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Published: July 25th 2009
Kia Ora! What a fantastic new world of adventure we've discovered! Luckily we've been largely blessed with good sunny weather, having really only had two miserable days over the last three weeks (that's better than your average English summer ain't it?!). The scenery has been incredible (even better with the winter's snow) and the list of things to do endless, so we've got a fair bit of catchin' up to do!
From Paihia (Bay of Islands) we returned south via the scenic west coast, passing through the ancient Waipou forest, which contains huge Kauri trees, some of which are believed to be 3000-4000 years old. I've never driven round so many corners - to say it was windy would be an understatement. No wonder the Ozzies joke about Kiwis being unable to travel in a straight line, their strong but harmless rivalry we have found from both sides to be rife with mockery. Continuing south, we again past through Auckland, driving over the harbour bridge for a great sunset view of its harbour and skyline, we finally arrived in Rotorua just before 9.
As we entered, a 'bad egg' smell filled the cabin and plumes of steam could be
seen rising from nowhere. This was not a factory though, this was the geo-thermal activity through which the place has acquired the nickname 'Sulphur City'. In the morning we explored this bizarre activity with a walk around the park, seeing many bubbling mud pools, gurgling hot springs and steaming thermal pools. Even the drains in the road had steam pummelling out out of them! Rotorua is also a hive for adventure activity and in general Kiwis are known for pushing the boundaries in new and daring ways. After checking out our options at the tourist information, we took a cable car 'Gondola' up the side of a mountain for panoramic views over Lake Rotorua. From here we had immense fun taking a luge back down. A luge is like a cross between a kart and a tabogen, with the freedom of the former while relying on the downhill gravity of the latter. From the bottom of the track we took a ski-lift back up to the top for inevitably more runs - once was not enough! After 3 goes we took the Gondola back down and moved onto Zorbing - a Kiwi invention where you are contained within a double-sectioned
transparent sphere, with one ball inside the other and an air layer between. This acts as a shock absorber for the rider, dampening bumps while traveling down a long slope. We took the option of the wet Zorb where you lie in warm water (as its winter here) and are free to bounce around as you roll down the hill (as opposed to being strapped in for the dry Zorb). A wierd and wonderful experience that although reminding us slightly of being in a water shute, felt very unique. In the evening, we relaxed in the campsite's naturally hot mineral pools, heated by the area's thermal activity, which even heats up some of the tent grounds also - great for camping out when its cold!
We had to awake early the next morning for some more adrenalin pumping adventure. White water rafting. But this is New Zealand so this really was extreme, not just grade 5 rapids, but the highest commercially rafted waterfall in the world! The waterfall in question being a straight 7m (23ft) drop! Now considering the raft is only 4 and a half metres long, this meant that it becomes vertical on the drop. Jessie was
scared! Especially after the safety procedure warning of what to do if the raft flips over when it lands - something that was a very real possibility (apparently 1 in 5 of the rafts flip over and it's largely due to pot luck whether you make it or not!). After changing into wetsuits, boots, lifejackets and helmets and then carrying our boats onto the water, our 'adrenalin junkie' guides said a Maori prayer before proficiently instructing us. When we came to the large drops they spurred us on with Maori proclamations as we raised our paddles in gusto! So the really big one... were we going to make it?! A couple of paddles to the edge, before quickly getting down and hanging on for dear life (or so it seemed).... we plunged over and our braced faces were quickly shocked by the very cold water as the whole raft went under - and we were at the front! Fortunately we resurfaced the right way up with cheers that we'd made it! Right on!!
Rotorua also happens to be a Maori cultural centre of the country with a large Maori community and spirit. In the afternoon we embraced this by
going to Te Puia - a Maori cultural area and large thermal reserve. The Maori are the indigenous people of New Zealand, though first settlement is believed to have not been untill about 850AD with the majority arriving in the 13th and 14th centuries, coming over from the Polynesian Islands of the Pacific (such as Samoa, Cook Islands and as far north as Hawaii). We learnt a little more about their history, exploring a pre-European style village, watching a cultural performance and learning about their two main crafts weaving (the women) and carving (the men). Similar to Waitangi, the meeting house was strikingly designed with red wooden carvings of Maori legends - often with their tongues sticking out - a frequent Maori symbol for intimidation in battle. The cultural part alone was far better than the aboriginal park in Cairns and the Maori culture and people seem to be a lot less tarnished by western discovery, plus they generally seem to have a higher place in modern society. For lunch we had the traditional Maori 'Hangi' - steamed chicken and vegetables - traditionally cooked under the ground on heated rocks (though they cheated with a steam oven for ours!). The
Auckland harbour bridge
Reminded me of Rain man!thermal reserve was equally interesting, especially the Pohutu geyser that went off a couple of times every hour - the spray of hot water (released after build up of pressure under the rocks) goes off twice every hour and the rocks that you sit on to view it are lovely and hot also! The Maori would rely naturally on the area's thermal heating system not only in housing but through cooking also in the steaming hot pools. Another draw was the Kiwi house where two of the comical looking birds (although in many ways biologically more like mammals) ran around in dimly lit nocturnal surroundings poking in the ground with their very long thin beaks. Despite being a national symbol, the birds are now rare in the wild having been preyed on by European introduced predators such as domestic dogs and possums, which have become a huge pest despite the countless numbers you see splattered over the road (they encourage you to run them over!). Roadkill has been a frequent sight both here and Australia, though usually there they were kangaroos, which we tried by the way - very good for you and low in fat, tasted very gamey -
though a lot more dangerous to hit! To relax at the end of an activity packed day, we bathed at the Polynesian Spa. Here we had a choice of 6 outdoor naturally hot mineral pools ranging in temperature from 38 to 42 degrees and acidity (good for muscle aches) and alkalinity (good for the skin). A perfect way to end the day! Especially nice the feeling of slipping into hot water when it's so cold out!
The next day saw yet more adrenalin adventure. After a peaceful stroll by Lake Rotorua, we travelled west to Waitomo Caves, not only famous for its complex caves system but also for the glow worms which inhabit them. The surrounding countryside is made up of intertwining hump like hills known as a Karst landscape, or for those who have seen Lord Of The Rings - we were in 'Hobbit' land! Anyway, after driving out to see the caves, a multitude of adventure ensued. First we had to abseil 100ft inbetween a chasm from where we waded through very cold water into the cave. With our flashlights blaring, we negotiated through and under very tight crevices and across tightrope bridges before getting to the
centre of the experience - a cathedral chamber of glow worms. Glow worms are actually the maggot larvae of the Fungus Gnat (like a big mosquito) which catch their food by attracting other insects to their thread spindle which they excrete down to turn luminescent. The brighter the thread, the hungrier the glow worm. With our lights out, thousands of bright little lights shone above us like the brightest starry night sky we'd ever seen. It was this chamber where David Attenborough came to film them. Going back downstream was even more fun as we each had a rubber ring on which we quickly floated down on - otherwise known as 'black water rafting'. What's more, hundreds of little glow worm torches shone above us as we past by, adding to an incredible experience. To get out the cave there was only one way - the way we came in, so after being attached to a safety rope we rock climbed back out from the underworld! Hot showers, photos and hot soup followed before we moved onto Taupo for the night.
We awoke the next morning on the shores of Lake Taupo (the largest lake in the North Island),
from where we took an extremely scenic drive south into Tongariro National Park - the most mountainous area in the north island. And what mountains - eye grabbing snow-covered rugged volcanoes. We soon ascended into Alpine territory and stopped at the central National Park village of Whakapapa (pronounced Fukapapa!) from where we had a fantastic scenic walk in the snow to Taranaki Falls. Great views could be seen of the north island's highest peaks - the highest being Mt Ruapehu, which was used for the filming of 'Mordor' in Lord Of The Rings. After our walk, we drove up to the ski village situated on its slopes before another windy drive back down, constantly stopping for another 'Kodak moment'!
With our ferry crossing to the south Island pre-booked, we had to make our way to Wellington (New Zealand's capital) where we were welcomed with open arms by friends Phil and Jen. We know Phil (Lofthouse) from school and Jen through the French Hen. Jen was born here and they have both recently moved over to live. And we could see why, Wellington is a great setting for a city, characterful Victorian era houses perched on steep slopes overlooking a
Hot mineral pool
Kuirau Park, Rotorua beautiful harbour bay. Unfortunately the weather the next day was one of only two miserable (weather wise!) days we've had so we couldn't appreciate it fully. However, luck would have it that the city is home to the nation's premier museum, Te Papa (and it really was one of those 'museum' kind of days)! Its highlight being a preserved half ton Colossal Squid - the only one in the world on show and the largest invertebrate ever caught! A great modern museum by any standards and it was free! The 3 hour ferry crossing was rather spoilt by the drizzle and fog as you can imagine but things did start to brighten up a bit by the time we entered the Marlborough Sounds - a network of sea-drowned valleys that we cruised between before arriving at Picton on the south island. Strangely, as the south and north islands overlap slightly, Picton is actually marginally north of Wellington, therefore we were actually travelling largely west.
The following day we had THE MOST windy drive half way up into the Marlborough Sounds for a scenic walk, surrounded by green sea valleys on both sides of a steep hilly climb. Moving west
we stopped in Nelson, the south islands third largest city which is about the same size of Stourbridge. Here we got a chinese takeaway and went to the cinema to see the ridiculously silly (and hilarious) 'Bruno', Sacha Baron Cohen latest character to make it to the big screen. Continuing west, we stopped for the night at Kaiteriteri, a port for the Abel Tasman National Park where the following day we took a boat to get to the start of a stunning coastal track walk. As the national park is away from any road networks, the only way you can get to the best of it is by boat, which drops you off and then picks you up on the way back after you have walked a section of the track. This part of the south island is the sunniest and mildest all year round and we were blessed with sunny blue skies - this and the beautiful beaches completely belied the fact that it was winter and at one point I even lay and sunbathed on the beach!
Moving back east and then south we stopped at Kaikoura - a magical seaside town where the snow-capped mountains descended
Mud pool
Kuirau Park, Rotorua into the sea. Waking up to another postcard view, we went and booked into a whale watching trip. Due to its position along the coast, the north and south currents combine to bring a vast amount of marine life. This coupled with an ocean shelf that quickly falls away into a underwater canyon 3000m deep makes a perfect environment for the Sperm Whale of which we saw many. The Sperm Whale is the largest predator on earth (measuring up to 18m) and has been known to swallow 4m long Great White Sharks whole! The crew gave an informative presentation while the boat tracked the whales via sonar. The highlight being when the whale would dive and the cameras would be at the ready for that 'tail shot'. However, the other highlight was the hundreds of Dusky Dolphins we came across and it was these which we chose to swim with the next morning. However first that afternoon, we drove to the pennisula and parked up in disbelief next to hundreds of New Zealand Fur Seals - on the beach, rocks or even on the verge or in the middle of the carpark! Signs warned us to keep our distance, however
we failed to see one (they blend in very easily) as we walked blissfully unaware nearly treading on a rudely awoken male which snarled at us - and my god we jumped! They can be aggressive and even jump and bite if provoked. In the evening after slipping into the campsite hot spa tub, we walked down to the local pub 'The Strawberry Tree' and got a pint each of local 'Sheep Shaggers' lager! The main draw to the place however, was the advertised 'Jam night' where a group of local 'old boys' played a selection of standards and asked around for any musicians in the audience - myself seemingly being the only one! I got up and roughly jammed out a few numbers with them on guitar and vocals before changing to the drums! Their drummer was missing that night and so they were either relying on the audience or themselves to share the drumming. Asking if I played, my answer was insignificant as I did now! In fact I ended up playing half the night on the drums, getting into it so much by the end I badly blistered a finger! It was even more fun than the
singing, just wish I'd learnt drums properly as a kid.
As you may know we had tried swimming with dolphins in the Bay of Islands but failed. Part of the reason we'd tried it there was because the water is so much warmer and a large part of me was fearing just how cold these waters were going to be. Between 8 and 10 degrees to be more precise! However, we were supplied with 1 cm thick wetsuits, gloves and boots which kept in a lot of warmth. The dolphins were amazing - hundreds of them skimming the water around you and diving underneath, with the odd one doing a flip somersault! Slipping off the back of the boat, the cold did hit but it took a fair while to set in. On the sounding of a horn, we would be safe to slip off to meet the dolphins, making noises through our snorkels to try and connect with their inquisitive nature. If they moved off, we would get back on to catch them up before sliding back in, usually swimming for about 5 minutes at a time. However after nearly an hour of this and by the last
swim, the cold really had set in (something that I'm more susceptible to than most) and my teeth were chattering. Fortunately the boat was equipped with hot water hoses which we shoved down into our wetsuits in delightful relief! An incredible experience despite the cold.
From Kaikoura, we were fortunate in being able to take the Arthur's Pass across to the west coast. This isn't always possible in the winter, as the snow often closes some of the mountain roads. What's more, we had fantastic sunny blue skies and the scenery was truly breathtaking - going from the flat Canterbury plains up into the snow covered Southern Alps. We stopped the night in Arthur's Pass Village, after hoping to book into a powered campsite to get some heating for the night. Unfortunately, the only one that existed here had gone out of business and due to the higher altitude, we were left feeling the cold more than ever. A couple of hot water bottles and extra duvet certainly came in handy!
We were woken by a patter on the roof of a Kea - green parrot like birds that are rife in the area, which we fed a
few scraps before checking out the tourist information for the best walks in the area. A icy path surrounded by knee deep snow took us up to an amazing panoramic view of the mountains and valley inbetween. Moving onto the west coast and south we stopped for the night at Franz Josef Glacier.
New Zealand is famous for its glaciers - most notably Franz Josef and Fox due to their size and the fact that they come down to the valley floor only 300 metres above sealevel and therefore are far more accessible than most. The best way to experience these natural wonders is to take a guided trek upon them. However, after enquiring about the weather (cloudy and overcast apparently) we decided to give this a miss the next day, but woke to find sunny blue skies - not a common sight on the west coast which is often more appropriately called the 'wet' coast with rain 2 out of 3 days a year and 12 times the annual rainfall of London (and we thought we had it bad!). Having said that, their winter is their driest season. Anyhow, we visited both glaciers, but could only go as
far as the base with normal footwear. Franz Josef is 12km long, a large mass of ice descending down a slope from a snow field on top of the mountain, at a rate of about a metre per day. Following a trip to Fox glacier we carried onto another famous 'postcard' view - Lake Matheson. An enchanting glacial lake, notable for its reflections of New Zealand's (and Australasia's) two highest mountains Mt. Cook and Mt. Tasman. The weather was still sunny and the mountains fairly visible through partial cloud. Suddenly I sneezed and the sound reverberated back around us - our echoed noises becoming a realisation of just how calm and tranquil our surroundings were. In the evening we again indulged in a spa, this time hot thermal pools fed by the glacier, with the natural surroundings of the rainforest.
Having been to see the glaciers, I felt compelled to experience more and we booked the full-day guided hike over Franz Josef glacier after being told the weather would continue to be pretty fine the next day. Never trust the weatherman or more specifically the tourist information guy, as we were frustratingly kept awake that night by the pouring
rain which had not stopped by the morning! It was too late too cancel, they had my card details and would charge me regardless so we had to go. They didn't make us feel any more confident by telling us heavy rain would continue all day, "this is the west coast!". We lined up and changed into the supplied waterproofs and hiking boots before being herded like sheep onto the bus over to the glacier. It was only the second miserable day we'd had in NZ though it was a day that would not be forgotten and for the right reasons. To be fair the rain kept off for the first half of the trip and the experience of walking with crampons was ace. Crampons are mountaineering boot attachments with metal points which grip slippy surfaces refreshingly easy - walking on ice was a breeze, none of that sliding around and falling on your arse! We were split into groups of 11 and our guide would use an ice axe to carve the ice for an easier foothold or to maintain the ice steps that had been previously formed by other guides. Ropes were also used on the steeper sections.
The ice was immense - a unique surrounding that made us feel in a completely different world. On the base of the glacier, the ice was mixed with rock and looked dirty but as we got further up it became beautifully clear blue. Our guide led us through cravices of wall high ice that we could barely squeeze through, as well as ice caves and narrow ice tunnels which we crawled through. Eventually rain and hard hail began to fall and thunder and lightning struck - now we really were bracing the elements Fortunately we had a great guide (something that can make or break a trip) who made up for the weather's shortcomings and the group remained positive.
Continuing south we stopped for the night in Wanaka, more specifically the shores of the stunning Lake Wanaka. However, another postcard morning view was denyed by being rudely awoken by the council at 5 in the morning moving us on after we'd failed to notice the 'no camping' signs! We were lucky it wasn't the police for we could have had a fairly hefty fine! So then, after another couple of hours sleeping in a layby we went over the
road to Wanaka's Puzzleworld, a imaginative world of wacky illusions including a tricky maze to get around. The weather was bright and sunny again thankfully so we went back to Lake Wanaka for some scenic shots before continuing onto Queenstown - "the adventure capital of the world"! On the way our eyes were quickly drawn to a 'Cheesery' and we swiftly pulled over for some free samples before a delicious cheese platter lunch to share. Adjacent to this was a wine-tasting, which we combined with our cheese. The valleys in the area are covered in vinyards and there is a wine-trail specialising in pinot-noir. Queenstown has the most wonderful setting for a town with its snow-capped mountains and calm lake surroundings. The town itself however is very much the tourist town of the south and nearly every window belongs to a tour operator. We started at the top, by catching the Gondola to overlook the incredible panorama surrounding the town. What's more, as with Rotorua, they had a luge at the top and here the scenery was even better - it was hard to keep our eyes on the track!
The next day, we had been hoping to travel
to the famous Milford Sound but unfortunately due to snow and avalanche warnings (as with the previous day) the road was closed so we had to settle for the plethora of choices in Queenstown. In the morning it rained so we found the indoor mini-golf course for some fun puttings. By lunch the sun was out again and we were left in indecision. Queenstown is also the original home of the Bungy jump and now has a fair few to chose from including the Nevis Highwire - the third highest in the world at 134m (440ft). However the indecision of doing a bungy lay in the fact that I have been plagued by a painful muscular ache in my coccyx over the last couple of months and have been having to constantly take pain killers to keep it at bay. After checking with the Bungy instructor though, any risk was extremely unlikely with the pressure from the bungy being away from my back. Having booked myself in as a jumper (sorry mum) and Jessie as a spectator (not a chance I could get her to do it) we got a 4wd bus drive 45 minutes out of town up a
rough dirt track to the middle of nowhere where we gazed in wild wonder at the sheer drop from a cable suspended pod, rocking 134m up over the valley floor. By the time I was next up, the nerves really started to kick in - just standing close to the edge of the lauching platform was enough to send fear into many a mortal, let alone throwing yourself off it! I couldn't look down and I had to go for it without delay otherwise the longer the wait on the edge, the harder it would get. The instructor literally had to tell me to keep edging forwards to the edge, my eyes focused on the mountain in front. By the time he stretched out my arms, I was oblivious to what he was saying and he hadn't got past 3 on the countdown when I dived off (you have to dive rather than jump) - 'shhhhhhhiiiiiiiit!!'. I was finally free though - the fall feeling completely out of this world. Unlike skydiving where you feel more like your flying, this really felt like I was falling, fast! 8 and a half seconds of freefall then the bungy rope bounced back
and the incoming valley river suddenly kicked away for a second burst of feeling release. On the way back up I couldn't stop smiling and couldn't believe I'd done it, especially after I'd said I never would. It was much more of a personal challenge (and far scarier) than a skydive, as I had no-one behind pushing or controlling me.
With two days left we had to start making our way to Christchurch, first stopping off at Mt. Cook for some more fantastic scenery. However, this would only be fantastic if we had the weather, and after waking up to rain we had our finger-crossed it would get better. We couldn't believe our luck as soon as we left Queenstown the weather was clearing, the sun was shining yet again and the peak of Mt. Cook (the highest mountain in Australasia @ 3755m) was clearly visible for what was another breathtaking drive over plains surrounded all around by rugged snow-capped mountains and many a clear blue glacial lake. Unbelievably we had been on the other side of the mountain a few days earlier after what is about an 7 hour drive to get around to the other side. This
is New Zealand though and direct routes are often seldom. After another walk through snow and ice to the Mt. Cook lookout we continued onto Lake Tekapo, stopping for a magical sunset over its clear reflective turquoise waters before finally arriving for the night in Christchurch - the major city of the south island.
Waking up the next day, I was already missing the snow covered mountains and wondering if we really should have bothered leaving the whole last day for a city. We were pleasantly surprised however by Christchurch's gothic revival architecture - much more interesting than other settlements we'd seen. Christchurch was one of the first English colonial outposts in the mid 19th century and therefore was designed to represent a model English society, hence the stylised buildings showing respectability (reminding us of cities such as Worcester and Oxford). It is also known as the 'Garden city' and has centrally focused botanical gardens. However, of particular interest to us was Hagley Park, so named because the whole of New Zealand's Canterbury region was founded by our very own Lord Lyttelton! Only 12,000 miles around the world from the Hagley we know and grew up in! After walking
Getting prepared for some serious rafting!
Sorry there's no more photos on this but my camera aint waterproof (took a few with a throwaway waterproof though)! through the park, checking out the arts centre, market, cathedral and museum we took a scenic drive up into the Port Hills that overlooked Christchurch's port and harbour - Lyttelton. Tonight we have just been for a meal out (for a change) followed by the theatre where we saw some clever improvised stand-up comedy.
And so after travelling 2650 miles over New Zealand (I've driven more miles in Australia and NZ combined than I have done in the UK!) we leave for Fiji today - back to hot sunny beach paradise and another different culture altogether. We're going to miss New Zealand though - what is possibly the most beautiful country in the world.
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