2017 The Great Kiwi Road Trip.

The tea towel and the sheet of stamps showing the Great Kiwi Road trip.

        If you haven’t found yourself stuck behind a campervan, lost down a gravel road on the outskirts of nowhere, or dodging people parked in the middle of the road trying to get the perfect shot, have you truly experienced New Zealand?
        With The Great Kiwi Road Trip stamp issue, you can experience the quirky things you’ll discover while trekking your way around this great country - from the tip top of the north to the bottom of the world in the south.

The Stamps.

With all these larger issues it's hard to get good quality images so these will be added here when they become available. In the meantime, I have added detailed captions for each stamp and used images cut from the full sheet above. Since many of these jokes require 'local knowledge' to understand them, I have provided extra notes where I think they might be helpful. More could be added if we feel they are required.

$1.00 - Cape Reinga / Lighthouse.

Watch two oceans collide when you reach the end of the road at the very top of the North Island. And discover the 800-odd-year-old gnarled pōhutukawa tree clinging to a cliff on the northernmost tip of the Cape.
Cape Reinga, where the two oceans meet is a popular tourist spot. Standing at the lighthouse you can see where two ocean currents meet and swirl together. There is that famous sign post giving direction and distant to various places both in New Zealand and overseas. Someone had some fun with this version of the sign post. Two of interest are "Dragons" from the Hobbit movie and "Winding Rd Next 100 Kms." Pointed down New Zealand to Bluff at the bottom of the South Island.

$1.00 - 90 Mile Beach / 55 Miles??.
Take a leisurely stroll along '90 mile' beach or jump in a 4WD to try out this sandy highway, yes it is in fact officially a highway. Make sure you take your tape measure to check the distance, you may find it won’t take as long as you thought. 
The beach is known as 90 Mile Beach but actually, it is more like 55 miles long as these two touriets have just found out. This sweeping west coast surf beach is a great place for fishing. The even hold a popular fishing contest here each year. Just watch out for the tour buses and other traffic that go rushing by on the smooth flat sand.

$1.00 - Taranaki / Sheep and More Sheep.
Admire the majestic Mt Taranaki from afar or get up close to experience some of its many attractions from walkways to ski fields to beaches. That is, if you don’t find yourself stuck among some of the slower paced, woolly locals. It’s not rated as one of the world’s best destinations for nothing! 
"Sheep! Sheep! Sheep & More Sheep!" Need we say more? You can't see the view for the sheep.

$1.00 - Rotorua / Welcome to Rotovegas.
Awaken all your senses as you enter into the beautiful scenery of Rotorua and the not so beautiful smell of rotten eggs (sulphur). While wandering through 'Rotovegas' – you may find more than one person with a peg on their nose. 
There is a lot to see and do around Rotorua and the town caters well for visitors and tourists. Just watch, many of the more famous attractions are expensive but there are others, equally as interesting that are either free or less expensive. Go looking for them, you won't be disappointed asking a local.

$1.00 - Auckland / Keep Left Unless Passing.
Another day in paradise, sitting gridlocked in Auckland traffic. Make sure you make plenty of time to admire the beauty of this volcanic city and see some of the awesome sights such as the Sky Tower despite the gridlock. Check out the traffic signs, "100!" "Watch your speed!" "Keep Left Unless Passing!" As if these mean much to cars been stopped for so long, cobwebs are growing between them.
Auckland, the largest city in New Zealand, yes the traffic can get bad but then that is common with most big cities, but there is so much to see and do. So much to explore that you'll wish you'd allowed double the time for sightseeing.

$1.00 Taumata whakatangi hanga kōauau o tamatea turi pūkaka piki maunga horo nuku pōkai whenua ki tana tahu.
Try saying that! Ha! Ha! Too much for our tourists to say "Hmmmm...Ta..u..mate..whak.." and give up.
This endless train of letters is New Zealand’s longest Māori place name. When translated into English it reads ‘the place where Tamatea, the man with the big knees, who slid, climbed and swallowed mountains, known as 'landeater’, played his flute to his loved one’. 
See, even the English translation is a mouth full. The locals simply call it Taumata Hill. 

$1.00 - Central Plateau / Dessert Road.
Go volcano spotting as you make your way along the never ending ‘dessert road’. If tackling this never-ending highway in the summer be prepared for wide open blue skies and a barren but beautiful volcanic landscape. If you’re headed this way on a snowy winter’s day, good luck - you might find it open. 

$1.00 - Cook Strait / Wellington Picton Ferry.
Escape windy Wellington as you cross Cook Strait with a pod of dolphins putting on a show as they play in the ship’s wake. Admire the change in landscape as you travel further south, don’t forget a jacket if you plan to admire from the ship’s deck. 

$1.00 - Canterbury / Sumner Beach / Togs and Undies.
Making the subtle distinction between togs and undies on a scenic beach is a challenge many kiwi’s face each summer. Remember, if you can see the water - they’re togs. If there’s no water in sight, well, best to have a towel handy. 


$1.00 - West Coast / Welcome to the West Coast.
Enjoy an ice cream as you explore the West Coast’s wilderness and hidden pancake rocks and glaciers galore. Just make sure you’ve packed your wet weather gear. 
Yes, the prevailing weather comes from the west and as the clouds rise to pass over the Southern Alps they drop most of their rain on Westland while leaving eastern areas much drier.


$1.00 - Kaikoura / Open for Business.
Watch out for seals and penguins as you make your way towards Kaikoura. Make sure you stop off in this wee seaside town for some whale watching and try some of the local kai, fresh from the ocean. 
In early 2017, the area around Kaikoura suffered a huge earthquake which damaged many buildings in the town as well as cutting off road/rail links to the north and south. The seabed was raised so much that the whale watching fleet, a major tourist attraction, were stranded, unable to use the boat harbour. The stamp above is saying in a fun way, things are getting back to normal.

$1.00 - Dunedin / Baldwin Street - The World's Steepest Street.
There’s plenty to see when you’ve made it as far south as Dunedin. From stunning heritage buildings to the abundant marine life on the coast. Save some energy to climb the steepest street in the world, and watch out for any jaffa’s rolling towards you. 
The comment about 'jaffa's' has a double meaning. Once a year they have a fun day where thousands of jaffas, a candy covered chocolate ball, are rolled down the street. The word Jaffa is also a slang name for Aucklanders.

$1.00 - Fiordland / Lost, Really Lost.

The walking capital of the world, take your pick from three of the best – Kepler, Milford or Routeburn tracks. If walking isn’t your thing then take a boat cruise, check out the glow-worm caves or enjoy a scenic flight. 

$1.00 - Bluff / Best Oysters in the World Mate!.
Just before you drop off the edge of the earth, you find yourself standing under an oddly detailed street sign with an oyster in hand. This Southern, windswept town is known as Bluff and is famous for its local delicacy, oysters. Enjoy them fresh off a local fishing boat or battered with your fish and chips. 

First Day Covers.

Each sheet contains 14 gummed stamps that depict a journey from north to south. The 14 stamps are also available across a set of three first day covers. Each first-day cover features a different combination of stamps as well as a larger illustration of the two main characters that appear throughout the issue.

The set of three covers.

First Day Cover No 1.

First Day Cover No 2.

First Day Cover No 3.

The issue also came with a souvenir tea towel showing the same scene as the stamp sheet.

Technical information

Date of issue:	12 July 2017
Number of stamps:	14 gummed stamps
Denominations:	14 x $1.00
Stamps designed by:	Graeme Mowday; Artwork by Chris Boniface and illustration by Chris Davidson
Printer and process:	Southern Colour Print by offset lithography
Number of colours:	Four process colours with syneal overgloss
Stamp size and format:	50mm x 40mm (horizontal)
Paper type:	Tullis Russell 104 gsm gummed stamp paper
Number of stamps per sheet:	14
Perforation gauge:	14.4 x 14
Period of sale:	Unless stocks are exhausted earlier, these stamps will remain on sale until 11 July 2019. First day covers will remain on sale until 4 September 2017.

Information & images for this post came from.

New Zealand Post (Stamps)