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Published: January 29th 2008
Aotearoa, or the Land of the Long White Cloud, the Maori name for New Zealand. We have had an amazing but exhausting time here over the past six weeks. We've driven over 6,000km, completed a number of New Zealand's tramps, boated on both Milford and Doubtful Sounds, and kept my parents entertained for the 1st three weeks of our time here - no easy task! There's a lot to tell you, so put the kettle on, settle back and relax - you may be here some time.
We arrived in Auckland early on 18 December, on an overnight flight from Hong Kong. The complete absence of sleep on the flight (6'5" and economy class don't mix well) and the shock of paying western prices, alongside some typical kiwi summer weather (clouds and intermittent rain) meant I didn't immediately warm to New Zealand.
On that first day, we climbed the 328m Sky Tower and wandered round Auckland Museum, and with my bird-loving parents having planned a trip to a nearby bird sanctuary for day 2, it was an inauspicious start. I needed haven't worried. We awoke having slept soundly to glorious sunshine on the 19th, and took a boat to
the beautiful island of Tiritiri Matangi, some 90 minutes away. We had a fantastic day strolling round the predator-free island, and whilst neither of us would in any way suggest we were twitchers, it wasn't long before Sarah was excitedly running after the parakeets (which from the look of the serious birders in our group is perhaps not the done thing!). A relaxing evening was spent sipping Mac's Gold in a local pub in the Auckland suburb of Devonport, across the harbour from the city centre.
From Auckland, we headed south, stopping first in Rotorua, famous for its hot springs and the resultant stench of sulphur that hangs in the air. During our two days there, we visited two of the thermal parks, and also the obligatory Maori hangi; a cultural show (including the famous haka) followed by a large meal. As if this excitement wasn't enough, on a visit to see nearby Lady Knox geyser, I also bumped into Will Burrard-Lucas who I work with back home. Small world!
Our next drive south towards Turangi took us via Taupo, where Sarah kindly wasted several dollars paying for my dad and me to play lake-golf, attempting a hole-in-one
on an artificial green floating on the lake. The NZ$1,000 prize money was never even remotely under threat, but we gave a few of the fishes a fright. The subsequent stay in Turangi was so we could complete the Tongariro Crossing, a 19km walk through stunning volcanic scenery, often described as New Zealand's best one-day walk.
A drive via scenic Paekakariki brought us to Wellington, Christmas and the (relative) luxury of a Holiday Inn. Following an enormous breakfast, our Christmas Day stroll around town was cut short by a heavy downpour, so instead we retreated to Te Papa, the state-of-the-art national museum, completed in 1998 at a cost of NZ$350m. Once the skies cleared, we spent time in the botanical gardens, before returning to the hotel to open Christmas presents and eat dinner (New Zealand lamb, instead of turkey).
On Boxing Day, we travelled across the beautiful Cook Strait to the south island, with Sarah and I immediately heading to the Abel Tasman National Park, whilst my parents stayed close to the wildlife-rich Farewell Spit. Named after the famous Dutch explorer, the National Park is a stunning area of coastline, where golden beaches are lapped by crystal-clear waters
and lush green bushland. The Park is also home to one of the nine 'Great Walks', as termed by the Department of Conservation. Sarah and I spent two days walking the majority of the tramp's 51km (the wildlife on Farewell Spit was also very good, so I'm told).
We next headed to the east coast, stopping briefly en route at picturesque St Arnaud on the shores of Lake Rotoiti, and also at a large seal colony. Our destination was Kaikoura, allegedly one of the world's best places to whale-spot. We saw two whales on our trip the next morning, but undoubtedly the highlight was the 200-strong pod of dusky dolphins we came across.
From Kaikoura, we drove to Christchurch for New Year's. The city has a lovely feel to it, with an interesting cathedral, beautiful botanical gardens, and a number of street-side cafes. We dined in a nice restaurant for New Year's (lamb, again!), before heading to the main square for the evening's entertainment - a live band, and a few fireworks. The scale of the city is very manageable, so much so that even in the small hours on New Year's - after my parents had headed
back to the hotel - Sarah and I were able to find a central bar/club, playing tunes late into the night (free entry made a nice change from the small fortune charged by London's pubs and clubs).
We didn't, however, dance the night away, as we had to be up early on New Year's Day to drive to Akaroa, a French settlement on the Banks Peninsular, south-east of Christchurch - although a 3am fire-alarm in our hotel (another Holiday Inn - we know how to spoil ourselves) rather disrupted our plans.
Akaroa is a beautiful coastal resort. The surrounding bay is home to Hector's dolphins, the smallest and rarest breed of dolphins in the world, and we had booked a trip to swim with them. It was an amazing start to 2008.
Following our time on the coast, we drove inland towards Mount Cook, at 3,754m New Zealand's highest peak. We passed by Lakes Tekapo and Pukaki and on arrival, spent a day walking in the surrounding national park. We subsequentely returned to the coast, spending a magical lunch-time viewing yellow-eyed penguins at Bushy Beach in Oamaru, before driving via the Moeraki boulders to Dunedin.
Much
of our time in Dunedin was spent on the Otago Peninsular, enjoying the scenery, and the wildlife - seals, sea-birds (notably albatross) and more yellow-eyed penguins. One of our best experiences, however, was waiting to view little blue penguins coming ashore at nightfall.
Dunedin itself was a lively, student town, but my dad and my plans to see the sights (Sarah and my mum both taking a much-needed break from the relentless schedule) were thwarted when we came across the New Zealand Sports Hall of Fame. Next thing we knew, the morning had passed, and it was once more time to move on - albeit with a brief pause to see Baldwin Street, listed in the Guinness Book of Records as the steepest street in the world!
From Dunedin, we went west, and said a very sad goodbye to my mum and dad that evening in Queenstown, having had an amazing three weeks together. It was lovely spending so much time with my parents.
Sarah and I left the next morning to drive to Milford Sound, stopping repeatedly along the very scenic Milford Sound Highway, for views of the mountains, Mirror Lakes and the Chasm waterfalls. The
next morning, we spent 2.5 hours boating round the sound on a Nature tour, before driving to the south-west corner of New Zealand, Tuatapere.
Our arrival in Tuatapere saw the start of eight frantic days, in which we walked both the 55km Hump Ridge track and another Great Walk, the Kepler Track (about 60km). The Hump Ridge was superb, our walk taking us through beautiful bush, along a fantastic exposed ridge, via a deserted mining town (Port Craig) and along beaches, with dolphins playing in the surf. The only downside was being dive-bombed by oyster catchers on the beach - Sarah was so intent on avoiding the parents, she came within inches of treading on a nest of eggs! The Kepler was also great, although a very heavy downpour made views from the ridge on the second day of that walk non-existent. We celebrated our return to civlisation (and showering) with a few drinks in Te Anau, with a Dutch couple (Laurens and Christina) we met on the Mekong.
We needed some relaxation after all this effort, and were grateful for an overnight trip on Doubtful Sound which commenced the next morning, travelling via Lake Manapouri. The sound
is beautiful, and we saw bottlenose dolphins playing in the waters, as well as seals and various birds on the shore. The trip was perhaps the highlight of our travels so far for me.
After another day recovering, this time on the lakeside in Queenstown and re-fueling at Fergburger (which for those that know him, was perhaps Jonny Holder's highlight of NZ), we drove quickly north. A scenic drive via Wanaka, the Cameron Flats, Ship Creek, Lake Matheson and the Fox Glacier brought us to the Franz Josef glacier to do a full-day glacial walk (excellent), and from there we returned to Kaikoura for yet more swimming with dolphins - a hugely entertaining, but fairly expensive hobby to have picked up.
Our final days were spent back on the north island, stopping in Hamilton to see one of the girls (Tash) that Sarah used to work with, and Tash's fiancee Christian. We had a very enjoyable Kiwi BBQ, and a few local beers to wash it down.
We eventually collapsed the following day in Whitianga on the Coromandel Peninsular. We spent three days there reading, swimming and sun-bathing on various golden beaches. As we entered into the
holiday spirit, we found ourselves indulging on ice-creams. When Sarah received two very generous scoops of ice-cream for NZ$1.70, I should have been somewhat weary of the largest menu option, 'the Killer', given it was three times the price. However, I've always been a man to order from the VFM-end of the menu, and whilst I did feel somewhat nauseous for much of the afternoon thereafter, I did eventually get the five - double scoops down me (with more than a little help from my travelling companion!).
I'm writing this sat in an Internet cafe in Auckland, catching up on some much-needed admin before our flight to Easter Island. We are very sad to say goodbye to New Zealand, but also hugely excited about beginning the next stage of our adventure . . .
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