Punting on the Avon River was high on Mum’s must do list while we were in Christchurch. We weren’t sure if they were open due to being so close to the red zone but although two of the other courses were closed, this one was open. Our punter, Tom, gave us a commentary as he punted a few hundred metres north through the Botanic Gardens.
A punt is a flat-bottomed boat that is propelled by a pole. You can see the boats in the photo above.
It was a lovely, warm day and so relaxing drifting along in the punt. It was idyllic. On one side of the river were the well-manicured Botanic Gardens. The city council is still paying for the upkeep of the gardens as they are a real showpiece of the city. However on the other side of the river is Hagley Park which were a little more, shall we say, unkempt. They are still beautiful though, with lots of trees and bulb displays in spring but the lawns aren’t mowed as often. The Council obviously has a lot more to spend its money on these days.
One of the bridges we punted under used to be a flat bridge but the earthquake caused a lift in the centre of the bridge. the strangest thing is that the lift is perfectly centred. We thought the bridge had been built that way.
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Looks like fun! But I’m curious — what is the “red zone”?
Sorry about that. The red zone is an area of Christchurch that has been cordoned off due to significant earthquake damage from February 2011. The area originally covered most of the CBD but has gradually shrunk to a much smaller area.
Thanks! I appreciate the info.
Thanks! I appreciate the info.