Auckland: Transport heaven for small boys

Container ships, diggers, cranes, tug boats, trains, load carriers...

Sarah Ell takes her crew on Ports of Auckland's fun and interesting free guided water tour.

Auckland has always been a port city, its waterfront busy day and night. There is always plenty going on -- ships berthing or departing, trains and trucks being loaded and unloaded, straddle carriers whizzing about at up to 30km an hour. We were excited to get a glimpse behind the red fence along Quay Street aboard Ports of Auckland's free monthly on-the-water tour.

Our ferry trip from Devonport affords a preview of the action before we collect our passes from the 360 Discovery ticket office. By the 11am departure time the ferry is busy with at least 100 people.

Our guide, Jan Power from Ports of Auckland, begins her commentary as we cruise east to the Fergusson container terminal. A massive red Hamburg Sud ship, Spirit of Singapore, is being unloaded and we get a boat's-eye view of how big a container ship really is. Far too close for comfort at sea!

We also get a good look at the expansion project at the seaward end of the terminal, the latest in 140 years of reclamation. Seeing the diggers busily at work is a bonus for my 4-year-old son.

Next up are Freyberg and Jellicoe wharves,then a cruise around the Bledisloe, Marsden and Captain Cook wharves: the view is of serried ranks of used Toyotas, truck cranes, campervans, trucks and some shrink-wrapped railcars. The view just gets better and better for small boys interested in transport.

Meanwhile, Jan's informative commentary continues.

All three of the port's tugs are docked on a smoko break, so we get a good look at the new tug Hauraki. We then head around Queens Wharf, "party central" during the 2011 Rugby World Cup, before the ferry driver puts his foot down and we power off for the bonus trip under the harbour bridge. Unfortunately, no one is ready to bungy jump but it is still exciting for adults and kids alike to pass underneath.

We return to town via Westhaven and around the Western Reclamation which, despite the tarting up of Wynyard Quarter, is looking a bit daggy on its western side. Then it's round the cruise-ship-shaped Princes Wharf and we're back at the dock, informed, entertained and ready for an icecream from Valentino's Gelato at the ferry building.

Need to know

• Ports of Auckland's free tour runs during the school holidays. Tuesdays, September 30 and October 7, 11am. Final trips November 25, December 9. Bookings essential; 360discovery.co.nz.

• Special port tours Auckland Heritage Festival, on the tug William C. Daldy from Voyager New Zealand Maritime Museum. Ph 0800 AK PORT (0800 25 7678).