RTW Leg 6, Auckland New Zealand, To Invercargill, New Zealand in Tileproxy

**Ragtopjohnny** · 12-28-2009, 02:22 PM

Starship Round the World Tour Leg 6

Auckland, New Zealand to Invercargill, New Zealand

In Tileproxy

A Whole Lotta Shots for You All To Enjoy!

Well, friends, another Holiday Season is almost gone, and I’m pleased to share with you my most recent trip from my round the world expedition in FSX, based off of The Starship Diaries and are to be included in our Starship Package when released. Hope you all enjoy this post - took me a good couple of hours to piece together....(Phew!)

We all know by now that my flights are created in Flight Sim Commander, but here’s the technical detail of the flight:

Departure: Auckland, New Zealand
Arrival: Invercargill, New Zealand
Weather: Real World weather with REX
Scenery: Tileproxy

The Route in Flightsim Commander:

Did you know that our Departure City, The Auckland metropolitan area in the North Island of New Zealand, is the largest and most populous urban area in the country with a population approaching 1.4 million residents, 31 percent of the country's population. Demographic trends indicate that it will continue to grow faster than the rest of the country. Increasingly cosmopolitan, Auckland also has the largest Polynesian population of any city in the world, and has seen many people of Asian ethnicity move there in the last two decades. In Māori Auckland's name is Tāmaki-makau-rau, or the transliterated version of Auckland, Ākarana.
On The Ramp, Preflight Going On…

The 2009 Mercer Quality of Living Survey ranked Auckland 4th place in the world on its list. In 2008, Auckland was classified as an Alpha-City in the World Cities Study Group’s inventory by Loughborough University.

Holding Short of the Active….

Auckland lies between the Hauraki Gulf of the Pacific Ocean to the east, the low Hunua Ranges to the south-east, the Manukau Harbour to the south-west, and the Waitakere Ranges and smaller ranges to the west and north-west. The central part of the urban area occupies a narrow isthmus between the Manukau Harbour on the Tasman Sea and the Waitemata Harbour on the Pacific Ocean. It is one of the few cities in the world to have harbours on two separate major bodies of water.

Take Off, Gear UP!

Auckland lies on and around an isthmus, less than two kilometres wide at its narrowest point, between Mangere Inlet and the Tamaki River. There are two harbours in the Auckland urban area surrounding this isthmus: Waitemata Harbour to the north, which opens east to the Hauraki Gulf, and Manukau Harbour to the south, which opens west to the Tasman Sea.

Climbing Out…

Bridges span parts of both harbours, notably the Auckland Harbour Bridge crossing the Waitemata Harbour west of the Auckland Central Business District (CBD). The Mangere Bridge and the Upper Harbour Bridge span the upper reaches of the Manukau and Waitemata Harbours, respectively. In earlier times, portage paths crossed the narrowest sections of the isthmus.

Turning to Intercept Course….

Several islands of the Hauraki Gulf are administered as part of Auckland City, though they are not officially part of the Auckland metropolitan area. Parts of Waiheke Island effectively function as Auckland suburbs, while various smaller islands near Auckland are mostly zoned 'recreational open space' or are nature sanctuaries.

Heading Towards the City of Auckland…

Over the City Of Auckland

Leaving Auckland…

More in the reply…..

**Ragtopjohnny** · 12-28-2009, 02:23 PM

Auckland has a warm-temperate climate, with warm, humid summers and mild, damp winters. It is the warmest main centre of New Zealand and is also one of the sunniest, with an average of 2060 sunshine hours per annum. The average daily maximum temperature is 23.7 �C in February, and 14.5 �C in July. The absolute maximum recorded temperature is 32.4 �C[14], while the absolute minimum is -2.5. High levels of rainfall occur almost year-round with an average of 1240 mm per year spread over 137 'rain days'. Climatic conditions vary in different parts of the city owing to geography such as hills, land cover and distance from the sea, hence unofficial temperature records exist, such as a maximum of 34�C in west Auckland. On 27 July 1939 Auckland received its only recorded snowfall.

Passing North Head�

The early morning calm on the isthmus during settled weather, before the sea breeze rises, was described as early as 1853: "In all seasons, the beauty of the day is in the early morning. At that time, generally, a solemn stillness holds, and a perfect calm prevails..." Many Aucklanders used this time of day to walk and run in parks.

Past North Head and Bastian Point�.

As car ownership rates are very high and emissions controls relatively weak, Auckland suffers from some air pollution, especially in regards to fine particles emissions. There are also occasional breaches of guideline levels of carbon monoxide. While maritime winds normally disperse the pollution relatively quickly it can sometimes become visible as smog, especially on calm winter days.

Starting to Cloud Up As We Move Along the Island�

Passing Waihake Island�

Waiheke Island is an island in the Hauraki Gulf of New Zealand, located about 17.7 km (about 35 minutes by ferry) from Auckland.
The island is the second-largest, after Great Barrier Island, of all the gulf islands. It is also the most populous with just under 8,000 permanent residents plus another estimated 3400 who have second or holiday homes on the island. This makes it New Zealand's most densely populated island, with 83.58 people/km�, and the third most populous after the North and South Island. It is also the most accessible offshore island in the Gulf, due to regular passenger and car ferry services and some air links.

Passing Duder Regional Park and Duder Beach�

Approaching Lake Waikare�

Lake Waikare is the largest of several shallow lakes in the upper floodplain of the Waikato River in New Zealand's North Island. It is a riverine lake, located to the east of Te Kauwhata, 40 kilometres north of Hamilton. It covers 34 km�.

Past Lake Waikare�

Due to its shallow nature (its depth is never more than 2 metres) and the heavy use of fertiliser in the surrounding farming district, the waters of the lake are in poor condition.

On the way Towards Wellington�

The Coast of New Zealand with Turnagain Banks�.

More in reply�..

**Ragtopjohnny** · 12-28-2009, 02:23 PM

Passing Wellington�

Cook Strait is the strait between the North and South Islands of New Zealand. It connects the Tasman Sea on the west with the South Pacific Ocean on the east.
To the south the coast runs runs 30 kilometres (19 mi) along Cloudy Bay and past the islands and entrances to the Marlborough Sounds. To the north the coast runs 40 kilometres (25 mi) along Palliser Bay, crosses the entrance to Wellington harbour, past some Wellington suburbs and continues another 15 kilometres (9.3 mi) to Makara beach.
The strait is named after James Cook, the first European commander to sail through it, in 1770. In Māori it has the name Raukawa or Raukawa Moana. Raukawa may mean "bitter leaves".
Cook Strait is one of the most dangerous and unpredictable waters in the world. In good weather one can see clearly across the strait. At its narrowest point 23 kilometres (14 mi) separate Cape Terawhiti in the North Island from Perano Head on Arapawa Island in the Marlborough Sounds. Counter-intuitively, at this point the South Island coast lies further north than that of the North Island.

Flying Over Cook Strait South Island in Distance �.

Marlborough Dry Hill in Distance

Starting to Cloud Up Over South Island�.

AI In the Area�.

I was glad to see it started to clear again for our approach into Invercargill. I was kind of disappointed that most of what seemed to be a beautiful country was covered with clouds. However, at least our destination was clear, and got some good views of Invercargill on approach.

Did you know Invercargill is the southernmost and westernmost city in New Zealand, and one of the southernmost cities in the world. It is the commercial centre of the Southland region. It lies in the heart of the wide expanse of the Southland Plains on the Oreti or New River some 18 km north of Bluff, which is the southernmost town in the South Island. It sits amid rich farmland that is bordered by large areas of conservation land and marine reserves, including Fiordland National Park
covering the south-west corner of the South Island.

Flying Over Invercargill on Approach, Starting my Approach Legs�

Invercargill is home to the only indoor cycling velodrome in the country. The indoor 250m wooden velodrome is home to Track Cycling in Southland and is currently the fastest track in New Zealand. The Invercargill Licensing Trust supports the Velodrome which is situated at Stadium Southland, a large indoor sports complex located at Surrey Park.

Passing Sandy Point�

Many streets in the city, especially in the centre and main shopping district, are named after rivers in the United Kingdom, mainly Scotland. These include the main streets Dee and Tay, plus those named after the Tyne, Esk, Don, Thames, Mersey, Ness, Yarrow, Spey, Tay, and Eye rivers.

Passing Palasade�

Lining Up For Approach�.

More in Reply�

**Ragtopjohnny** · 12-28-2009, 02:24 PM

Gear Coming Down…

Touchdown!

Southland was a scene of early extended contact between Europeans and Maori, in this case sealers and whalers and missionaries - Wohlers at Ruapuke. From 1848, Otago, of which Southland was itself part, was the subject of planned settlement by the Free Church, an offshoot of the Presbyterian Church of Scotland. Settlement broadened with the discovery of gold in Central Otago in the 1860s.
Even today, traces of Scottish speech persist in Southland voices, with R often pronounced with a rolling burr. This is more noticeable in country people.
In 1856, a petition was put forward to Thomas Gore Browne, the Governor of New Zealand, for a port at Bluff. Browne agreed to the petition and gave the name Invercargill to the settlement north of the port. Inver comes from the Scots Gaelic word inbhir meaning a river's mouth and Cargill is in honour of Captain William Cargill, who was at the time the Superintendent of Otago, of which Southland was then a part.
From 1861 to 1870, Invercargill was the centre of Southland Province, which separated from Otago Province, but later rejoined it.
In December 1905, Invercargill voted in local prohibition of alcohol sales. This lasted for 40 years until voted out by returning servicemen in World War II. Drinking continued meanwhile, thanks to huge volumes of beer, often in kegs, brought to private homes, or sold by the glass by keggers at hiding spots round the City. When prohibition ended, a committee of citizens persuaded the Government to give the monopoly on liquor sales in Invercargill to the specially formed Invercargill Licensing Trust. Based on a scheme in Carlisle, England, it returns profits to city amenities. Even today, alcohol is not sold in supermarkets.
In recent years, publicity has been brought to the southern city by the election of Tim Shadbolt, a colourful and outspoken former student activist, as mayor. He once appeared on a cheese ad stating "I don't mind where, as long as I'm Mayor". His supporters like the colour he brings to the city. His opponents refer to his controversial mayoral career in the Auckland suburbs and to his attitude to veterans during his opposition to the Vietnam War.

On The Ramp, Shut Down, Time To Explore….

Hope you all enjoyed my New Zealand Tour!

I must say, I’m pleased the way this post turned out – a lot more organized than my last one – Hope you all agree!

Again, this is Mike Stone’s Starship with our Livery Number 2, Dallas Kachan’s from The Starship Diaries. This will be imported to our main texture set.

John J. Thuot II
Team Lead/Founder/Texture Artist
http://www.captainjohnfsx.net