New Zealand South Island, Week 6

Our 6th week in New Zealand started with a trip to see the South Island's tallest peak, Mount Cook. We set off from our campsite early hoping to miss the glut of tourists who would inevitably be heading the same way and got our first glimpses of the snow-topped mountain over the waters of Lake Pukaki.

We made our way along the lakeside to the village bearing the mountain's name and after a nosy around the visitor's centre we made the short walk to Kea point which culminated in a platform overlooking the glacial moraine and more views of Mount Cook in the distance.

We were soon glad of our early start as the sun beat down and the day turned into a real scorcher. We hopped back into Delilah and made for the town of Twizel before heading coastwards once more and on to our next destination of Oamaru. Not much to report from Oamaru, apart from a wander through their immaculate public gardens and a beer in the Criterion hotel, a Victorian watering hole.

The next day we were heading southwards along the coast once more and passed the Moeraki boulders, which as you can see are unusually large and spherical boulders strewn across Koekohe beach.

As we marvelled at their roundness we spotted two dolphins swimming just of the beach, a mother and her calf; very tempting to dive in with them, but being the responsible tourists we are we resisted due to it being mother and calf and nothing to do with the chilliness of the water of course!

Back on the road again it wasn't long until we reached Dunedin, the principal city of the Otago region and a very pleasant place to spend a few hours and scoff a Velvet burger; 'the best burger I've ever had' to quote a very satisfied David Temple. Not ones to hang around we left the city behind and spent the night out on the Otago peninsula. We visited the Royal Albatross centre on the tip of the headland and watched these beautiful birds gliding and soaring on the breeze and attempted to capture their graceful flights on camera; without much success.

The next day dawned cloudy and got progressively more miserable as we drove towards the Caitlins, a rugged and remote part of the country. By the time we hit the scenic road the rain was bucketing down and we just managed a quick dash to see Jack's blowhole, a 55metre deep cavity, 200 metres from the sea formed by the collapse of a large subterranean cavern. At high tide when the waves surge through the tunnel, water explodes from Jack's hole with surprising ferocity, we weren't in luck though and scuttled back to the van to shelter from the increasingly cold and wet elements. We also stopped at Purukaunui falls for a short walk and a gander at the said falls, before heading on to Curio bay where we set up camp for a cold and windy night. We did manage a walk on the beach to see the resident sealions and then clambered over the rocks to appreciate the full force of the southern ocean.

We spent the evening spotting yellow eyed penguins on a beach just a few metres away from the campsite. We were lucky enough to spot several of the nesting pairs arriving at back at the beach after a hard days fishing and making their way to their chicks back at the nest.

The next morning we took an early morning walk on the beach and watched a pod of Hector's dolphins playing just off shore, who needs expensive dolphin spotting trips eh?? With the weather still dodgy we decided to head north and into Fjordland. We arrived on the shore of Lake Manapouri and decided that we would explore Doubtful Sound instead of the more touristed Milford Sound. We boarded our impressive looking boat the next morning and headed across the lake and towards New Zealand's largest hydro electric power station. After a swift tour it was on to the main attraction and another boat to cruise around the astounding scenery of Doubtful sound. The mist clung to the hills which added to the mysteriously wild atmosphere, but didn't stop us from spying the rare Fiordland crested penguins, fur seals and bottle nose dolphins.

New Zealand South Island, Week 5

Our decision to head inland proved to be a good one and the journey to Hanmer Springs bought clearer skies and we arrived at the mountain resort in glorious sunshine. In the summer months the main attraction of this town are the thermal pools where the mineral waters reach temperatures of 42 degrees. We spent a very indulgent day splashing around in these pools and to Dave's horror holding our noses at that all too familiar sulphur pong! Feeling very relaxed from our day in the spa we headed back to the coast and Christchurch and unfortunately back to the rain. We explored a wet and soggy Christchurch and realised that there wasn't really that much to see, so the next day left the city behind. Our next destination was the Banks Peninsula, which is comprised of the eroded remnants of 2 large volcanoes and is full of gobsmackingingly picturesque scenery. We took the scenic route via Summit Road which was well worth the extra kilometres for the magnificent views it afforded us back over Christchurch as well as the beautiful peninsula.
We arrived in Akaroa, a french inspired village a few hours later and wandered the streets named Rue Jolie and Rue Lavaud soaking up the atmosphere.

Having missed out on the dolphins in Kaikoura we booked ourselves onto a Dolphin Swimming trip for the next morning and crossed our fingers that the sun would shine. Apparently these dolphin types are early risers which meant we were up and out at the crack of dawn the next day, but were rewarded with the most gorgeous morning to try and track down some Hector's dolphins, which are some of the smallest and rarest dolphins in the world. We were kitted out with wetsuits and jumped on board a small boat to start our search.

I'm a pro at getting into these wetsuits!

We made our way out of Akoroa harbour and into the huge swell of the Pacific Ocean and it was not long until we spotted a pod of the dolphins. We watched them leap into the air in the distance and then come in closer to the boat and surf the bow wave for a while.

It was then time for the main event and the small group of us who were getting in to the water climbed down the ladder and waited to see if we were interesting enough for the dolphins to come and investigate. I had been given 2 stones to click together to attract their attention and within seconds I was surrounded and the dolphins were swimming between us and circling us with curiosity. For the next 30 minutes they jumped and splashed and generally played between us, resulting in one of the most amazing experiences of our travels so far. On our return to the harbour we decided to check out another of the beautiful bays on the peninsula so headed over the hills to Okains bay.

The campsite was situated in a pine forest just metres from the beach, not a bad spot. We enjoyed the beach and also did a spot of fishing from the rocks, although Dave spent most of his time trying to teach a clueless Swiss man the basics of fishing! We scoffed a Sunday morning fry up before reluctantly bidding this exquisite part of the coast line farewell and setting our sights on Lake Tekapo, inland once more. Our journey took us through rural Canterbury and into tranquil towns such as Geraldine; not much time to linger though and we soon arrived at the incredibly turquoise glacial melt waters of the lake.

We set up camp on the water's edge and braved the icy waters for a limb-numbing swim before dinner. The next day we scaled the heights of Mount John where we got our first glimpse of the Southern Alps in the distance, as well as fantastic views down onto the lake. The descent was a hot one with no shade on offer, so by the time we returned to camp it was time for another swim to cool down. Having worked up an appetite with all that activity we had barbeque for dinner and watched the sunset over the hills in the distance.

New Zealand South Island, Week 4

After 3 glorious weeks on the North Island it was time to leave for southern shores. Our original plan of a month on each island was altered slightly due to some unseasonal rain and flooding over on the East cape which meant that we had to miss out that part of the journey. We boarded our Interislander ferry at 8am in glorious sunshine and left Wellington behind.

We enjoyed the sailing and were soon treated to the magnificent views of Marlborough sound as we reached the South Island. On arrival in Picton we chose the scenic route along Queen Charlotte drive which took us up into the hills and along the coast, taking in more dramatic scenery as we swallowed up the miles.

We arrived in Havelock and decided to stay there for the night and take advantage of the campsite owner's local fishing knowledge. On his recommendation we made our way to Cullen Point with fishing rods in hand and after some scrambling over rocks thought we'd found the perfect fishing spot (magnificent view included). After a couple of minutes I commented on the rather unpleasant smell which I'd detected; as Dave pleaded his innocence we took a quick look around and located the culprit, the rotting carcass of a huge cow just metres away at the back of the beach! After a rather sharpish relocation we spent a few hours dipping our rods into the water until the sand flies descended and we retreated to the safety of the campsite.

The next morning we made our way towards the town of Nelson, stopping at the gorgeous spot of Pelorus bridge with its crystal clear waters and huge trout swimming tantalizingly close to Dave, looking up, laughing and then swimming off again. The rest of the day was spent enjoying the sights of Nelson, before heading for Jenny and Nick's place (old neighbours of Dave's from Dorset) for a lovely evening and the luxury of a proper bed for the first time in a month.

The next morning with all of Jenny's tips in hand we set off for the Abel Tasman national park looking forward to exploring this beautiful area by kayak and on foot. Unfortunately the weather gods were definitely against us and as we made our way up through the park the low cloud obliterated any views we might have enjoyed and the rain kept us firmly inside the van. We headed right to the top of the island to Farewell Spit in the hope that the weather might improve but it remained decidedly soggy, windy and quite frankly bloody cold. We spent the night in the park but awoke the next morning to more rain and decided to cut our losses and head out of the area. As soon as we descended off Takaka hill the weather brightened and we took the opportunity to get some fresh air and make the walk to Harwood's hole, an extremely deep sink hole, descending 183 metres into a system of caves. We walked along the forest path and then climbed over a few rocks to peer down into its depths, as you can imagine I wasn't too keen on that and scuttled away while Dave tried to capture its enormous depth on camera; very hard to do so you'll have to make do with a forest shot.

Spent a night on route to Nelson Lakes and arrived the next day to yet more rain, arrgghhh! We booked our spot on the Lake Rotoiti DOC campsite anyway and crossed our fingers that the downpour would stop; finally our luck changed and during the afternoon we walked around the peninsula and ended the afternoon with a beer at the Alpine lodge in the sun.

Weather permitting the plan the next day was to climb Mount Roberts, which promised fantastic views over the lakes and the surrounding area. As the day broke over our sandfly ridden campsite the change in the weather was astounding, blue skies all round! We bounded up the hills and enjoyed the said views and skipped back down again all before lunch time.

Having completed the walk quicker than expected we took the opportunity to escape the bloodsucking swarms and jumped in the van heading to Blenheim in the heart of Marlborough wine country. We resisted the lure of the vineyards and drove on down the coast to Kaikora, the place in New Zealand to spot whales and swim with dolphins. The weather deteriorated as we moved south and by the time we were in sniffing distance of these magnificent mammals all the trips onto the water had been cancelled and we spent another wet night sheltering inside Delilah. The weather on the coast showed no sign of clearing so we took the decision to head for the mountains for a few days in search of sunnier climes; Hanmer Springs here we come!

New Zealand North Island, Week 3

What a picture to start this next entry (Kate is progressing in her skills). Nothing like freefall from 15,000 feet the clear your lungs of sulphur! If you are wondering if I had any nerves, the truth is: No, I didn't - I didn't have time. We just happened to turn off the main road to enquire about a jump. Within half and hour I was in the plane with a Kiwi strapped to my back - apparently they can fly!

An amazing experience but now want more. Many thanks to Dougal for my Christmas present which funded this crazy activity including the photos and DVD!

After the high adrenalin delights of Taupo we decided to head to the hills for something more down to earth and walk New Zealand's most popular one day tramp. The Tongariro Alpine Crossing is meant to be a 7-8 hour walk one way through some amazing scenery.

As you can see from the pictures it was a bit of a dull day and our views were rather spoilt by low cloud. What views we did see were beautiful so we can't complain. The walk took us below the peak of Mt Ngauruhoe (Mount Doom) which could have been climbed but as the weather was so poor we decided against it - no point if we couldn't see anything from the summit.


During the walk the clouds did occasionally clear and we were rewarded with some great vistas. The landscape is barren and lunar in it's appearance due to its active volcanic properties and unusual geological features.

My hopes of escaping eggy smells were dashed somewhat by the numerous sulphur pools but the colours were stunning. We smashed the tramp in 4.5 hrs and had our lunch in the carpark at the bottom. We then started to walk back along the main road to our campsite, fortunately we were picked up by the local school bus and had a lovely lift chatting to a couple of locals. We checked in with the walk office who was rather surprised to see us back so early!

Our next few days were spent making our way down south. We stopped off in Napier - a predominantly art deco town due to the majority of it being destroyed in the 1930s by a massive earthquake.

We then headed to the west coast beaches at Waitarere (above) and Waikanae. At Waitarere we searched in vain for the wreck of the Hyderbad, however at Waikanae we were treated to a junior life guard competition which was quite exciting. But this stage of our journey was mainly about getting to Wellington for our ferry to the South Island.

We were very lucky with the weather in Windy Wellie! Blue skies and sunshine! We spent our time shopping and generally chilling out as we have had such a tough time! Oh and also watched Avatar in 3D - because we could!!