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Published: March 18th 2009
Milford Sound
Waterfall + sunlight = rainbow....So, back to Auckland and without a car it was tricky getting to the leafy suburbs of Mount Eden but manage it I did and there was even time to load up on some culture and take in the art gallery before my flight to Queenstown the following day.
As there were no rooms at the (BBH) inns in Queenstown I rented a car and drove in awe at the amazing scenery as I headed thro a place called 'Paradise' on the way to Kinloch. The journey was made better as I only came across 3 cars during the 1.25 hrs that it took me. I checked into a cool hostel which was on a lake with an outdoor hot tub. You're thinking 'mint', and you are indeed correct...
Te Anau Next up was the trip to Te Anau and on the itinerary was the 3 day Kepler trek (my first one on my own, ooooh) and a day trip to Milford Sound. As luck would have it Martina, Caroline and Sarah were on their way to Te Anau too so we headed to MS together the following day.
You are probably wondering what Milford
Kinloch
Road back to Queenstown Sound is, well it's nothing to do with a chap called Milford being a good bloke. 'Sound' means fjord/valley and in this area of NZ you have the choice of 2: Milford and/or Doubtful Sound (I wasn't sure about the latter). So much has been spoken about MS that I had high expectations but as the area is one of the wettest places on earth and gets 250 odd days of rain a year, would we get lucky..? (with the weather)
After about half an hour of the drive there I was bowled over by the scenery. Initially we stopped at 'Mirror Lake' which had a mystical feel about it with the morning mist still hovering around. It seemed that every corner we took the scenery seemed to get better despite thinking it wasn't possible. Mountains, rivers, flora etc etc you name it we saw it (no Reevesie, no pie shops). We also saw some local flightless birds on the way there, called the 'kia', yep the same name as the (flightless) car..
The boat tour was amazing too as we sailed saw waterfalls (including going under one), a host of mountains, gorges, dolphins as well as seals
Kepler Trek
View from Luxmore Hut and their pups.. As there had been rain the previous day the waterfalls were in full flow, even the smaller ones which are often dry. It has to be the most spectacular natural display I have seen to date, so move over the Whitsundays, the Grand Canyon and Leckhampton hill (Cheltenham, Glos).
Next up was the one of NZ's 'Great Walks' the Kepler trek...
Kepler Trek (3 day) After packing the essentials I settled down for some bedtime reading on the thing (the night before, obviously). Whilst Palin had assured me it was an 'easy 3 day hike' I was concerned by the first paragraph in the N Park guide which said, and I quote: 'ideally you should start a fitness program 2 months before you start' ....and then went on to say the trek was 4-5 days.. In response, Palin said (via text) 'stop being a poof, you can do it in 3 days easy'. So there you have it.
I put the book down and filled in the 'return form' (a form detailing when you expect to return back so if you are not back by this time the DOC can alert
your next of kin to really scare the life out of them).. Ominously for me my return date was Friday the13th.
I started the day with the 'Breakfast of Champions'. I'm not going to say exactly what it was but if Coca Cola and Bluebird's Ripples Crisps (chicken flavour) want to sponsor me I'm happy to share this closely guarded secret with the world. All offers welcome (even very low ones).
Day 1 and the climb was pretty much all up hill which meant there were good views at the top and especially from the Luxmore hut, my base for the night. It was pretty cold there too.
Day 2 has the best views of the hike so ideally you need good weather. However the day when I did it the clouds come in which meant the views were limited all along the ridge but the fog and icy wind were in rich supply. It was so cold that after lunch I needed to jog for 15 mins to get warm again (not on the spot). There were some good views on the descent to Iris Burn hut tho.
Day 3 was all flat but pretty
Queenstown
View from my paraglide cool as it was in a valley floor and followed a river for the last hour or so. As I made in good time I was able to relax in the sun whilst I waited for the bus to take me back to Te Anau.
Queenstown So Feb 14th and no cards, but post was particularly bad this year in NZ, apparently. Next up was the bus ride back to QT where I headed to the top of the Gondola (chairlift) for great views and the 'Luge'. The what?
This is a type of bobsleigh only it's on concrete not ice, the things you sit on (like trays) have wheels not blades, the track is pretty wide and you go about a 1/20th of the speed. So only a bit like a bobsleigh then but you get the idea, I'm sure.
I had hired a car from 'Ace' car rentals and only appreciated the irony when I was led to my 1980s Toyota saloon car (in white). It would however be my home for the next 10 days tho and did boast an FM radio tho, so not all bad.
The 5 hour
Queenstown
A paraglider drive to the Catlins was going to for some coastline and dolphin swimming but before this I stayed in a cool little farmstay with chickens/lambs etc. The coastal areas didn't have dolphins and seals when I dropped by the following morning (they'd been tipped off) so I wasn't able to swim with the buggers. But to be honest if they had been there I'm not convinced I would have gone in as the water was icy.
Back to Queenstown (via Arrowtown) and time for a paraglide. For this you go to the top of the gondola and if you're lucky they swipe your credit card before you get the chance to change your mind. That day I was in luck.
As I headed to the launch point I wondered if I would get the sail with 'KFC' on it (there was one) but whilst ours was in red and white (the instructor was Danish) it didn't have the Colonel's smiling face on it. This didn't detract from the fear as he said (the instuctor, not the Colonel) 'right let's walk towards the edge and the wind should fill the sails'. And true to his word, the sails filled
Wanaka
View from Mount Roy and we were off.
The views and the experience were amazing as we zig zagged and spun earthwards catching the odd thermal wind to go up too. For a bit of fun we pulled a few gs on the way down and ended up by landing the rugby pitch at the bottom.
Wanaka & Mount Roy (day walk) Then the mountainous drive to picturesque Wanaka. Like Queenstown this place has a number of adventure activities but it is much smaller and more chilled. As well as the outdoor stuff this place also has a cinema, but not an ordinary cinema, oh no.. 'Paradiso cinema' is a little bit out of the ordinary. It is a funky little place where they have sofas instead of seats (one of which is in a yellow VW Beetle) and you can also order some home cooked food which they bring you during the interval (or at the start if you're hungry, or at the start and the interval if you´re Reevesie). There is also a place called Puzzle World which has a series of illusions and then an outdoor maze set on 2 levels.
Starting the following day
Wanaka
Paradiso Cinema by me hearing that I had a speeding fine from Oz was a bit of a bummer, but this didnt' detract from the plans to head to Mount Roy (other than driving there in second gear). The climb was a zig zag path up the mountain and the views at the top were possibly the best that you could hope for in a one day walk..
I then headed north (again slowly) via Mount Aspiring and once again some MORE amazing scenery on the way to an area with not one, but TWO glaciers...
Fox and Franz Josef Glaciers For these bad boys you have many choices on how to do it: via a guided tour walk, a helicopter ride over it or heli hike (where you get to have a ride up to high part of glacier then get to walk on it). So, 'When in Rome' and all that, I thought as I signed up for the heli hike. However the weather turned bad...boo...and it was called off....booooo... and would stay that way for the next seven days (ie rest of my time in NZ)........you couldn't write this stuff..
So I went
to see the glaciers on own, which was (obviously) much cheaper (ie free). It was amazing tho. The noise and movement plus the icy water gushing out of the bottom made it a memorable experience and after first hearing about glaciers when I was 12yrs old it was good to finally see one (well 2 actually).
Next up a night in Hokitika before Arthur's pass. Arthur's what?
Arthur's Pass Nothing to do with an old bloke trying it on, it is in fact the drive from west to east which has great views and a strenuous one day hike the middle (called 'Avalanche Peak'). I can't however comment accurately on any of this stuff as the weather continued to affect my plans and it was cloudy/rainy all day. It wasn't all bad tho as (a) I was still sore from Mount Roy (b) Avalanche Peak is a bit of a killer and (c) I now had a perfectly valid reason for not doing it. Get in..
So, back in Christchurch with 5 days left in NZ but with more bad weather forecast. hmmm. I could have stayed put (and it was tempting as there
was a BK a stone's throw from the hostel) but I decided to drive to Mount Cook stopping at Lake Tekappo on the way there.
Mount Cook and Mueller 'the' Hut (day walk) When I arrived at Mt Cook the weather was still pretty bad. I went to the DOC office and they advised against climbing to Mueller Hut that day as no one else had done it, but to wait til midday for the latest weather forecast.
Off to the cafe then to pass a couple of hours over a cuppa. After a long drive, bad weather, my previous two climbs off and this one hanging in the balance, the cafe's choice of music that morning - David Gray - was nearly enough to tip me over the edge.
Lunchtime and the weather didn't clear up so I went off to check out a glacial lake with Anne (NI) which turned out to be a fantastic afternoon and wasn't affected by the weather. Me 1 Weather 0.
The following morning and even though the weather wasn't ideal I decided to climb up to Mueller Hut. When I asked what the climb was
like I was told (by the DOC office) that it was steep and 'like climbing stairs for 4 hours', but hey I had poles and at least I wouldn't get overtaken.
Luckily for me it was pretty cold but which was good as the first part was pretty strenuous. At the halfway point most stopped for views but I kept going, and as I saw some peeps following me I wouldn't be totally alone. As I carried on, the cloud came in and I had difficulty seeing the markers. It was eerily quiet and with no-one behind me (they had either turned back or were slowing down) and no-one ahead of me. I kept going.
At the ridge at the top I actually lost markers and then heard an avalanche, well 3 actually. This part was quite nervy as I didn't know if I was at risk (especially on the way back) and I didn't have enough gear to stay overnight at the hut (which I still hadn't found). I considered going back down but found markers again and then the hut. Phew..
It was icy cold and I needed to wear my hat and gloves despite
being inside the hut. I was rewarded with brief views of Mount Cook when the clouds parted and they were fantastic. Before I left, the wardens told me to stick to the markers cos 3 weeks ago someone didn't and they slipped and died. A handy tip. Then the descent and great views before the drive back to Christchurch with a night at Methven on the way.
Christchurch So I had a couple of days in Christchurch to sort myself out before I headed towards my next destination....French Polynesia. 'But did they speak French and serve baguettes?' I thought. All I did know about this place was that it got into a BBC list of 'places to see before you die' (this was about as much as my initial research involved in July 2008)......But what would my 'proper' research uncover, which I started doing 36 hrs before my flight.......trust me it wasn't good.. so no doubt you'll like the next blog...(altho, as always, no promises..)
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Deano
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The man is on form...
Ginge.... Just like Liverpool's form of late you have just had a stormer. Cracking read and some amazing picks. Brings me back to my days in NZ - the Cinema in Wanaka is just quality. Definatley missed out on some pun jokes of Wanaka though ?!?! Not sure what is happening on the picture front - I am taking a pasting. That one of you leaning is awesome. Anyways - keep the updates coming, always good to escape the corporate world if only for a few minutes. Peace out. Roy