Sunday, October 28, 2007

Sunday in Auckland-Devonport

I headed out early Sunday to get a run in and be a spectator during the Auckland Marathon at the same time. I timed leaving the hotel to catch the 10K runners at the 3K mark and ran along the sidewalk with them for a mile or so. When they turned around, I headed out a bit farther and caught up with the marathon route. Ended up running the last 4-5K my run with the leaders…….I ran on the sidewalk and back a touch to not interfere, but it was cool to be with them.

Roy and I met up around 9 and took the ferry across the harbor to Devonport. It's a more "neighborhood" village but still very close to the City. Some amazing old houses and tree-lined streets. We walked up North Head, which is a point overlooking the harbour in several directions. It used to be an old war fort and still has tunnels under the ground and gun turrets. Strolled another couple kilometers to Mt. Victoria which is a really high "cone" extinct volcano. Superb views of the city.

Finished up with a nice long visit to the spa at the hotel….sauna, steam room, weights, jacuzzi, and a quick dip in the pool…..and then a good ole pub dinner. Not a bad weekend in Auckland! I also booked a trip down to Taupo for later in the week to go fishing and hiking!!! More on that later.

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