South Island New Zealand Part 2: Boulders and Bungy Jumping

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June 8th 2010

Published: June 30th 2010

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LouiseandJonty

Putting on a brave face!

Kawaura Bridge Bungy, Queenstown

From Lake Tekapo we made our way south through the mountains and the fog to Wanaka, and then Queenstown, the temperature dropping all the time. After two nights freedom camping on Tekapo, where ice was forming on the inside of the Spaceship windows overnight (!) and we wore most of our clothes in bed (!!), we decided powered campsites, so we could get our little radiator up and running, were the only way forward! Oh how we loved the little radiator.

Wanaka was very pretty by the lakeside, but also pretty cloudy and quiet. The weather didn't really lift for the two days we were there so we passed the time mostly around the Outlet Campsite, a nice relaxed place on the lake shore, huddled around the radiator in the kitchen area!

Queenstown by contrast was pretty pumping. A feast of extreme action and outdoor fun, there's even a frisbee golf course in the local park. We'd never seen 'Beware of flying frisbees' signs before we arrived here! Fairly busy as ski season was ramping up, we took a central campsite and grabbed a few beers in the local pub, enjoying a bit of live music, and contemplating the

3 'No way', 2 'can I', 1 'do this' GO!

..and then unbelievably, I threw myself off as Louise, Katie and Dean look on.

bungy jump..

Louise was plainly not interested, but was quite happy to watch me do it. In attempting to fully understand her reluctance I requested further clarification, 'Well you know how you feel about seeing Sex and the City 2?', 'Well that's about as interested as I am in a Bungy Jump'. Enlightened we headed over to the Kawarau Bridge jump a day or so later after I'd put it off a bit, claiming inclement weather.

It all looked pretty straight forward from the viewing area and I was feeling confident. I felt good as they weighed me (93kgs not bad), gave me my ticket and sent me across the bridge to the central platform. It was at this point that I began to feel uneasy. The safety harnass attached, the inevitability of the situation beginning to take hold, and the river below seemingly much further away now, I looked for some reassurance from the young man busy wrapping what looked like a towel round my ankles, 'Oh I'm getting quite good at this now' he says 'I only lose about one a week'. I'm glazing over and wondering what the towel is for...

But then through

I thought I might fly a little

but dropped like a stone!

the haze of apprehension I began responding like I robot . I stood up when I was told, smiled for the camera, stepped forward, looked forward, heard 3,2,1 GO!! and still in two minds about the whole thing threw myself off. The adrenalin lasted all day. The accelaration is a breathtaking 0-140 kms/h in 3 seconds (apparently) and I did indeed struggle to catch a breath until I was recoiling back up thoroughly exhilirated, relieved and totally speechless. I then spent the rest of the day talking about it.

After Queenstown we visited Dunedin for some rather more sedate activites like walking, shopping and general sightseeing. We met Cheryl and Bryan, a lovely couple from Stirling and also in a Spaceship. We spent a few nights chatting and exchanging stories over a few local beers like Monteiths and picked up some tips for Australia. On the way back up to Christchurch the Moaraki Boulders provided a short but very interesting stop. Then we said goodbye to the Spaceship and spent 3 very happy nights in an ensuite room in a central hostel (pure luxury!). When we boarded the plane for Sydney we felt ready for a change but left