From Mordor to Your Door

---

Greetings wizards, orcs and ents. We are writing from beautiful New Zealand, know for many things: astonishingly beautiful scenery, sheep farming, kiwis (both birds and fruits) sand flies, and (most recently) as the setting for Peter Jackson's "Lord of the Rings" films. Now, we're not really SciFi/Fantasy people, but we did enjoy the movies and can't help getting caught up in our gorgeous surroundings. It really is an otherworldly kind of natural beauty that pervades the outdoors here in New Zealand.
Flying in from Sydney to Christchurch and particularly on the connecting flight to Queenstown (our first New Zealand stop) we got our first taste of the splendour of the kiwi landscape: emerald green valleys and expanses of lakes guarded by snowcapped mountains looking like blankets draped over the countryside. Bob Ross could not paint such scenes. We took about thirty pictures before the plane touched the tarmac.
Upon arrival, we made our way to our hostel in the center of Queenstown. Even though Queenstown is a tourist mecca here in New Zealand, it is surprisingly small (about 7500 people), so it has more of the feel of a ski town (which it kind of is). Queenstown sprawls along the immense Lake Wakatipu and is surrounded by 1200-1500 meter peaks of the Remarkable Mountains. It the most stunning setting we've probably seen yet on this trip. We stopped to get a quick meal of Thai food before proceeding on to the Base X hostel where we got a surprisingly nice double room with a great view for about US$60.
We woke up at about 10 am the next morning and had our lunch at a burger joint just a block away from our hostel called Fergburger (www.fergburger.com). The burgers were big, juicy and delicious on large buns with delicious toppings. I liked them a lot, but Cosmina didn't really care for them. We found out later, from some travellers from the UK that we met, that this place is world famous. We had no idea.
Once we had our fill, we went to the travel desk of our hostel to book our rental car and our seats on the Shotover Jet. The Shotover Jet is, aside from the jaw-dropping scenery and bungee-jumping (which was actually invented in Queenstown), the number-one experience in New Zealand's "Adventure Capital". It is a jet boat that seats about 20 passengers and operates just like a big jetski. It has an internal propulsion motor and skims along the top of the water, making it surprisingly agile with the ability of doing 360-degree spins. The Shotover Jet takes passengers along the scenic Shotover River which is surrounded by mountains, but at times the river is enclosed on both sides by rocky gorge walls. As the driver navigates his way through the tight gorge at about 50 mph, he comes within a few inches of the rocks and throws in some 360-degree spins just in case you weren't already scared. It was all good fun. Check out the website www.shotoverjet.com or the videos posted above.
When we got back to town, glad to be alive, we decided to hike up to the top of the small mountain that serves as the back drop of the downtown area. Most tourists take a "gondola" cable-car to the top, but the exercise-conscious (and cheap) ones will choose to hike to the top. After about 45 minutes of uphill hike, we reached the top, where there is a big restaurant/bar/overlook terrace. We had a beer and soaked in the amazing views of the surrounding mountains and Lake Wakatipu. Then we took the gondola to the bottom and finished off the day with a nice steak dinner (our first of the trip).
The next day (October 11), I woke up and went for a run along the lake, then we both packed up and checked out of the hostel. We left our bags there and went for a nice long walk along the lake and into the Queenstown Gardens park. The landscape never failed to move us. It is what we'd expect Alaska to look like, if we could compare it. Then we went to a fish and chips stand by the lake and enjoyed some salt-and-vinegar goodness. By 3:00 our car rental company picked us up, we signed all our forms, and by 4:00 we were on our way. New Zealand is also a country that drives on the left with the steering wheel on the right. I had my practice during our road trip in South Africa. However, our rental car in SA had the turn signal stick on the left of the steering wheel (like we're used to). In NZ, the turn signal is on the right, so for the first day every time I wanted to signal a turn my windshield wipers would turn on instead.
Our plans for the road trip was to start in Queenstown (near the southwest corner of the South Island) and drive a little farther south to the Fiordlands National Park (NZ's largest) to do an overnight fiord boat cruise ("fiord" is the NZ spelling of fjord). Then we would proceed northward along the South Island's west coast, take the ferry over to Wellington on the North Island and continue northward to Auckland where we fly out to Fiji on October 21.
Our first day of driving was short, and it took us only a couple hours to get to the fiord gateway town of Te Anau. Since it is off-season now, the town was very quiet and half of the restaurants and shops were closed. We found a little place to get some pizza and then took in the new Morgan Freeman movie "Feast of Love" (we both enjoyed it and would recommend it) and went to sleep in the equally recommended YHA hostel in Te Anau -- a great, clean place to spend a night!
The next morning, we checked out of the hostel, had some brunch and made the 20-minute drive to Manapouri--a very small town from which we would take our boat cruise. The South Island of New Zealand is very rural and sparsely populated and the fiordlands area is only reachable by a couple roads. Of the two most tourist-accessible fiords (Doubtful Sound and Milford Sound), Doubtful sees the least amount of tourists. Even though neither really sees THAT much tourist traffic (particularly this time of year since they are just coming out of their winter season here), we decided to see Doubtful Sound. It was a great decision, because for the entire overnight cruise we took through "Real Journeys" on the Fiordland Navigator ship, we never saw another boat and felt like we had the whole fiord to ourselves.
We, the seventy people on the cruise, boarded a small boat first that would take us across Lake Manapouri which was an event in itself because it is surrounded by mountains and mists -- a great trip just on its own. When we reached the other side about 40 minutes later, we boarded a bus that drove us another 40 minutes to the inland tip of Doubtful Sound. The bus took us up and over the mountains past waterfalls and forests so old that the trees were covered with so much moss that their width was doubled by it. We reached the Sound, and boarded the cruise ship. Cosmina and I booked for a "quad-share" room with two bunk beds that we shared with another couple. The bedrooms were small, but really nice and clean with all-wooden furniture. The large dining room with attached observation room was surrounded by windows for viewing the scenery. Really, a very nice ship.
We started by cruising up the fiord for about an hour and then took a left into a narrower arm of the fiord ("Crooked Arm") where we dropped anchor and were allowed the opportunity to kayak in peace. It was rather cold (perhaps about 50 Fahrenheit) and drizzly, so Cosmina joined the group going on a tour with the dinghy and I joined the kayak group. What an incredible experience. Even though it was a little cold and wet, being out on the fiord with no noise but the sounds of paddling and waterfalls was incredible. The narrow Crooked Arm was enclosed with breathtaking green 1200 meter peaks, moss and fog giving it a calm, ethereal feel. After about an hour on the water, I returned to the ship wet but with a huge grin. Then we cruised to the mouth of the Sound (where it reaches the Tasman Sea), and came close to some rock-islands where we saw seals and penguins hanging out.
We spent the next couple hours drying off and talking to some new friends: Noel, a fifty-something New Zealand sheepfarmer, and his wife; and Ben and John, two friendly twenty-something British guys. Noel and his wife were traveling with a bunch of pretty rowdy people. Though certainly not the youngest people on the ship, they were the most fun and we all had a lot of laughs. The six of us had dinner together, when it was served. Delicious carved beef and lamb, potatoes, salad and fantastic desserts and cheeses. The food was outstanding and we all had seconds.
As the sun went down and the scenery disappeared, we had beers and talked until about 11:00 when it was time to hit the sack because they would turn the engine on to wake us up at 6:45 the next morning. We all got showered up and enjoyed a great breakfast of eggs, bacon, sausage, beans and grilled tomatoes (a real British-style breakfast). Then we cruised into another arm of the Sound (Hall Arm) where they turned off the ships engines and we all enjoyed five minutes with no engines, talking, or picture-taking. Everyone was quiet and just enjoyed the scenery and peace.
We then continued on toward shore, took the bus back through the mountains and the boat across Lake Manapouri to complete the trip. We really enjoyed it. For the off-season price of a quad-share room, it worked out to US$275 for the two of us. With the lodging, delicious food and kayaking, we thought it was really a good deal and would recommend the Real Journeys company for the Doubtful Sound overnight cruise to anybody.
Back in the ol' rental car around noon, we had a couple nice meat pies for lunch (something we enjoyed in both South Africa and NZ for a quick, cheap lunch). Then we continued driving along Route 6 for about eight hours all the way to the Fox Glacier. The scenery as we drove through the mountains, lakes and sheep pastures along Rt. 6 was a truly unforgettable experience. Anybody visiting New Zealand would be remiss to pass over the southwest section of the South Island. We finally arrived at the Fox Glacier village a bit after dark. We checked into our hostel (Ivory Towers) and got a quick bite at Cafe Neve before turning in for the night.
There are two main glaciers on the west coast of the South Island: Franz Josef and Fox. We decided to do Fox Glacier simply because it was the first one we got to (Franz Josef would have been a half hour further north). It was strange to have glaciers there, because, though it isn't exactly warm this time of year, you don't expect to find glaciers in this part of the world. The glaciers have been around for hundreds of years and advance or recede by meters every year (depending on the relative amount of snowfall to thaw). The terminal face of the Fox Glacier is now in an advancing stage. When we saw where the face had been a few decades ago (about a couple kilometers plus from where it is now) it was pretty amazing. The glacier is 13km long today and you can still see some of the rocks and dirt that it has carved through over the years in its sides. This actually gives the grey-streaked sides of the glacier a "dirty" appearance contrasting with some of the beautiful whites and blues you see on top of it (causing Cosmina to comment that they should wash the glacier more often).
We signed up for a half-day guided glacier walk. We met our guide, Passang, a native of Nepal who spends half the year in NZ and the other half leading treks in the Himalayas of Nepal. We were then bussed to a lot within a kilometer or so of the terminal face of the glacier. We proceeded to take a path for about a one-hour hike alongside the glacier to put us more "in the middle" of it. The foliage and forest along this pathway looked more like mossy rainforest than what you'd see next to a glacier. We finally finished the initial hike, were given a walking stick, and strapped on our crampons (basically icewalking spikes you strap onto your boots) and started walking up the glacier. The tour company makes it easier for us hikers by carving steps into the tricky areas of the glacier. Since the glacier is constantly moving and changing shape (by centimeters every day) they have to recarve the steps every morning and there are always at least a couple guys with chainsaws and pickaxes carving new steps. The amount of damage (you kinda have to keep reminding yourself that the glacier isn't actually a living being) is very minimal, and makes for a safer walk. We probably spent about an hour walking the glacier -- over it, through crevasses and taking pictures. It was fun, but we were both pooped afterward.
When we were finished and had de-cramponed, we hopped back in the car and drove onward up the west coast. The scenery gradually got a little less dramatic the farther we got from the fiorlands, but there was still plenty to see. One stop we made along the way was in Paparoa National Park where we heard about these interesting seaside rock formations known as the "Pancake Rocks". Through a process called "stylobedding", the horizontal strata of rock are eroded in a manner that makes them look kinda like a stack of pancakes. I tried looking up "stylobedding" on Wikipedia and Google, and the only references I found were to the Pancake Rocks, so I have a feeling this is all made up and isn't a real geologic term. I'll have to put it to my buddy John, who is doing his geology grad school at Penn State, to tell me if this is the real deal or not. Either way, it was a really stunning sight, and the pictures don't do it justice.
We spent the night in the small town of Westport which is a small town with not a lot going on at first glance, but the next morning we drove ten minutes toward the sea where we'd heard that there is a big seal colony on the rocks there. They've actually built this long, beautiful wooden walkway that takes you about a kilometer to a sort of balcony/observation deck overlooking the seals. There were probably about 30 or so seals, and we spent about 45 minutes watching them play, fight, swim and back. It was really fun,and not something usually on the tourist radar here (it wasn't in our guidebook).
After a few more hours of driving, on October 15th, we reached Picton. This is where the South Island's ferry dock for the Interislander Ferry is. Then next day we were scheduled to drive our car onto the ferry to take us to the city of Wellington on the North Island. Picton is a small but nice town. There are outdoor activities like boating and trekking that are fun to do here. However, with our time running low in NZ, we want to make sure we have enough time to explore the North Island before we leave, so we couldn't linger.
We stayed in the Villa Hostel and made a home-cooked dinner in the kitchen. This is our first self-catered dinner on the trip. We had intentions of cooking for ourselves a little throughout the trip, but after everything is bought at the grocery store you find out that you could have had a cheap dinner out for the same price and wouldn've saved an hour -- so why bother.
The next day we woke up, started writing this blog entry, and then drove our car onto the Interislander Ferry. It was a three hour journey, but the ferry was so comfortable we didn't mind. There is an onboard movie theater, a food court, a cafe and a TV room among other sitting areas. We sat down in the TV room and had some cappuccino which was surprisingly delicious. If you want a really good cappuccino, forget Starbucks ... we recommend the Interislander Ferry Cafe. And it was only US$2.30 apiece. We did some reading and watched a little Discovery Channel on TV (we've found that people in Australia and NZ are big "Mythbusters" fans for some reason, though we prefer "American Chopper").
Even though we were taking the ferry from the South Island to the North Island, we were travelling in a southeasterly direction rather than north. This is because the islands overlap each other in such a way that we had to "travel south to get north". We finally arrived in Wellington and after a torturous drive (Wellington is very difficult to find one's way around), we finally checked into the downtown YHA where we are as we are writing this. For the next few days we will explore the North Island.
Now that we're essentially on the other side of the globe, I was reminded of an interesting website I saw before we started the trip: "If the Earth Were a Sandwich" www.zefrank.com/sandwich/ ... On it you'll find a google map tool that lets you enter a point on the globe (Webster, NY, for example) and it gives you the polar opposite point on the other side of the globe. Then people post a picture of a piece of sandwich bread on the ground in their hometown and then another of a slice of bread on the opposite side of the globe (essentially making a sandwich out of the earth). Just one of those useless and entertaining things on the internet. We thought about doing this, but when we entered anyplace in New York, the opposite is somewhere in the southwest Indian Ocean near Perth, Australia. Actually, I don't think it works for anywhere in the continental US. But still fun.

---

Photos

Kiwi Bird
The national bird of New Zealand

View of "Remarkable Mountains"
From our room at "Base Backpackers"

Shotover Jet
In mid spin

World Famous Ferg Burger
Ginormous!

Hiking to Overlook Mountain
Taking a break in an organic chair.

At the Top
View of Queenstown

Queenstown
Town and Lake Wakatipu

Snow Capped "Remarkable Mountains"
In Queenstown

Tree Fort
We climbed a small tree and watched the sunset over Queenstown

There is No Greater Love...
Than a man and his sheep.

Lake Manapouri
On the way to Doubtful Sound

Fiordland Navigator
Our home on the Doubtful Sound

Comments

[Kathy]

Totally Jealous
Hey guys, i've been following your blog and all i can say is "WOW" You guys r so lucky to see such beautiful scenery i actually feel like im there!! The pics are great keep them coming....And Aaron you are quite the tour guide thank you...Miss you Cosmina....talk to u soon... Kathy

[Leslee]

Jim says "hey"
Just reading about your adventures, Jim wanted me to tell you "hey". I am so enjoying living vicariously through your travels! Glad to see such a stylish ski hat, Cosi--was that on the original pack list??? Take care--Leslee

[anuraj]

Interesting article!
Hey! Was interesting reading your article. I thought it would be perfect for my forum. I am passionate about traveling and i believe traveling is for everyone. Which is why i figured it would be great if people who are passionate about traveling could share tips about traveling cheap, a site which would not be owned by some big company trying to tell you that budget traveling is about staying in a hotel room that costs US$ 100 per day! Anyways, do check out my website www.BudgetTraveller.Info and i would love to have you contributing to it :) I think your experiences can make traveling better for tons of people around and i want to take budgetTraveller to a place where people would know that they would be able to find that information here! Thanks again...