March Madness

As many of you are aware, Michelle’s 30^th Bday was March 27^th. It also happened to be the same day we started another multiday tramp. Although she was quite sad not to be around family and friends on such a significant milestone, she was excited to tackle one of NZ’s best tramps. The Routeburn Track is another one of NZ’s “Great Walks” so it has been on our “to-do” list. The problem with this track, like the Rees-Dart, is that the start is miles away from the finish. It’s about a 5 hour drive from the start to the finish. Who wants to sit on a transport bus for 5 hours after they finish hiking in the mountains for 3 days? On top of that they want to charge $150 per person for the transport. Well we found another track, The Caples, which connects to the Routeburn and allows us to hike back closer to the start. The Caples track only really adds another 1.5 days to our hike too. Since this is classified as a “Great Walk”, the backcountry huts are expensive so we chose to camp out, which means we have more equipment to bring along. We knew going into to this that it was going to be a difficult tramp for us since days 1 and 2 were at least 8 hour days of hiking with our gargantuan 35lb packs on. 

It turned out that day 1 only took us 7 hrs and it really wasn’t too difficult, but we were tired at the end. What a great way to spend Michelle’s B-day. Although we were “roughing it” with dehydrated meals, we brought along a big cookie and a small bottle of wine to celebrate her 30^th.

Happy Birthday Cookie

The second day was supposed to be another long 8 hr day. We were really starting to feel it by the 5^th or 6^th hour of tramping, but we reached our destination early and decided to make another push for the next camp site. Day 2 ended up being 10 hours of hiking! OUCH!!! Our feet hurt, our backs were sore, and we were just exhausted, but it meant less hiking the following day. We made the right decision since I was really hurting by the 2^nd hour of hiking and our car was only another half hour to go.

The hike was awesome and it is up there as one of our favorites. You can guess at the things we saw and you'd probably be right; big beautiful mountains, raging rivers, cascading waterfalls, mystical forests, and other mountainous scenery. 

 

Although we’ve seen so many of these landscapes since we’ve been here, they are all so different and seem to have their own individuality. 

The second day was especially cool as we were on the mountain above the clouds, but we could still see the valley and rivers below.

What a month it has been. Since we’ve finished work it’s been nonstop adventures for us; the Rees-Dart, Catlins, Dunedin, Rail trail, and the Routeburn-Caples. And the excitement keeps building since Jessica and Scott will be here March 31^st. We have an amazing trip planned for them and are squeezing in as much as we can in the 2 weeks there here. We are looking forward to their arrival and feel really fortunate to be able to share our experiences here with other great friends. 

If you would like to see more pictures from our tramp click on the following link:

https://picasaweb.google.com/115853505113135701754/RouteburnCaplesTrack03

Hitting it Hard

Michelle and I are done working and we were anxious to get back on the road and explore. We’ve been researching some walks in the area and have decided on two really spectacular multi-day tramps. One of the tramps we were looking into was another demanding 3-day tramp (The Routeburn), but the other tramp has a more difficult rating and was a 4-5 day tramp. It just so happened to work out that we jumped right into more difficult tramp; The Rees-Dart Track.

Honestly we were quite nervous since this was 4 days and 3 nights out in the middle of nowhere, but those feelings are probably normal… right? The bonus of this tramp is that we were able to stay in the backcountry huts, which provide us with sleeping bunks, water, and toilets. We still needed to bring our food, cooking gear, sleeping bags, and other essentials, but we could leave the heavy tent in the vanJ 

The tramp isn’t a circuit, so the end of the track is pretty far from the beginning. We arranged for a transport company to pick us up at the end of the trail and drive us to the start (this way we had our van when we finished). During our transport the driver receives a call that a bus just dropped off heaps of people. The problem with that is that there are only 22 bunks in the hut, and is first come- first served for a bed. So we might be sleeping on the table.  We have no idea how many people were on the bus, but we knew they had at least a half hour head start on us. So Michelle and I didn’t waste any time when we got to the trail. There was nothing calm about the first few hours of our hike. We pretty much needed to pass as many people as we could to secure a bed in the hut since we didn’t bring our tent. Some people we passed seemed just as concerned as we were, while others seemed clueless about how much bunk space there actually was. We ate our lunch on the move and hours later we decided to stop to take one break, but hikers closing in interrupted that. After 5 hours of literally nonstop hiking we finally reached the hut to find that we were the 2^nd and 3^rd people to arrive. Do you see what happens when you’re ambitious? Coincidentally, there were 22 people for the 22 bunks.

The following days weren’t as worrying, but were demanding. The track began in a grassy valley along the Rees River before reaching forests and alpine vegetation. A demanding ascent of the saddle (low point between two mountains) rewarded us with some breathtaking views before we descended into a different valley. 

We took a side trip through a glacial valley and got up real close to the Dart Glacier. This was like nothing we’ve ever experienced before; it was astonishing! The glacier was huge. The chunks of ice seen in the pictures are the size of cars or bigger. 

The remainder of the tramp led us down along the Dart River, in and out of grassy flats and forests, along huge bluffs with 200 ft drop offs into the river, and over huge avalanche and mudslide paths. There were a few moments in which we were in pain and physically exhausted. Fortunately, by the time we felt it, the destination wasn’t too far away and we were able to relax. This was a hike to remember. We had the best weather to experience the views and the views were some of the best we’ve seen here.

We took off for the south coast and the Catlin’s in hopes for some fishing and relaxation, but the weather finally caught up with us. In between spurts of clouds, rain, and sun we managed to get a few small walks in just to check out some waterfalls and local wildlife.

There wasn’t any motivation to sit on the beach and fish since the weather was cold and windy. The main event was seeing a yellow-eyed penguin, the rarest in the world. We couldn’t get too close, but it was fun watching it waddle and hop around.

We stopped in Dunedin for a few days and we were able to stay at our friends’ house (the orchard owner’s brother). It worked out perfect because these few days were really cold and rainy. It was nice relaxing in a big warm house instead of a tiny, cold, and damp van. Going to Dunedin was great fun because this is where Michelle spent a semester back in 2005. It was amusing seeing all the familiar buildings, smelling all the familiar smells (coffee and chocolate from the Cadbury factory), and tasting the familiar kebab from her favorite place. We ventured out on to the Otago Peninsula and took in some other familiar views before we headed back inland.

Michelle and I wanted to do something a little different from all the tramping and heard about the Otago Rail Trail. It’s an old railway that serviced old gold-mining towns, but mining has ceased years ago. The towns almost became ghost towns until someone had the idea to rip up the rail way and turn it into a year round trail for bikers, hikers and horseback riders. “Most people” take 3-5 days to complete the trail, but Michelle and I figured if we do it in 2 days we’d save money (less for bike rentals, accommodation, and meals). Another reason we decided to do it in 2 days was because the majority of trail users are quite a “bit older” than we are. 

It really was a nice change to our trip. Because we were biking an old railway the biking was easy as. (The saying “easy as” is quite popular down here) The grade of the track was never really noticeable until we were a few hours into our ride. After a few stops to support the taverns along the trail, we finally made it to our accommodation for the evening (78 km and 5 hrs later). 

Our asses were sore (still are too). The best way to describe the room is cozy. It was small, but compared to our van it was like first class. Fridge, electricity, SHOWER, real coffee, and all the other perks expected. It was a real treat. The next morning was terrible getting started again. Our bottoms were aching and our legs were pretty tired too, but we made it to the “ highest point” of the trail pretty early and the rest of the day was “all down hill”. Another 80km and 6 hrs later we finished. We were both in quite a bit of pain, mainly our behinds, but we were glad we pushed ourselves. Some of the highlights besides visiting the old towns were viaducts, tunnels, and great desert views.

As I mentioned earlier, there were two multi-day tramps and we will be tackling the other this Tuesday. The Routeburn track is one of NZ’s “Great Walks” and we’ll be combining that with the Caples Track. It should take us 3 days to complete, but these will be really long days. We’ll let you know how it is.

There are quite a few picassa picture albums to look at. One of them shows more pictures of our time working and a few of the sidetrips we made while in the area. 

 https://picasaweb.google.com/115853505113135701754/CromwellAndSideTrips

A second album is the Rees-Dart trip.

https://picasaweb.google.com/115853505113135701754/ReesDartTrack

Third album is the Catlins coast trip.

https://picasaweb.google.com/115853505113135701754/CatlinsAndSouthernCoast

And the fourth is the Central Otago Rail Trail.

https://picasaweb.google.com/115853505113135701754/TheOtagoCentralRailTrail

 

Michelle Bachelor "SUPER NANNY"

Our home for 6 weeks. Lake Dunstan in the background.

Part of orchard and neighbors vineyard. Giant fruit sculpture in the background.

The fruit picking hasn’t stopped since we’ve been here. I occasionally get a random day or two off, but I’ve been putting in heaps of hours. It’s amazing how much fruit is really on the orchard, and it has become a monotonous task getting it off. I like to joke around and ask the other pickers “have we been here before?” because it all looks the same. The work may not be the greatest, but the other pickers are a really great bunch of guys. Many of the pickers are from Vanuatu, a small group of islands west of Fiji. It’s fascinating talking to them and comparing lifestyles, but deep down they are just a bunch of fun island boys here to make money to send home. 

The hours tend to move by quickly, and I don’t get hungry since I eat so much fruit. Back at home I didn’t eat too much fruit, but here I eat about a pound of fruit a day (some days more, others less). Do you know what happens when you eat heaps of fruit? If not, ask me and I'll tell ya. The weather here has been hot and sunny nearly everyday and we’ve still been making trips to the lake. Overall, the experience there was great and I’ll never forget it, but I was ready to be done and we were getting anxious to hit the road again. Things have been a little different for Michelle and it would be best for her to explain what she’s been up too.

My Experience of being a Nanny

When we accepted this job we knew that Jeremy would be picking fruit for six weeks, while I was going to have multiple jobs. I was going to pick fruit for a week or so, and then pack the fruit in the shed, followed by three weeks of childcare. I can’t lie and say that I wasn’t anxious about being a nanny for some body else’s kids, let alone three kids! (I’ve never nannied before)The boy is two years old, and the two girls are four and six.  As the picking and packing was wrapping for me, I was getting more and more nervous about the weeks to come, and wondering what in the world did I just sign up for? I have no idea how I am going to care for these kids!

I was replacing another nanny who was leaving to go back to university. I shadowed her for a couple days and learned the kids daily routines, some including getting ready in the morning, school drop offs, pick ups, after school activities, making meals, feeding the chickens and bath time. This helped to get to know the kids a little better, meet the teachers, see how the days flow for time management, and learn my way around the town. The previous nanny also gave me notes that were very helpful to remember everything to be done in the day! After the couple days of shadowing I was still very nervous because I knew that I would be on my own and responsible for three kids from 7:30am to 6:30pm.

My job in the morning is to get the grumpy kids out of bed, get them dressed and fed. I had to learn what kiwi kids’ eat for breakfast, and they all like something different (of course it couldn’t be that easy and all eat the same thing). They have to brush their teeth, which they hate doing and usually lie and say they’ve already done it, so I have to do it for them (easier said then done). I need to put heaps of sunscreen on them and I have to do this when they don’t expect it, or they’ll run and hide. You’d think they would be used to this routine by now, but they fight it every morning. I find it’s easier to focus on one kid at a time rather than having all three of them trying to do the same thing. If we can get ready to go on time, then they get to watch a little kids TV. This is the one thing that motivates them to cooperate in the morning. Some mornings are awful and we barely make it out the door, and then other mornings are great and I can have all three kids ready by 8:00.

Managing three kids and using car seats, making sure they don’t run in the road or run away to the park, and getting them sorted in the classrooms is difficult. It’s also kind of weird for me being in the school environment with all the kids being dropped off by their moms. I now know the teachers quite well, and talk to some of the moms I see everyday that know the kids I am watching. They all tell me that I sure have my hands full!

After the girls are dropped off, it’s just me and the two yr old boy. The craziness of the morning is now over, and I can relax a little knowing I just have him to care for. We usually play on the swings, in the sand box, jump on the trampoline, walk around the orchard and visit the pickers, go to the fruit store, pick strawberries, play with trains inside, or he helps me bake treats for the orchard workers. He is extremely independent and adventurous, and can get into anything he puts his mind to.  He knows how to drag chairs and stools to reach things up high any where in the house, open doors and baby gates to “escape” and wonder off. He has a history of getting past doors and gates or climbing over the fences to “escape” into the orchard and packing shed looking for fruit. He is addicted to fruit and will do ANYTHING to get his hands on some! At least I know where to look when he gets out J

I also prepare morning and afternoon smoko for the orchard workers. This is a hot cup of tea and biscuit for each worker. Then I usually hang up laundry and cleanup after breakfast (always a mess with a two yr eating!). Then I have the rest of the morning to tidy up, feed the chickens, and figure out what I’m making for dinner. The meat is set out in the morning and I just have to figure out how to make a meal out of it. At first it was stressful for me to be cooking for the family since I cook differently from what they’re used to, also the kids are super picky, and the parents are the owners of the orchard so I want tea to be nice for them. However, they always tell me how nice tea was last night and thank me for preparing it. I try to feed the kids before mom and dad get home, but getting three kids to sit down and eat without interruptions, running away or fighting, is a very stressful and challenging task.

A few days are half Kindy days for the four yr old, and some days are full days ending at 3:00. So some days I have the two and four yr old for most of the day, and others I only have the two yr old until 3:00, which are nice for me J After school activities include swimming lessons and ballet lessons for the girls.  During these lessons I have to keep the other two kids entertained and well behaved, which can be a very challenging task when they can’t participate in the siblings’ lesson. I also take the two yr to swim lessons in the morning while the girls are at school. I get in the pool with him and join five or six other parents in the class. We sing songs, practice getting in/out of the pool safely, jumping in, kicking our arms and legs, floating on our backs, and blowing bubbles under water. This is actually quite fun for me, and he gets really excited about swim lessons and putting his “togs” on (bathing suit). He is really good in the water with me, trusts me, and isn’t afraid to jump into my arms!

Overall this has been a very new and challenging experience for me. I really didn’t have much experience watching kids before this job, let alone three. This made me quite nervous and I wasn’t sure if I was going to be able to pull it off. The first day was by far the worst and I didn’t know if I could do it, but as each day went on I learned more methods on how to survive the crazy mornings and afternoons when I had all three kids. I also had to quickly learn creative ways of rewarding and disciplining.  The kids did get better at listening to me, we managed to share some fun times together as well as some crying and putting bandages on, but now I have lots of memories and a lot more experience with kids from being a nanny in New Zealand.

The sheep and dog were best friends, but now the sheep is in the chiller

Time has flown by. It’s already been 5 months and we still have 3 more to go. We are extremely excited to continue traveling and we have most of it planned out. We plan on spending March and April here in the South Island. We are thrilled to have more visitors coming too. Our friends Jessica and Scott are arriving March 31^st and are staying for two weeks. It’ll be real nice and cozy in the van ;-) JK, they are renting a car for their travels. After they leave we will slowly make our way back to the North Island. We will also have to sell the van before we leave on May 31^st. That’s right, we are coming home, and the date is set. We’ll arrive in Detroit on June 1^st after many hours of traveling. In the mean time, we’ll just keep enjoying the nice hot weather here waiting for things to warm up back home.