Queen Charlotte Sound

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We just returned from a three-day tramping adventure through the Queen Charlotte Sound in the northern part of the South Island of New Zealand. Far and away it was the best experience of this trip so far. Over those three days, we hiked over 60 kilometers through some of the most goregous scenery I've ever seen.

Day 1: Furneaux Lodge -> Camp Bay. Flat & muddy, ferns. Grassy farms with cattle, sheep, and rooster!

Day 2: Camp Bay -> The Portage. BEST DAY EVER. Up & down, up & down, over and over and over. Best part was the aptly named Eatwell's Lookout, where we had our daily serving of tramp shmear (peanut butter, boyenberry jelly, and nutella sammie) and got a 360-degree view of both the Queen Charlotte Sound and the Kenepuru Sound. It was absolutely breathtaking. The rest of the day was through high woody beech forests, grasslands with beautiful flowers that we named purple bells, and a little bit of hairy trees as we descened into The Portage. We also saw lots of weka (which we named "ugly birds" before we found out what they were), bellbirds, and there was a suspected kiwi sighting too. Near the docks at Camp Bay/Portea we also saw a zillion starfish, mollusks, and fishies in crystal clear waters. We were in the Garden of Eden, paradise, a utopia.

Day 3: The Portage -> Arakiwa. We arose when a cacophany of sociopathic birds started their morning chimes at around 5am. We ignored them for as long as possible, until about 7, after which it could no longer be denied that we had to depart. The first part of this was really nice, through some grassy hills that had just been mowed with amazing views of the turquoise waters. A lot of it was downhill and we kind of skipped down the switchbacks really quickly. Which (no surprises here) completely did me in, and I spent the final six kilometers in a haze of immeasurable ankle pain. Today I'm taking Advil and wearing an ace bandage on one ankle, so that it feels ok but the other one hurts now.

Things I learned along the way:
1) When camping, hot water can always be obtained from a nearby hostel's unlocked kitchen, free of charge.
2) I should have packed my real hiking boots.
3) Take downhills very slowly and do not bound or leap from rock to rock, as you will be in much pain later on.

I will have photos up on my Picasa very shortly so you can share in the wonders. Now we're recovering by pampering ourselves in Nelson with real meals (the kiwi seem to have a fascination with Thai food) and will be on our way southwards towards the glaciers later today.

Also, what is a milepost called, if it's measuring kilometers?

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Comments

[Doreen O]

metaphysical..
loved the query "what's a milepost..." gotta chew on that one! have fun