January 21-26
On Saturday, January 21st we boarded the first of two Air New Zealand flights that would take us to the South Island of NZ. Normally we would have taken a direct flight, but as with everything on this journey, cost is a deciding factor so we opted for the much cheaper connecting flight through Christchurch. Poor Christchurch has been hit with not 1, not 2, but 3 massive earthquakes in the last 18 months so this stopover will be the closest we will come to the city of Christchurch. The day was quite windy and our landing was pretty bumpy, but that was nothing compared to the next landing in Queenstown! I thought it may be the last flight we ever took! Queenstown is in a beautiful location with The Remarkables mountain range along one side and Lake Wakatipu framing the city. So because the mountains border the city, the plane has to come over the mountains and then do this crazy bank to turn around and land. It was a really windy day as well, so the plane was bouncing all over the place. We were both very happy when we landed!
What you see here is Farewell Spit at the very top of the South Island. I took this out the window of the plane. Remember this pic as Farewell Spit will come up again later in the blog!
Once we were safely on the ground, we picked up our rental car from Avis. Our only real requirement in a vehicle was that it had a trunk. We have a fair amount of gear and we had been warned that car break-ins are very common, so the trunk was essential. Luckily, they gave us a little Ford Escape with a trunk that fit everything perfectly. We packed up our stuff up and headed into Queenstown.
What a beautiful city! Queenstown is known as the Adventure Capital of the World, so if you are looking to Bungy Jump, Jetboat, Skywalk or have any other adrenaline filled adventures, this is the place for you. If you prefer a less heart-stopping adventure, there are also lots of great hikes and walks in the area. We were just using this city as a stopover so we were more about hiking and less about going out of way to jump off stuff. But first, we needed to get settled in at our lodging for the next two nights.
Camping in New Zealand is a national pastime and they do it right. In practically every city there are places called "holiday parks". Holiday parks usually have a range of accommodations, from tent sites, to powered campervan sites, to cabins with and without kitchens or bathrooms. All the parks have large communal kitchens and shower/bathroom areas for those who are camping or using a basic cabin. The prices are just right for our budget. Camp sites are the cheapest, usually between $25-40 NZD per night, which translates to about $16-32 USD. The cabins were more expensive, but even the nicer cabins are very reasonably priced, depending on the area. Our plan was to camp out in the tent for a few nights and then get a cabin for a few nights, alternating throughout New Zealand. Of course, we would also watch the weather- with prices like this there's no need for camping in the rain.
When we looked into the holiday parks before leaving, we saw a lot of good reviews for a company called Top 10 Holiday Parks. Membership was $40 and that got you ten percent off all accommodations, lots of local discounts and most importantly, 10% off the ferry crossing between the North and South Island. We got a membership before leaving the States, and it has more than paid for itself since we arrived.
Our first Holiday Park was just outside of Queenstown on the Shotover River. The place was really cute, with great scenery and a huge kitchen. We decided to start the trip with an Ensuite Cabin (a cabin with a bathroom, and a fridge). It was small but cozy, way more comfortable than a tent, but not as nice as hotel room. Just what we needed for a low key, low budget trip. We unpacked our bags and headed out to get supplies and dinner.
Shaun outside our little cabin at the Top 10 in Shotover, just outside Queenstown
The interior of our first cabin
First stop was the camping equipment stores. Thanks to the Flashman family, all we really needed were sleeping bags, and we found a great double sleeping bag on clearance at Kathmandu. It was big enough to sleep two comfortably, or could be broken into two bags if we needed to sleep separately. After shopping, we got a recommendation for dinner from the folks at one of the camping stores and headed down by the water to a place called Atlas that did little tapas plates. We had a nice light dinner and headed back out to walk around Queenstown. Our last stop before heading back to camp was the grocery store. Now that we had the car, we could easily transport food from place to place (especially since Anne at Lone Kauri Lodge had given us a cooler bag that someone had left behind!! ) We got the cooking staples like olive oil, salt and pepper, milk, eggs, coffee, onions and garlic. For quick lunches while camping we got a loaf of bread and a jar of peanut butter. Then we added dry goods that keep well, like rice and dried black beans. We picked up some aluminum foil and a ziplock bags, a sponge and dishwashing detergent and we were good to go. We settled down in our cute little cabin and had a great night's sleep in Shotover.
The Shotover River, just down the street from our cabin
In the morning we made some scrambled eggs and coffee for breakfast and then headed out to do the Queenstown Hill Hike. It was the perfect intro hike. The path was well marked and the trail went steeply and steadily uphill for about an hour. It was definitely a tough hike for someone who hasn't been a consistent hiker, (me) but the views at the top were spectacular and well worth the effort. We ate lunch at the top and then wound our way back down to Queenstown below. The whole hike took about 2.5 hours but we were both beat when we finished, so beat we had to take an afternoon nap to work up the strength to make dinner! (I know, you feel terribly that we were so tuckered out, don't you!?) That evening, we made a hearty dinner of pork chops, black beans, rice and broccoli and ate it guilt free. After another great night's sleep we were on the road again, headed over to Te Anau on the Southwest side of the country.
Shaun on the last section of the uphill part of the Queenstown City Hill hike
And on part of the downhill section. It was gorgeous either way.
The drive from Queenstown to Te Anau was brilliant! As you leave the city, you drive along a winding road called "the Devil's Staircase" which looks out over Lake Wakatipu. Shaun had once again volunteered to be the driver and happily took him up on that deal. The roads are filled with treacherous curves and crazy drivers and it all takes place on the left side of the road, which was just beyond me. Every time we came to a rotary, I was more happy to have Shaun behind the wheel.
You can see the road they call "The Devil's Staircase"in the distance. It was beautiful but scary.
So on we drove, through beautiful farmland with loads of sheep, cows and surprisingly deer! Apparently deer were introduced to New Zealand years ago and although they immediately became a problem, they also become a major food source. It is very common now to see venison or venison sausage on the menu in NZ.
When we arrived in Te Anau we were very happy with the Top 10 Holiday Park. It was our first camping spot in NZ and the woman at reception hooked us up with a great spot close to one of the communal kitchen/barbecue areas, but also in a quiet little corner. For dinner, we made a big pot of chili, enough so we could freeze some for later dinners. Then we set up our tent, blew up our sleeping mats and put in our new double sleeping bag. We settled in for a nice night.
The first night of camping was more than a little rough. The temperature outside was only about 45 degrees and our double sleeping bag wasn't really great for such cold temps. We thought about buying an extra blanket, but we are trying not to accumulate too much "stuff" while we're here. The next two nights were much warmer though and we got better about choosing layers to sleep in. Each of the three nights of camping was better than the last.
The days were incredible. The reason we had chosen Te Anau was it's proximity to both Milford and Doubtful Sound. A sound is basically a flooded river valley, usually created by a glacier and these two are considered to be two of the most beautiful in the world. Milford Sound is much easier to access, so most people go there, but we really wanted to see Doubtful Sound, which you can only do by tour. We found a Kayaking company called Adventure Kayaks and booked a two person Kayak tour on Doubtful Sound and then crossed our fingers for good weather.
The next morning we drove 40 minutes to Manapouri where we started our journey to Doubtful Sound. First up was a quick Van ride down to the boat. Next up was a 50 minute boat ride through Lake Manapouri to the visitor center, where we all changed into wetsuits. From there we took another van up over the hills of Manapouri for about 40 minutes more until we got to the shores of Doubtful Sound. A few quick safety instructions, a little more gear (polypro shirts, kayak skirts and life jackets) and we were into the Kayaks and on our way into the sound.
Crazy beautiful Doubtful Sound
The first glimpse of a dolphin up close!
Happy Kayakers
We could not have picked a better day. Not only was it warm and sunny for the first time in a week, but the sound was filled with dolphins that day! Our guide, Harlon, told us that the dolphins are only around about 40% of the time that he does tours so we were already pretty excited when we got going. As we kayaked further and further into the beautiful sound, with mountains all around us, the dolphins took center stage, coming closer and closer. At one point they were jumping about a meter from some of the kayaks. Even Harlon was beside himself! He said he had never seen them come so close. We kayaked around the sound for a four hours, with a little break for lunch and then headed back to Manapauri the same way we had come in. Kayaking the sound would have been incredible in itself but with the crazy dolphin show as well, it was an amazing day.
The next day we decided to do a hike. We had purchased a great book that outlined 100 great day hikes in New Zealand and it gave rave reviews to the Key Summit hike so we decided to give it a go. We drove out on the spectacular Milford Road to the trailhead called The Divide where we parked the car, used the restrooms, packed our day packs and checked out the trail maps. The hike was a part of one of the great New Zealand Tracks called the Routeburn Track. These tracks are multi day hikes that go through the NZ wilderness. If you are doing the overnight hikes, there are Department of Conservation (DOC) huts along the way that you can reserve. The huts have bunk beds and treated water and bathrooms and usually some kind of cooking facility. We don't have the right gear for the multi-day hikes, but most of these tracks have smaller sections that can be done in a day. That was what the Key Summit walk was for us.
At Key Summit. Out of breath but happy!
On the Alpine Garden walk after the summit
The hike was challenging but great. As the name suggests, we were hiking to the Key Summit and so it was uphill pretty much the whole way there. There were definitely some moments when I needed to stop and wait for the blood to stop pounding in my ears! Like all these tracks, it was really well marked and the actual trail was pretty well worn. When we got to the top, we sat and ate our peanut butter sandwiches and nectarines and drank some water while we took in the view for a while. As if that wasn't enough, all around the Summit they have an Alpine Garden loop walk that had signage pointing out all sorts of local flora and why it was important. It must have been a huge effort to create a park like that so far up there!
When we got back down to the bottom, it was only around 3pm so we decided to continue the drive into Milford Sound. The road itself is part of the attraction, with great sweeping views and beautiful waterfalls all along the way. When we got out to the sound we did a little exploring and split a sandwich from a small cafe before heading back to Te Anau.
Shaun at Milford Sound. It was crazy windy that day!
That evening was our last in Te Anau, so we grilled up some lamb chops for dinner and then headed over to The Moose for a beer. It's funny though, we are so tired from being outdoors all day that it's almost too tiring to go out for drinks! I suppose that's a good thing since I'm still in the process of working off all the mulled wine and sausages from Europe!
So finally on Friday morning we packed up the tent and hit the road again. The Top 10 in Te Anau was such a lovely spot to stay in and it was great for us logistically for exploring the Sounds and doing some hiking. The next few days would be a little more unsettled as we were headed up the West Coast to see some Glaciers! Have I mentioned that this country is just unbelievable?
The view as we flew towards Queenstown.
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