s or 60s or seventies. It is a step back in time to when the environment was cleaner, people smiled and spent time listening. The beaches are long arcs of white sand, the surf is superb, the fishing excellent and like the rest of New Zealand there are hot pools and fresh clean streams and rivers running through pristine native bush. It really is heartland New Zealand in microcosm.
Auckland yachties have been sheltering in its many west coast harbours for more than a century and these days there is an increasing number of luxury lodges and guest houses.
In the off-season, which is anything other than the 4 weeks after Christmas the island returns to its usual sleepy pace.
The island has a rich history of Maori settlement and massacre, gold and copper mining, kauri milling and whale hunting. Somehow the milling of millions of super-feet of kauri has left the island unaffected and these days DOC the Department of Conservation controls 60% of the island.
Great Barrier Island lies some 90 km north east of Auckland named by James Cook as its length offered a measure of protection to the Hauraki Gulf it is accessed by a 3 hour ferry trip or 30 minutes by plane. If you're thinking you might like to visit "The Barrier" email me and I'll give you a few tips!
