HAMILTON to WELLINGTON (HLZ-WLG) on NZ Q300

I got the lounge access code at the check in desk and made my way in. The lounge was fullish with a couple of departures imminent. They soon left and the lounge was prompted cleaned. I notice I again missed out on a new lounge – as last week I missed the new Sydney F Qantas lounge by 6 weeks, this week I miss the new Hamilton Air NZ lounge by a month.

The lounge is basic but has some sandwiches, muffins, scones, crackers and cheese, fruit selection. A couple of nice white and red wines, a few different beers. Water, juices, soft drink and hot drinks. TV and some magazines. The day’s newspapers seem to have long been taken.

When the flight is called I stop by the book shop to pay the NZ$5 departure tax. Every seat is taken this time. We leave on time. Head winds and a long detour on approach to let several aircraft take off means we arrive 15 minutes late.

Not much view below us, although clear skies to our left gives views of Lake Taupo the mountains beyond and the Pacific Ocean in the distance. We track further east than usual to fly along the Ruahine, Tararua and Rimutaka Ranges. The Wairarapa plains bathed in sun while the bush-clad mountains disappeared into cloud. The road link to Wellington visible as a sliver of tarmac winding over the hills. Deep ravines with a floor of gravel – witness to the scarred hillsides thanks to frequent earthquakes and rain. The normal flight path is down the Hutt Valley, but due to the low cloud and aircraft taking off we stayed east passing by the two lakes and well out to sea, then turning and heading towards the peaks of the Kaikoura Ranges towering over the cloud in middle distance.

Two ships are headed for the Wellington Harbour heads – one a container ship in shadow and the other a ferry further out and thus in bright sunshine.

We pulled into a prop gate at the end of the main pier, beside the aircraft for my next flight which has already almost completed boarding.