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Published: January 26th 2008
Day 48 Friday 11th January 2008 Wellington
A 06.30hrs start this morning to catch the ferry down to the South Island. The crossing of the Cook Straights was reasonably smooth and the first views of the South Island from the Queen Charlotte Sound were awesome. We docked into Picton and the weather was great and we boarded the bus down to Nelson stopping at a vineyard along the way for a bit of wine tasting. From there we drove down to the Perlorus Bridge scenic reserve where Jen and Nick jumped off the bridge in to the river which was about 15 metres below, respect guys. The hostel in Nelson was called the Prince Albert and was very nice. I arranged to hire a self-drive minibus for the following day to take us up to Able Tasmin National Park and then headed in to town with two girls from the bus; Georgia from Coventry and a young girl from Poland whose name escapes me for a few drinks before heading back for an early night.
Day 49 Saturday 12th January 2008 Nelson
The minibus had been delivered to the hotel the previous night and there were ten of
us heading out to the Able Tasmin National Park. Me, Tony, Gemma, Kate, Jen, Nick, Niale and Keera from Island and Joey and Jetta from Denmark. Before we got underway we payed a visit to the market in Nelson and then I drove the 1 ½ hours up to Marahau which is a small seaside town and the gateway to the National Park. We negotiated a good rate for the Water Taxi and headed up to Onetahut taking in Split Apple Rock (a large apple shaped rock that has split and fallen in to two halves) and a few of the bays that adorn the beautiful coastline along the way. The last stop before Onetahut was Tonga Island which is a Marine Reserve and is home to a Seal Colony. The bay and beach were like the perfect picture postcard from Thailand and we relaxed on the beach and took a few dips in the crystal clear water before heading off for a walk along the coastline for a short walk to Tonga Quarry. We arrived back at the beach in time for the Water Taxi back down to Marahau and once again were treated to some fabulous views of
the coastline. We headed back down to Nelson and grabbed some dinner before heading out on the town. I ended up chatting the night away with Gail who is originally from the UK and has lived in NZ for 4 years. We got on great and we may be seeing a little bit more of each other, overall a great day.
Day 50 Sunday 13th January 2008 Nelson
Today we headed down to Westport stopping along the way at Nelson lakes National Park for a walk through the bush down to the shores of Lake Rotoiti which was really nice, just what you would expect in this beautiful South Island. We all had a picnic by the lake before heading to the coast by way of the Buller Gorge which was a great drive with more fantastic views. The weather wasn’t great and at times it did seem like ‘Cuddles’ (our new driver) was testing the limits of the 20 year old Mercedes bus. Westport was for me a little disappointing with not much going on and I took this opportunity to catch up on some much needed sleep. I did surface to watch a film in the
hostel lounge for a couple of hours before completing my 12 hours of sleep.
Day 51 Monday 14th January 2008 Westport
We kicked off today with a short drive down to Cape Foulwind and Tauranga Bay where we went for a coastal walk passing the closest point to Australia and one of NZ’s largest seal colonies along the way, From here it was to Punakaiki (Poo-na-kai-key) or Pancake Rocks and Blowholes which are a series of stratified limestone stacks which, over many thousands of years have been eroded to give the effect of neatly stacked piles of pancakes. The blowhole wasn’t on top form but once again a stunning feature. It was down to Lake Mahinapua from here stopping along the way to pick up a few more passengers. Lake Mahinapua is home to Les’s place which is a bit of an institution on the Kiwi Experience and this would be our stop for the night. A party was planned with a fancy dress theme of the letter ‘P’. With only bin liners to work with I took the easy option and made a Priest’s outfit. Tony looked a little too camp dressed as a punk with a
pink dog collar to boot. Little Jen looked fab dressed as a pixie and along with some posh prostitutes, pumpkins, pirates and lots of others a thoroughly good night was had by all.
Day 52 Tuesday 15th January 2008 Lake Mahinapua
First stop this morning was the Bushman’s centre which gives an insight into how the bushmen of the South Island would shoot and capture deer from helicopters and there is also a small museum. Tony was chosen to feed the resident pig which quite amusingly tried to bite him and chased him out of the pen. After a good cooked breakfast we headed down to Franz Joseph passing lots of kettle lakes along the way. These lakes were created by retreating glaciers that left hugh chunks of ice behind that melted to form these beautiful lakes. Once in Franz Joseph we went for a quick walk to get our first proper view of the glacier before going to book the glacier walk for the following day. Once booked into the hostel I did a load of washing and uploaded my blog for the North Island (as you can see I have been a busy boy and this
was the first chance I got). A few drinks followed before a reasonably early night in anticipation of the hike in the morning.
Day 53 Wednesday 16th January 2008 Franz Joseph
We were all at the Glacier walks office for 09.15hrs to check in and be kitted out with socks, boots, hat, gloves and jacket, not forgetting the very necessary crampons to enable us to walk on ice. We caught a coach up the valley as far as possible and then walked the remaining couple of kilometres to the foot of the glacier which was absolutely gigantic. The pictures just do not do it justice. On with the crampons for the tough walk up the face and through a boulder field which is formed by all the rubble it collects as it advances down the valley. We then hiked up in to the clearer blue and white ice fields where we stopped for lunch. The afternoon was spent making our way through some stunning ice caves and crevasses where we had the chance to take a swim in a little ice lake. I would like to say that I took the opportunity and took the plunge however I
left it to the younger ones and Tony, Kate and Shaun (from Grimsby) had taken there brave pills. We walked back down off the glacier and arrived back in town at about 18.30hrs where we grabbed some dinner and following showers etc. We managed just a couple of beers before an early night. Oh, I nearly forgot Gail, who I met in Nelson is coming down to Queenstown to meet up with me on Friday.
Day 54 Thursday 17th January 2008 Franz Joseph
It was an early start today in order to catch the perfect picture in the reflective waters of Lake Matheson however the weather wasn’t the best and picture postcard opportunity went begging. It was a good breakfast at the cafe though. From here we headed down to Haast and said goodbye to the coastline as we headed up into the mountains into Mount Aspiring National park. The rain was pouring down which made all the waterfalls look quite spectacular as we drove up the pass. We stopped for lunch at Makarora before the stunning drive through the lake district with mountain views all around as we headed for Wanaka which would be our stop for
the night. I had a quick look around the very picturesque town that sits on the shores of Lake Wanaka before we headed off paintballing. We split into two teams, I was with Big Jen’s Big Bazookas’ along with Jen, Gemma, Kate, Karl (another one of the Grimsby lads) and Joe (From England). The opposing team was made up of Tony, Sean, Dan (the last of the Grimsby trio) Cedric (from France) and Justin (from England). We had great fun running through a wood trying to storm each other’s base whilst being shot and shot at. The Bazookas’ took the spoils as we stormed the base with Tony and Sean out of ammunition trying to defend with compressed air, not a good move boys! Later we grabbed some dinner and a few beers before bed.
Day 55 Friday 18th January 2008 Wanaka
Jen’s 21st birthday, well not really but she will be back home when it is her birthday so were having a pretend one. First stop this morning was Puzzling World which is just outside Wanaka. The maze was amazing, you have to find the towers at the four corners and believe me it’s not easy. It
took me 22 minutes to complete which is apparently quite good. The illusion house was pretty good too and the toilets are very strange. Next stop was Cromwell to grab some food and from there we headed around Lake Dunstan and toward the Kawarau Gorge which is home to the Kawarau suspension bridge originally built in 1880 to assist gold miners heading for Queenstown. This is the site of the Kawarau bridge bungy which was the first commercially run site in the world. We stopped here to book our bungy activity over the next few days and viewed a movie about everything bungy. Then guess who turned up, it was Gail who had hired a car and met me here which was good and it gave us chance to have a really good chat as we followed the Kiwi bus down in to Queenstown. We had a team photo on the shores of Lake Wakatipu and then headed for the hostel. The theme for Jen’s party tonight is 80’s so we headed off to Warehouse for suitable costumes. The girls however changed the theme to include the 90’s so that they could get rave outfits. The party was a blast
and Tony, Gemma, and Jen were absolutely wasted by 23.00hrs, Jen being forcefully ejected from the bar TWICE! I was quite happy that Gail was there to keep me off the shots for a night. We ended up calling it a night at about 01.00hrs.
Day 56 Saturday 19th January 2008 Queenstown
It was a late start after a well deserved lie in and following some breakfast me and Gail caught the gondola to the top of the hill above Queenstown where there is a luge ride similar to the one in Rotorua. We had five races down the two excellent tracks and despite her best efforts at cheating Gail only managed to win one race. After lunch we headed out to Arrowtown which is an old gold mining town dating back to the 1800’s. It’s a quaint little village that reminds you a little of the Wild West. Back in Queenstown we had a look around the shops and grabbed 40 winks. Later that night me and Gail went for a Thai meal before a night out on the town which finished at about 3ish.
Day 57 Sunday 20th January 2008 Queenstown
We were up
for around ten and following some breakfast drove to Warehouse to collect some supplies for my onward journey and then back in to town where me and Gail had a few games of pool before we had to say farewell. Gail was flying back up to Nelson for work the next day and I was going white water rafting. We headed on up to the Shotover river for our trip upstream which consisted of a scary bus ride over a mountain and down the side of a valley with sheer drops and very good views. Once there our crew were me, Tony, Karl, Sean, Dan, Katie and one guy from Holland. The trip down the river was nice however the water level was low and the rapids were not that death defying. The closest I came to danger was when the guide turned the boat over on purpose and then, whilst righting it he landed on my head, ouch! We got back to the hostel at about 7ish and following some washing of clothes we all sat in a small park area with drinks and ipod mini speaker music. There ended up being quite a bunch of us and we
were having a great time until the sprinkler system came on at midnight. Never mind we had a few drinks in Altitude bar before heading to World bar for some shots in Teapots with a great round-a-bout picture along the way, a good night that ended around 4ish.
Day 58 Monday 21st January 2008 Queenstown
I had another lie in this morning in anticipation of my bungy jump. I went for breakfast before calling the bank at home who had stopped my card because of the heavy usage overseas, perhaps they are trying to tell me to stop spending so much money. I went down to the lake with Tony, Gemma and Katie for a while before catching the bus to the Nevis Bungy. The Nevis is a gondola that is suspended 134 Metres above a small river and is the highest bungy jump in New Zealand and I think the third highest in the world. Its located in the hills about 40 minutes outside Queenstown. The jump is made from a gondola which is suspended above a gorge with a small river running through. We were taken to the gondola in a small steel cage and fitted
out with all the necessary kit and once attached to the bungy cord I stepped out toward the edge. I nearly fell off when they threw the cord over the front edge (it must weigh a bit) then the guys gave the countdown and I jumped in to sensory overload for the second time in as many weeks. This is very different though, the ground rush is immense and you know just how fast you are approaching the ground. As I reached the bottom I felt like my head was going to explode as all the blood in my body collated in my cranium. So all in all an excellent adrenalin rush. Back in Queenstown the gang was quite depleted and it ended up being a quiet night however I still didn’t manage to get to bed before 2!
Day 59 Tuesday 22nd January 2008-01-25 Queenstown
I got up just in-time to catch the bus for the last time up to Christchurch. The weather was awful and the journey was relatively un-eventful with the views of Mount Cook covered in low cloud. We being me, Jen and Sean arrived into Christchurch at about 16.30hrs and following a freshen
up we were joined by Sarah (who had come up on the bus the previous day) and went for a Chinese before going to a ‘Buskers Night’ where four acts entertained us for a few hours. It was different and surprisingly quite good. Following the show we headed back to the hostel for a few drinks and when they shut we took the girls to a strip club and had a great laugh especially when a half naked girl put her arm around Jen who came out with a great line - “your very beautiful, but I am sorry you are not my type” . The night ended watching a DVD of Shameless back at the hostel.
Summary
I have fallen in love with New Zealand, the south Island in particular is spectacular. Where else on earth can you lie on a beach that looks like it is from Thailand on one day and then walk up a glacier the next. It really does have the WOW factor and every corner you turn gives you another jaw-dropping vista. The people are very friendly and accommodating and I can’t think of a bad thing to say about the place.
I was a touch apprehensive about going on the Kiwi Experience which has a reputation as a very young party bus however I have had a wonderful time with some wonderful people. So, Jen, Tony, Gemma, Katie, Gail and all of the others who I have met along the way - Thankyou for helping make my time in New Zealand so wonderful.
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AJ
non-member comment
Nice shirt, suits you sir !!
Are you really the only Gay in New Zealand ??