Devonport, the North Shore of Auckland

29 Apr Devonport, the North Shore of Auckland

Tuesday 14th January 2020, 7am we arrived in Auckland Harbour for a tour of one of that cities oldest suburbs, Devonport.

It was an overcast day, threatening rain. And that’s what it did for the latter part of this excursion.

Auckland’s Sky Tower and city buildings intermingled with ship’s superstructure

View of Ferry Wharf and Auckland’s CBD, from cruise ship at Princes Wharf, next to Auckland Hilton Hotel

Radiance of the Seas arriving at adjacent dock, Queens Wharf

Closer view of the brown/orange Ferry Building of 1912, plus unsightly ferry wharves

Since the late 19th century ferry services have operated from Auckland city centre to Devonport on the north shore.

Auckland Harbour Bridge

Our bus driver/tour guide spoke with pride about his city, Auckland, in very competitive terms, especially in regards to Sydney.

Certainly Auckland Harbour, at 180 square kilometres, is more than 3 times larger than Sydney Harbour’s 55 square kms. However, Auckland’s Harbour Bridge doesn’t match Sydney’s in stature or aesthetics. And I prefer the visual beauty of Sydney Harbour and notable surrounding architecture, such as The Sydney Opera House.

Can you tell I am from Sydney?

A mass of yachts at Westhaven Marina (near Harbour Bridge) viewed from Silo Park

Silo Park is to be the home of international yachting crews during the next America’s Cup, March 2021

It was time to cross the harbour bridge to the north shore and seek out the treasures offered by one of the oldest Aukland settlements, Devonport.

We found an abundance of beautifully preserved cottages and mansions, many of which I photographed from the moving bus.

There was an opportunity to stop at Stanley Bay Reserve on the southern shore of Devonport, for a view of the city across the harbour.

Then more beautiful houses …

At Torpedo Bay our tour group split to board smaller busses, in order to negotiate the narrow roads of the North Head Historic Reserve.

Torpedo Bay at Sea Level, with CBD just visible in background

View of North Head Reserve

View back to Torpedo Bay with Torpedo Bay Navy Museum bottom left

From North Head Historic Reserve out to sea. Historic gun placement in foreground

The suburb of Devonport was first settled by Europeans in 1840. It was initially called Flagstaff because of the flagstaff raised on nearby Mount Victoria Takarunga.

Auckland CBD and Navy Base (right) as seen from Mount Victoria Tararunga

Looking over Devonport and Stanley Point to the harbour bridge

Devonport shopping area with ferry wharf behind and across the harbour, Judges Bay

We were dropped off at the Devonport ferry wharf for free time and a ferry ride back to the ship.

The Esplanade Hotel, opposite the ferry wharf

In the 1960s when the greater Auckland area was on a renewal drive, the people of Devonport voted to keep their historical structures.

Victoria Road shops

We chose the Devonport Deli Cafe for lunch (left of The Patriot in above photo).

I ordered the Bulgogi Burger, Maggie had the B.L.A.T and both were very enjoyable

It was time to catch the ferry back to Auckland and our cruise ship

View from Devonport Ferry Wharf

Corner of Quay and Ocean Streets

Having arrived back in the city it was not easy to find our way from the Ferry Wharf to Princes Wharf, due to the extent of construction work in Quay Street.

There’s our ship. How do we get there?

With some friendly guidance we made it.

Why is the front of our ship bent to port? Maybe from the iceberg we hit in Cook Strait?   Ha ha ha.

There’s only one more New Zealand port on this cruise, Waitangi in the Bay of Islands. Will you be there with us?