Auckland is a city built on - and of - many volcanoes. Most are extinct but some are only dormant. The CBD and suburbs are all built on top of extinct volcanoes and many islands of the gulf are also extinct volcanoes - see Browns Island at left.
The mightiest volcano of all is Rangitoto - which is only dormant as it last erupted a mere 550 years ago. It is an icon of Auckland and is unusual in that it looks the same no matter what direction you view it from - it is an almost perfect cone shape. The name Rangitoto means "Bloody Sky" in Maori. It is perhaps Auckland's most favourite landmark.
Looking at a map of just a small part of Auckland shows how ubiquitous the volcanoes are. They stretch far beyond he area shown on the map.
When I wrote that Auckland was built on and of its volcanoes I meant that many volcanic cones were excavated (and often obliterated), for the red and black scoria which were the base metal of our roads - and buildings.
Flying over Auckland as you arrive home it is the volcanoes that are the most predominant of the landscape features below you. As you look down on the houses nestled around those volcanic cones and out over the blue waters of Auckland's two harbours - both dotted with volcanoes - you know you are home.
That's Auckland in the photo - taken at night obviously. The Sky Tower is the tall thing in the middle - of the photo - and of Auckland. Auckland AKA "The City of Sails" because of its two harbours and yachting-crazy inhabitants.
The Sky Tower was built by Ron Brierley - a permanently miserable looking, millionaire businessman - in the 1990s. I hated it when it was being built. I hated the idea that a fat-cat with a big ego could use his ill-gotten millions to build a rich man's folly on my skyline. I hated that he made sure it was higher than Mt Eden - our beautiful iconic volcanic cone. What arrogance! As it grew we all thought it looked like a hypodermic syringe - and loathed the imagery.
BUT..... I have to admit now - and I dislike doing so - I think I actually like it! The junkie needle and big business connotations have faded from my mind and it is a focal point - pun intended - for the CBD. It also helps me when I get lost - a navigational aid that can be seen for hundreds of miles - okay tens!
The only thing I hold against it now is that it sits atop the casino - a misery-making place if ever there was! But don't get me started on that one!
Auckland is the largest city in NZ - a million plus souls - so not large by world standards. However it is one of the largest geographically - about the same size as Los Angeles. It is a great starting point for tourists and has heaps of great things to do. You could bungy off the above Sky Tower for instance. More sedate activities - like eating and drinking - are also on offer.
The mightiest volcano of all is Rangitoto - which is only dormant as it last erupted a mere 550 years ago. It is an icon of Auckland and is unusual in that it looks the same no matter what direction you view it from - it is an almost perfect cone shape. The name Rangitoto means "Bloody Sky" in Maori. It is perhaps Auckland's most favourite landmark.
When I wrote that Auckland was built on and of its volcanoes I meant that many volcanic cones were excavated (and often obliterated), for the red and black scoria which were the base metal of our roads - and buildings.
