Snowboarding and exploring Fjordland in New Zealand

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After the 3 hour flight from Sydney I landed in Christcurch for the last leg of my trip. Having last been in Christchurch 9 years ago I wasn’t sure what to expect as the bus carried me into the city. After the devastation caused by the earthquakes last year I thought I would see a lot of rubble and construction work ongoing. What I actually saw was somewhat surprising as many of the buildings affected were still standing, waiting to be safely demolished. This meant that a large part of the city centre was cordoned off for safety reasons, with the area feeling a ghost town, barely anybody walking around the streets on a Tuesday morning.

After a long walk I found the guest house, which turned out to be a really nice little place, feeling more like a homestay than a hostel. The staff were all very friendly and I spent the afternoon relaxing in the lounge watching the Olympics, as the heavy rain and building work combined to make the thought of a walk round the city seem less appealing.

My stay in Christchurch was short lived as I was back at the airport the next day to fly down to Queenstown. The 30 minute flight with Jetstar was the same price as the 7 hour coach journey, making the decision a bit of a no brainer. As we flew down towards Queenstown we had a great view of the Southern Alps capped in snow and the view from the airport was no less spectacular with the Remarkables mountain range rising up only a couple of miles away from the landing strip.

A transfer bus took me to my accommodation, Pinewood Lodge, a large hostel spread across a number of buildings, where I had booked a double room. The lodge was a short walk from the town centre and I soon headed off for a walk into town to have a look round and see what was on offer in the nearby ski resorts. It was a refreshing change to be in the clear, crisp mountain air after the months spent in the heat and humidity of Asia and I was keen to hit the slopes after missing out on a ski trip in the Winter.

Queenstown has so much on offer for the adrenaline junkie, from bungy jumps and sky dives to jet boat rides and everything in between. Last time I was here though I had spent much of my time out hiking as I had pretty much run out of money. This was hardly a chore though given the incredible scenery around the town.

Having checked out a number of hire shops and prices, I decided to book a couple of days of lift passes for the Cardrona ski fields for the Friday and Saturday, leaving me free on Thursday to head for a walk up to the top of the Queenstown gondola. The walk was hard work but well worth the effort for the views from the top, looking back down over the town, Lake Wakatipu and the Remarkables off in the distance. I had wanted to carry on up to the top of Ben Nevis, the 2,330m peak was one I had done before but sadly the amount of ice and snow about made it too tricky so I was content to sit and enjoy the afternoon sunshine with a hot chocolate while I took in the views.

It was an early start on the Friday with a 7:20 pick up from the lodge for the transfer out to the ski field. The lifts opened at 9 but frustratingly we didn’t get to the resort until closer to half past due to the slow speed the coach could manage up the steep and winding mountain roads. Having got to the top of the chair lift I was wandering if I would remember what I was doing on my board having had 18 months without hitting the slopes. This time though it came back to me pretty quickly and I was soon linking my turns down a few green slopes as I warmed up. I spent the two days exploring as much of the mountain as I could, as well as watching people on the half pipe and being impressed by the Austrian ski team who were over practising some slalom.

The field itself was not very big in comparison with the much larger European resorts I was used to and it didn’t take too long to cover what I could, though I left some of the harder blacks as I didn’t feel comfortable enough on my board yet to attack them. Despite the lack of variety it was still great to be back on the slopes, enjoying the views and the rush that comes with throwing yourself down a mountain. The end of the day came all too quickly both days but I definitely felt it as my muscles were stiff and sore by the end of it.

A change of pace came on the Sunday with a stroll around the lake and the botanical gardens, followed by a Sunday roast, with all the trimmings and a couple of pints of dodgy Guiness in the ever present Irish bar. Monday and Tuesday were fairly relaxing too, with a trip out to Arrowtown, a village nearby that grew up as a result of gold being discovered in the Arrow river, leading to an influx of prospectors panning for gold. I had come here before as part of the Tour of the Rings in 2003 when I panned for gold at the spot in the river which was used to film the scene in The Fellowship of the Rings where Frodo is carried over the river into Rivendell by Liv Tyler. This time though I just enjoyed a 3 hour walk along the river and over some of the hills surrounding the village before heading back into Queenstown to sample the world famous Fergburger. This burger joint is open 23 hours a day and serves up a variety of top quality burgers to a constant horde of customers. The wait was well worth it though as the double Fergburger with blue cheese was definitely one of the best I have ever had, if not the best.

By Wednesday morning I was ready to move on and I picked up the hire car I had got for the next few days and began the long drive across to Milford for a trip out onto Milford Sound. This was something I had really wanted to do on my last trip but had missed out on due to the lack of funds. The drive was incredible, along the shores of Lake Wakatipu at first and then through the mountains, with many stops along the way for photographs at the various look out points. Finally, after 4 hours of driving the car made its way through the 1 in 10 tunnel under the mountains and down into Milford, where I was booked in to stay at the Milford Lodge. After checking in I took a quick walk round to the edge of the Sound for a sneak preview of what was to come the following day and I wasn’t disappointed, Mitre Peak looked intimidating and broody covered in high cloud. I hoped the weather would improve for my boat trip though.

When I woke up I feared the worst as there was a lot of low cloud around and I worried I wouldn’t get the great views of the Sound I had been waiting so many years for but I needn’t have worried as the cloud liftes and by the time the boat pulled out onto the water at 9:30 it was a glorious morning with plenty of blue sky and fluffy white clouds surrounding the steep mountain peaks alongside the Sound.

The trip lasted 90 minutes and I spent the whole time enjoying the views as we floated past, taking tens of photos and video clips and keeping myself warm with hot coffee as, despite the sunshine it was still bitterly cold out on the water. The Sound didn’t let me down, it was definitely one of the most impressive views I have seen and the only disappointment was not seeing any dolphins in the water. We did however stop to take photos on a number of seals who were basking in the sunshine and sleeping on some exposed rocks. I was so pleased I had finally got to see this place, which was somehow completely missed by Captain Cook when he sailed up the coast of New Zealand and was only later discovered by a welsh explorer looking for shelter for his boat. He named the Sound, which is actually a fjord, after the Welsh town of Milford Haven…..I cant think of two more contrasting places!

When the boat got back to the marina I didn’t have time to hang around as I had to get started on the long drive back past Queenstown to Wanaka, where I was booked in for more snowboarding, this time at Treble Cone.

Wanaka is another stunning little town, set on the shores of Lake Wanaka with mountains in the background, offering plenty of photo opportunities as the sun set over the peaks. It also offered up a cracking bar with half priced beers at happy hour so I had a few pints and then tucked into some fish and chips to make for the many hours behind the wheel of the car.

Treble Cone was quite different to Cardrona and wasn’t ideal as the many non groomed slopes had a hard crust on top of them which isn’t great to be on when you are on a board. The groomed blue and red slopes were fine though so I stuck to those for most of the day and also decided to try my hand in the fun park, where I successfully did my first ever rail and landed a couple of small jumps (I also totally wiped out on plenty and had a number of painful landings as my reward!). I cant wait for my next ski trip in the Winter where I can hopefully start landing some 180’s!

On Saturday it was time to return the car back to Queenstown and I checked into Reavers Lodge, another hostel close to town which offered a free spa, which was a godsend for my aching legs! I spent the last few days in Queenstown relaxing, walking and playing a bit of Frisbee golf, with another trip tot the Irish Bar for Sunday dinner. I should have tried to get to another town or booked a couple of activities but by this point I had one eye on my bank balance and the new roof I new I needed when I got back home.

By the time I got to Tuesday and the flight to Auckland I was dreading returning home. The last month in Australia and New Zealand seemed to have flown by and as much as I was looking forward to seeing my family and friends, I wasn’t ready for the trip to end and the impending return to work! I spent the 36 hour journey back to London reflecting on the last few months, the many amazing places I had been and the great people I had met along the way. Just a few of the highlights that sprang to mind were:




• Floating down the Mekong for 2 days in Laos with such a nice group of people, seeing how the huge river formed such an important part of the lives of all those who lived along its banks.



• The stunning waterfalls outside Luang Prabang……even despite the problems with my bike!



• Tubing and partying in Vang Vieng, such a unique place



• Cruising Ha Long Bay with the Hanoi Backpackers party boat. What a crazy 2 days spent with a great boat full of people from all over the world.



• The sobering experience of walking the Killing Fields outside Pnomh Penh, it still amazes me to think how incredibly friendly the Cambodian people are after what they have gone through so recently.



• The majesty of dawn breaking over Angkor Wat and walking around the stunning temple complex.



• The whole experience of my Divemaster, it was an unforgettable 3 months, spent diving with some really great people at Master Divers and meeting so many like minded people. The single highlight of the trip was undoubtedly diving with a whale shark in May, being in the water with the biggest fish in the world was something I felt very lucky to experience. The nights out weren’t too bad either!



• The full moon party on Kho Phangnang with the Irish gang, a crazy couple of nights with a cracking group….even if they did keep calling me gramps and old man.



• Diving the Gili Islands. This was probably the single best dive I have done, with two big reef sharks, loads of turtles and rays, not to mention the masses of colourful fish.



• Being able to attend Tom and Emma’s wedding in Singapore and to watch the sun set over the city from the top of the Marina Bay Sands.



• The wine tasting weekend in Margaret R?iver, staying in a great remote cottage and trying some fantastic wines and ports with 3 of my best friends.



• Enjoying the scenery of the East Coast in the camper van, staying in the middle of nowhere in the National Park and being back in Byron Bay.



• The boat trip on Milford Sound, with the gorgeous backdrop to the fjord offered by the towering snow capped peaks.



All of these experiences have made me realise just how fortunate I was to get the opportunity to go on this trip and they have given me a lot of food for thought about the future…..who knows, maybe I will be heading off again sooner rather than later. For now, all I can do is thank everyone I met along the way who helped me have the trip of a lifetime, I hope I stay in contact with at least some of you and who knows, maybe we will meet again somewhere!!!

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