Benje
Benjamin Jones Joined: October 14th 2006
Logged in: May 24th 2009
Logged in: May 24th 2009
Travel Blog Posts
Crusaders Match
On the 7th of April me and Rich got a bus up to Christchurch to watch The Canterbury Crusaders vs Western Force in the Super 14's Rugby League. Dan Carter was playing - What a legend! I bought myself a shirt then went along to the game and it was so weird! Its like a family outing going to a rugby match??? What gives? The stadium is hilarious! it looks a cross between blackpool's football stadium and Camelot Theme park! With a massive medieval knight figure outside the front and a massive sword in the middle of the pitch! They start off with a live band playing. Then cheerleaders - wasn't complaining.... Then People on horseback doing several laps around the field dressed as medieval knights riding to the sound of a Clint Eastwood movie! ... read more
Views leading to Glenorchy
I arrived at new zealands adventure capital. The place was a very busy and crowded place i wasn't that impressed by the town but some of the activities it offerede and the surrounding senery surrounding it makes it a must see place. The following day after settling in we decided to go to Glenorchy - (my favourtie scenic town if you remember) where we did a day walk up Mount Alfred. We got some great views on driving in, of the Lake Wakatipu leading to the Glenorchy Mountain ranges. The walk up was a steep climb it was cool as we were the only ones doing it and the weather was absolutely perfect not a cloud in the sky! After reach the end of the tree line we got some absolutely stunning views back down ... read more
Lake Te Anau
Today we set out to do the Milford Track rated as one of the best walks in the world! And something me and Rich had booked in December and got the next available slot to do it on March the 5th lol! We began our trip up to the start of the walk on a boat up the Northern Section of Lake Te Anau which revealed to us the coolest mountains. completely different to any Id seen anywhere. They were so wild and ruggid- really wierd and interesting. The weather also added to the effect, seeing the start of a rainbow appear and rays of sunlight shining through the clouds. It was a movie shot if Ive ever seen one lol! Then we started the 1 and a half hour walk to our first Hut ... read more
Routeburn First Day
After all the countless times of good weather it appeared that my luck was finally running out when starting the routeburn. Yes we took on yet another tramp. the Routeburn is a great walk lasting 3 days but its fairly easy compared to the majority we've done as it is only around 37km however the walk involves lots of mountain passes and high altitude so can be difficult in bad weather. The walk began along the Milford Road and finished in a place called Glenorchy near Queenstown. Our first day was a fairly drizzly day. The clouds were really low in the sky which made it really hard to see any form of scenery at all. Th first day begins steeply climbing about 900metres in the space of 2hrs. Unfortunately we couldnt see much on ... read more
The Boat over Lake Manapouri
Since being in Te Anau i had been advised by many that the Doubtful sound cruise is actually more impressive than the Milford cruise. So i luckily managed to get on another 'hot deal' offer to go on Doubtful Sound. It is a long trip up to the Sound as it is a more difficult to get to. Firstly I drove to Manapouri then got a ferry across the Lake. Then a 1hr coach trip over a mountain pass (which had some amazing views in itself!) to the otherside where the cruise started. It was a drizzly day and really cloudly which added a great erry mist to the sounds which apparently is the best weather to see it. It also snowed the night before (in March!- New Zealand Summer still!!!) so the scenery was ... read more
Gertude Saddle
After spending some time in Te Anau we headed off up Milford Road again to do a day walk called gertrude Saddle. We parked the car at the bottom of gertrude Valley then headed up this steep valley. On the way up we got some great views of the valley down to the car. The track became steeper and steeper and the walk boarded on rock climbing rather than walking! One section involved climbing up using chains to assist you. We climbed over a series of waterfalls and passed the black lake until finally reaching the top after about 2hours of steep climbing. And Wow! i know that word has been used alot in my blogs but seriously wow! This is definately my favourite view! It was my perfect landscape something Id been looking for ... read more
Milford Road
The Day after we arrived in Te Anau, me and Rich managed to get a 'hot deal' on the Milford Sound Cruise. So we headed up the 'Milford Road' rated the most scenic road in the world! A bold statement that I honestly can't agree more with! We drove through some amazing views! Beautifully clear lakes, dozens of waterfalls, together with being surrounded by beautiful towering snow capped mountains! Wow. it was amazing! The pics cant show just how good the road is through Milford. Ace! During the drive up there is one pint where you pass under one of the mountains its called the Homer tunnel. This really small tunnel that goes straight through! Its really freaky inside because theirs almost no lights in it and it has a really steep decent down! After ... read more
Mount Cook and the Southern Alps
After Franz Joseph me and Rich wanted to check out the other "warm" glacier in nz named Fox Glacier. When we got there the weather was great! Fox Glacier was also a venue for Sky diving and was rated on of the best scenery skydives you could do in nz. I couldnt miss the opportunity! After a brief low down of what I needed to do I got geared up and soon enough I was in a plane overlooking the whole of the southern Alps. The views were amazing, the sun was just going down and I could see the two glaciers as well as Mount Cook! The tallest mountain in NZ. It was worth it just for the views from the plane. After 20mins in the plane it was time to jump. I didnt feel ... read more
Franz Joseph Galcier viewpoint
After my jade carving I went to place called Franz Joseph Glacier, the place ive been most looking forward to visiting so far! Its only a small little town but home to a 'warm' glacier only one of three in th world and 2 are in nz! It's beautiful the glacier has spread all the way down to the valley floor. The glacier is restricted unless ... read more
The ruggid Beauty of the West Coast
The Drive Down the West Coast of the South Island in nz is beautiful. It has such a strange combination of rugid beaches with vast Mountains boarding next to them - weird heh? We stopped in a place called westport Where I decided to try and put some of my training from Australia in surfing to the shores of New Zealand. I went to an area called Tauranga Bay well known to be a good venue for surfing. It was good fun but the water currents in nz are extremely strong not to mention all the undercurrents. I did Okay but I don't think I'm really cut out for surfing. I had a few major takeouts which were funny. We then continued South along the West Coast where we stopped in a place called Punakaiki which ... read more
