Mt. Cook and MacKenzie Country

Having enjoyed the Otago Peninsula we drove the coastal route up to Oamaru, stopping at Moeraki to see the boulders. At this point the road turns west, back inland along the Waitaki River valley.

The key features of this river are the eight dams and lakes which have been created as they provide a large percentage of hydro electric power being fed from the glacial Lake Pukaki. This lake is generally considered to be the most beautiful in the country due to the effect of Blue Crush. The blazing turquoise colour is due to the sediment (rock flour) in the water created by the rock on rock action of the glacier grinding out fine particles that are suspended in the melt water, this sediment gives the water a milky quality and refracts the sunlight.

The Aoraki(Cloud Piercer in Maori)/Mt. Cook National Park is a World Heritage Area. We visited the Sir Edmond Hillary Museum before taking a boat tour on Lake Tasman. When you are only a few kilometers from New Zealand's highest mountain (3755M) the last thing you expect to see is a maze of icebergs, note the blueness of those farthest away, new is blue as the sun has not yet affected them. The ice is centuries old but the lake has only been there for 30 years.

The ice strewn lake is a dynamic environment, there is always the danger of an iceberg breaking up and with a decent wind such as we had the location of these floating islands was changing constantly. Higher up the Tasman Glacier is a spectacular sweep of ice as we saw from our helicopter ride a couple of weeks ago. In the ablation zone (where it melts) it is quite ugly, as it is horizontal it melts from the top down exposing the stones and boulders and forming a lake, as you look to the shore the rock line clearly shows that the glacier at one time was 600 meters above lake level.

As is often the case Mt. Cook did not show it's face today, it stayed in the clouds, but the ride back along the lake in the afternoon was stunning as we made our way to Lake Tekapo.

Scotland

Having been lulled into a false sense of lower expectation we headed north towards Dunedin. For some reason we hadn't thought much about staying here for long but as the Coastal Scenic Route gets closer the beaches get better and when you start to see names like Ardmore, Kintyre and McTaggert you know you are in Scotland!
We checked into a motel and set off up the Otago Peninsula. It wouldn't be Scotland without a castle and sure enough there is Larnach Castle, the only one in New Zealand and it is superb, built in the Victoria era, the owner spared no expense in importing the finest timber, glass, marble and tiles and the top artisans to install them.

The far reaching views (apologies for mentioning that again) over Otago Harbour, the beaches of the Pacific and the lush green valleys are worth the entry fee alone, and the gardens are beautiful.

As we were in Scotland some links golf seemed appropriate so we squeezed in a twilight round and true to from there were some wee showers.

Tip to Tip

Friday: Yesterday was a little anti-climatic and the weather was dull, it didn't really matter because the area around Invercargill is flat and not particularly interesting. We usually drive around 200km per day, it's very leisurely and the roads are empty, we can travel quite a distance without seeing another car. We did count 24 cars together but they were following a hearst, not a Hertz. We try to take at least one walk every day, often the point of interest can be at the end of a gravel side road and the walks from 20 minutes to an hour long.

First of the day was Slope Point, the picture is self explanatory so we have ticked that box. You may remember that a few weeks ago we showed you Cape Reinga so we have officially gone tip to tip and have turned the corner to go north up the east coast. The Catlins Forest Road alternates between coastal scenery and the forest so we took 4 walks in all Macleans Falls, Purakaunui Falls and Surat Bay before calling it a day at Kaka Point.

Three in Three

We thought you may be tiring of seascapes, landscapes and mountain vistas, so here is something completely different: three boat escapes in three days!

Monday, TSS Earnslaw – this lady of the lake is the icon of Queenstown and is now in her hundredth year of service (launched at the same time as the Titantic but fared rather better). She sails across Lake Wakatipu to Walter Peak Sheep Station several times a day and has been the lifeline to this remote place for a century. Powered by two triple expansion coal-fired steam engines she is still manually fuelled by two stokers. At the station there is a farm tour and a sheep herding/shearing demonstration that is most entertaining; a surprisingly enjoyable day out, sedate and relaxed.

Tuesday, Dart River Jet Boat – At Glenorchy the glacier fed Dart River flows into Lake Wakatipu. Known as Arcadia (paradise in Greek) the mountains, meadows and rivers of this region provide income through tourism and farming but the largest revenue is derived from nature’s vast and majestic backdrop for television and movie production. Amongst the many films made here are The Chronicles of Narnia, Lord of the Rings, and the Hobbit (coming soon) – all are make believe. It is also the site of many commercials; Renault cars (French), Lindt Chocolate (Swiss) and Coors Beer (American) – also make believe!

However, we were here for jet boating and for the first hour we went up the braided river system climbing 200 meters in total and you could actually feel and see the incline. In some cases we were in only a few inches of water, the clearly visible gravel beneath flying by. After reaching the limit of the permitted access to the national park we turned around. The real fun started here shooting down river at 85 kph passing within inches of massive rocks interspersed with the odd 360 degree spin. Our driver, Mike, races jet boats and his skills were clearly evident! The guided walk through the Beech Forest immediately following, together with the picturesque backroad drive through beautiful meadows to base was equally inspiring in a different way.

Wednesday, Doubtful Sound – Originally named Doubtful Harbour by Captain Cook when he sailed past on the Endeavour in 1770, he skirted past the entrance wondering whether there would be sufficient wind to manoeuvre the vessel back out due to the prevailing westerly wind, so he carried on to Australia.

Our day began with a boat trip across Lake Manapouri and a coach ride over Wilmot Pass to Deep Cove. This awaited us at the top of the pass!

We cruised through the fiord on the Patea Explorer to the Tasman Sea, there are only a handful of days a year where sea conditions permit exit to the ocean and this was one of them. The water was flat calm, we followed Fiordland Crested Penquins and a pod of Bottlenose Dolphins before reaching the sea where approximately 200 Albatrosses had gathered, our guide remarked that it was the largest number they had ever seen at one time. Rounding the Nee Islets we could see hundreds of sealions basking in the sun.

On the return journey we cruised into the Hall Arm, with the steepest mountains on either side. Beneath Mt. Crowfoot the engines and generators were switched off and for three minutes nobody moved or spoke and the only noise breaking the silence was that of distant waterfalls. The Fiordland National Park averages 6 meters of annual rainfall, for the past three days we have barely seen a cloud. There is so much more we could say about this remarkable place but come and see for yourselves! Astonishing and mesmerising.

To summarise: three completely different experiences on three very different types of craft, one lake, one river, one ocean. They had only two things in common, unparalleled scenery and clear blue skies. We are fortunate indeed!

Arrowtown

This former gold mining town about 15 miles from Queenstown is very quaint and we spent four nights here. It is busy during the day as many visitors come on day trips because as one lady (nationality withheld) said "It looks like Disneyworld!" It does madam but it's authentic!

This area has everything one could want, great weather, spectacular scenery, every sport and activity you could ask for, winter or summer, and close proximity to an international airport and finally, lots of great golf courses!

Ann and Barry's B & B was a real find, on the edge of a golf course, you can hit balls onto the range (balls provided) from the top of the garden. Ann's breakfast was about 90% homegrown - mushrooms, tomatoes, eggs, various fruits and jams, etc. Barry was most generous with the G & T's at 5:00 pm and always provided a fresh baked home baked loaf to take to our apartment.

They were entertaining, wonderful hosts and the essence of what Bed & Breakfast is all about.

Pea Soup and Patience

Moving on down the coast we stopped for lunch at the small settlement of Okarito,in a lovely camping area between the beach and wetlands. We were hoping to reach Franz Josef Glacier for a possible afternoon helicopter ride but as we approached the mountains it was obvious that the cloud was too low and then the rain started. The forecast was not good for Thursday so we had to decide whether to be patient or move on and hope to see the Southern Alps from the air on the Mt. Cook side on our return. We decided to stay and Thursday was nothing but pea soup.

Behind this hopeful sign is the Fox Glacier!
However, life was not all bad, we shared breakfast in bed and with a stroke of luck found that we could follow Chelsea FC live on-line as they beat Napoli in one of the great comebacks in Champion’s League history. We kept busy with domestics: laundry and emails and then had lunch and a drizzly walk around Fox . Would tomorrow be any better?

Patience Pays: we were booked for a 10:00 am flight and when we opened the curtains there was a surge of excitement, the day was perfect!

Pictures: 10:45 am : Mt. Tasman in the foreground and Mt. Cook.

Our 45 minute flight took us over the Franz Josef and Fox Glaciers and around Mt. Cook before landing on the Fox. We were the first down and had about 5 minutes to ourselves before there were six choppers on the snow.

Mission accomplished we headed out of town really pumped and feeling very fortunate as some cloud was already moving in. Highway 6 winds back to the coast and within 2 hours we were at Knight’s Point.

Not long after that we reached the Haast River and the Te Wahipounamu World Heritage Area.

3:00pm

Along this entire route there is an overpowering presence of nature. The pristine rivers and lakes, unique foliage of the forests of Kahikatea trees with the mountains as a back-drop make this wilderness area incredibly inviting. If you are in search of serenity and solitude look no further because any moment can be sublime.

Turning inland from Haast the road snakes along the Haast River climbing up to the pass and Mt. Aspiring National Park. We passed numerous ravines and falls including Fantail and Thunder Creek, stopping for a lovely half hour walk through the forest to the Blue Pools, it’s impossible to show them all.

At 4:15 pm we reached Lake Wanaka.

We love driving at this time of day, the light is superb and the air is absolutely clear. As the shadows fall it makes for wonderful photography.

As if Lake Wanaka was not stunning enough we then came to Lake Hawea and drove the length of it before deciding that a night here was appropriate. We are staying at the Lake Hawea Hotel where we got the last room and this is the view from the balcony, watching the light fade across the lake from the dining room was even better.

How many places in the world can you see the stunning variety of landscape that we saw today in the space of a few hours? It has been a truly jaw dropping day!

West Coast

Karamea is another town at the end of the road, it is 100km from anywhere. This sleepy little place is the starting point for the Heaphy and Wangapeka tracks into The Kahurangi National Park, it is actually further north than Wellington.
We had the long beach to ourselves but there is a lot of coast to come so we'll spare you the photo of that one because the drive from Westport to Greymouth is as dramatic as any you will take.

Driving south you are flanked on the right side by beaches, bays and cliffs reminiscent of the California coast and on the left by the steep bushy slopes of the Paparoa Range with miles of flax plants and Nikau palms (like upturned dusters).

Another place which does not get much of a mention in our guide book is Punakaiki, site of the Pancake Rocks and Blowholes.

This is The Chimney, it looks like steam but is actually the spray created by the waves crashing into the openings in the rocks, which have been created by millions of years of erosion, and forcing the water up the blowhole (look closely for the rainbow).

Nature has also created geologically fascinating rock formations, layers of limestone which have been worn away over thousands of years and look like tall stacks of pancakes. We enjoyed this spectacle and as it was late in the afternoon we decided to stay nearby and watch the sunset from the beach, the sand colour has now changed from the gold of Tasman Bay to grey/black.

Abel Tasman National Park

On an absolutely gorgeous morning we drove up to Nelson and stopped for coffee with Brian & Inika Hetzel. Brian emigrated to New Zealand from Bermuda 14 years ago and spent a year travelling around before settling in Nelson, we were curious to know the reasons for moving. As soon as we arrived we saw the first one, these superb views across the bay to Abel Tasman say it all:

The entry to the Park is at Marahau, the end of the road, and the coastal track is 51km long, sunshine was forecast so we checked into the lodge and booked the water taxi. Wrong! Rain came in overnight but we were not deterred. The taxi system is interesting: you get on board the boat on the trailer in the parking lot. A tractor then hauls the trailer down the street, onto the beach through the water onto a sandbar for release into open water.

We opted for the longest trip to the north end of the park with a stop at the fur seal colony on Tonga Island. We then disembarked at Bark Bay for the 8km trek on the coastal path back to Anchorage Bay where we were collected 5 hours later. This is one of the most scenic walks in the country, over bridges and falls rising up through the forest where there is an occasional glimpse of the azure waters of an inlet below.

We can only imagine how spectacular this walk would be without the mist and drizzle and we returned cold and wet but fortunately our lodge had the hottest hot tub ever, heaven. Our camera appears to have been a casualty of the damp so in order to keep you informed and for our records we invested in a new one this morning en route. This was a wise move because the Buller River and Gorge can be dark and foreboding but this afternoon they were sparkling in the sunshine.

There was also a side trip to the Riwaki River resurgence, a fascinating place where the river, which has gone underground back in the mountains, emerges again out of the rocks into a crystal clear pool. So plentiful are the phenomenons of nature in NZ that this one does not appear in the guidebook.
In the space of a few miles one can be in Scotland, then Vermont, then the Rockies and Switzerland and the problem here is that around every corner is another photo opportunity, but we can't shoot all of them.
Now in Westport, Karamea tomorrow.

The Cook Strait

Our apologies if the last post was rather dull, perhaps it represented the day we had, we expect this to be much better. The people of Wellington refer to it as " The Coolest Little City in The World", a bold claim which we set out to investigate by eating out on Cuba Street last night, the atmosphere and food stood the test.
This morning was to be the day that we reached what has always been the ultimate destination of this adventure, the South Island and it was more promising: drier, warmer and calmer. Mount Victoria offers far reaching views over the city including the airport, well known for its runway with ocean at both ends and what appears to be about 10 metres of clearance!

The rest of the morning was spent along the waterfront, a very interesting mix of old and new, warehouses, bars and restaurants, the museum and some funky art/sculpture.

We boarded the M/V Straitsman and set sail, fortunately the winds were low and we had a following sea and a very pleasant journey, this stretch of water can be extremely rough. The channel into Picton weaves through the islands of Queen Charlotte Sound, steep fingers of land jut out into the sea. It is a dramatic way to arrive but it was to get better on the short drive to Havelock, as we reached the summit the sun came out on cue and the view below was inspiring.

This little port is the green mussel capital of the world, and the area (Marlborough) is also home to some of the finest Sauvignon Blanc, what more could one ask for? Did you know that you can tell the sex of a mussel by the colour? Males are creamy white and females are pinky apricot, that should be easy to remember. Fish dinner at The Mussel Pot, not to be missed.

This is summer?

We moved swiftly back fro the Northland and spent 3 relaxing days in Tauranga, known by some as ' the closest place to heaven,' not because it is stunningly beautiful, although it is very pleasant, but because of the high number of retired persons living there! We played some golf did some walking around the bay and caught up on some reading before heading south.
The area around Rotorua and Lake Taupo is very active as seen in this photo of the Craters of the Moon. Lots of steam and bubbling sounds reminds one that there's a lot going on 'down there'.

There is a narrow gorge on the river from the lake which creates a tremendous flow of water through Huka Falls. Difficult to capture but it is impressive.

Final destination for the day was Napier, the center of the wine region of Hawkes Bay, and also the fruit basket of New Zealand. This may be the most unique city in the country, having been decimated by an earthquake in 1931 it was rebuilt in the popular style of the time and retains a unique concentration of art-deco buildings, quite different to anything we have seen.

The area between Napier and Wellington is rather bland and the much hyped wine center of Martinborough was a disappointment so we carried on to Wellington and thus the title of this post. It is wet, cold and windy here and we were lucky to get a room for tonight despite everyone telling us how accommodation in NZ is always available, tomorrow is sold out so we will get on the ferry to Picton (South Island) and hope for some brighter weather, and stay here a little longer on the return.

Wild World

After Auckland we went north around the Tutukaka coast and on to Russell which is accessed by a short ferry ride. It was the first settlement of Europeans in NZ and is now the starting point for tours around The Bay of Islands. The town is quaint colonial, rather like New England and with hotel names like Duke of Marlborough you can guess who the settlers were.
Later in the day we reached the Karikari Peninsula and went to The Carrington Club to arrange a tee time for today, fortunately we took a walk around part of this magnificent course because for the first time in 8 weeks our plans were to be scuppered.

A massive storm hit the Auckland area overnight and when we awoke winds were gusting over 50 knots. We were not about to pay a lot of money to play a very difficult seaside course in near gale force conditions so we drove the 100+ miles to Cape Reinga, the top of New Zealand where the Tasman Sea from the west (left) meets The Pacific. It is easy to see where the oceans meet as the waves give way to a much calmer ocean in line with the lighthouse, it was spectacularly wild out there. This is a sacred place for Maori people, it is from here that their spirits leave to go into the afterlife.

Even though we were struggling to stay on our feet at times seeing the awesome power and beauty of nature made the journey worthwhile.

Early in the blog we said we would be travelling by camper van but for a number of reasons we abandoned that idea and have a rental car instead. It is more cost effective ($20 per day) and motels/ b & B's are plentiful and as we are late in the season vacancies are not a problem. The back seat has a bag of shopping and a cool bag and we have a picnic for lunch, decent eating facilities are not always immediately to hand. In the evening it is quite nice to read in good light, watch a little telly and have that hot shower waiting in the morning. A camper would be more suitable for surfers and walkers who need to stay in more remote places. For example, 90 mile beach, where the speed limit is 100 kph. This beach runs the whole length of the Cape and is only accessible in a few places, what a beach!