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| Queenstown from the gondola |
On New Years Eve we picked up Bob from the Christchurch
airport and headed to Queenstown. We chose Qtown for NYE because it is known
for the younger crowds, bustling nightlife, and fantastic fireworks show over
the lake. We arrived in Qtown about the same time the rain did, but we didn’t
let it get our spirits down. We had a great time bar-hopping in the downtown
area waiting for the fantastic fireworks show (the rain even let up for it). We
stayed at a caravan park, so we were able to use all of the amenities we’ve
been missing; a large kitchen with hot water and an oven, a lounge with comfy
seats and a TV, restrooms with HOT SHOWERS! It’s literally been an entire month
since Michelle and I have had a hot shower, so we made sure to get our fill. The
rain continued for a couple of days so we spent most of our time in shops,
restaurants, bars (including an ice bar where everything is made of ice!), and more
hot showers. We even snuck into a hotel on a cold morning and used its hot-tub
;-) These were all new experiences for Michelle and I since we’ve been living
quite humble out of the van, but it was heaps of fun spoiling ourselves with
Bob. We stayed in Qtown for a few nights to let Bob recover from the jet-lag
because we were headed on quite the adventure.
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| Chillin out at the Ice Bar |
South of Qtown, in the smaller town of Te Anau, lies the
Kepler Track. The Kepler Track is a 37.2 mile, 3-4 day loop track taking you
from the forested shores of lake Te Anau to the alpine top of Mt Luxmore. The
reward for the hill climb was a long section with marvellous panoramic views of
the Kepler Mountains on one side, and lakes, rivers and valleys on the other.
In other words we were in for a world of hurt. Our Backpacks were filled with the essential camping equipment needed for 3 days: food, cooking equipment, tent, sleeping bags & pad, extra clothing for the cold times and other necessary items. We estimated our packs to weigh around 30lbs each. The first day wasn’t too bad; it
took us about 4 hrs to walk 9.4 miles with these gigantic backpacks. We set up camp and rested on the shores of Lake Te Anau, knowing the
next day was the big day. The second day was a real mission; 14.3 miles, ascending over 4000 feet, a few hours hiking on the peaks then followed by descending 4000 feet. It took us
approximately 10 hrs with many breaks and photo stops. We were exhausted after
this long day of hiking and just wanted to rest up for the third day.
Our last day
was supposed to be easy in comparison to the previous day; 13.4 miles, 5 hrs and
relatively flat, however, it was by far the most difficult. Our bodies, mainly
our feet, were aching from the pain from the previous days. Our backpacks
seemed to get heavier, even though they were actually getting lighter. Ten
minutes seemed like an hour. It felt like we were never going to make it, but
the cold beer waiting for us at the bar was like the carrot on the stick.
It’s amazing all the different feelings and emotions we went
through on this hike; excitement for the adventure and the curiosity of what’s
to come, the peaceful isolation in the remoteness of the mountains, tired and
weak from hiking all day, grateful we made it to the next rest stop or camping
ground, miserable and sore from the pain in our feet and back, frustrated with
ourselves that we actually wanted to do this hike, motivated and determined to
finish the walk, and proud that we finished it. It was, without a doubt, the
hardest hike we’ve ever done, but we wouldn’t have changed a thing.
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| The Luge Track |
After Qtown we drove up to Mount Cook to do some exploring.
We managed to put our boots back on and hike around a bit. Nothing major, just
some nice walks with incredible views of Mount Cook and all of its glaciers. We
camped on Lake Pukaki, which offered incredible views of Mount Cook and some
brisk bathing water. Bob now understands how Michelle and I have been bathing
the past few months.
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| Our Camping Spot |
We planned to stop in Wanaka for a night or two before we
headed out to the West coast, but severe storms caused flooding which took out
the only bridge to the west coast. So we stayed in Wanaka for a few days where
it seemed to rain the whole time. We still managed to have a good time by doing
a small hike, some shopping and browsing in local shops and we also checked out
the local brewery. Wanaka also has two of the best movie theaters so we checked
them both out (we couldn’t leave here without watching The Hobbit). The first theatre had 12 huge comfy seats that
reclined. I’ve never been more comfortable while watching a movie, especially
since they served beer too! The other cinema wasn’t as good, but still beats most,
as half of the seating was big couches and the other half were oversized movie
theatre seats. It was a great experience that made me angry, as there aren’t
any theatres like these at home.
The road to the west coast opened and closed again within a
24 hr period as more flooding took out the temporary road, so we had to scratch
the West coast plans. Instead we found a place that had nice hot weather,
Kaikoura. Michelle and I were there a few days before we picked up Bob. This
was where we caught all the paua, and we were excited to find more with Bob. We
arrived and the weather was beautiful. We spent the days there snorkeling,
looking for NZ rock lobster and paua, fishing, and hiking. No luck with the
lobster or fishing though. We were so happy not only to share in the experience
of eating them, but also collecting them in the sea and cleaning them; I’m
still trying to teach the cleaning part to Michelle. We loved the paua, and so
did Bob.
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| Here are the Paua! Yummy! |
On another hot day we hiked up through a gorge that had heaps of freshwater
pools and waterfalls that we cooled ourselves with. It was a beautiful hike for
a hot day. I also had high hopes of bagging that eel, now that I had help, but
that also was unsuccessful. We did see a few, but they are just too scary to go
swimming after. Another day, another time.
It was a really fun, but fast two weeks with Bob. It rained
half the time, so it was great having somebody else here, since misery loves
company. But really, it was more fun having Bob here, as Michelle and I would
have just cooped ourselves up in the van and played dice the whole time. There
was so much that happened in such a short period of time and it was awesome
that we could share the experiences of the Kepler Track, Queenstown NYE, Ice
bar, and luge, cider beer, bathing in Lake Pukaki, The Hobbit, and paua with our great friend Bob.
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| Ready to Luge |
If you would like to see more photos click on the following link:
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