Day 41 Christchurch

Day 41 Christchurch

We didn’t get going until 10am this morning, but still managed to get the feel of this very interesting city.  At first, it seemed quite sad – 70% of buildings in the CBD (Central Business District) were destroyed or demolished as a result of the earthquakes in 2010-11 and there are many vacant lots and still some buildings boarded up, awaiting their fate.  Several also still have the markings on them from the immediate search and rescue/recovery operation: “Cleared” and the number of injured/fatalities in a circle on the front – but the rebirth is underway….there are murals, sculptures and surprising pop-up cafes and entertainments throughout the city…and the symbol of a giraffe has been chosen (“Stand tall, Christchurch” is its message…) and hundreds - brightly painted or otherwise decorated by school children, artists, companies and organisations – have been placed around the city to bring a smile…..

We walked through the refurbished ‘New Regent Street’ with its colourful colonial – style buildings and the tramlines straight through it…and then through Restart – an areas of several blocks with shops, restaurants and cafes in colourful shipping containers.  Much of the city is very quiet….only visitors and those who serve them…but the Restart area was buzzing.  We visited the ‘Quake City’ exhibition that was disturbing at first…it felt voyeuristic as I’ve never been much for disaster tourism…but ended with innovative ideas that got the city through the aftermath and plans for a spectacular new city, safe from earthquakes and filled with green spaces and amazing cultural and leisure facilities.  We then visited the ‘cardboard cathedral’ and the 185 chairs of remembrance memorial art installation.

We bought our lunch from a shop in a Restart container and took it past the punts on the River Avon to the beautiful botanical gardens to eat.  Rob napped in the shade of a giant tree in Arthur’s Lawn near the mechanical fountain while I explored the beautiful rose garden and New Zealand biome section – that had winding paths similar to many of our lakeside walks.

We visited the Canterbury Museum that we had heard was not up to much….and were surprised that people had denigrated it! We spent well over an hour exploring the Antarctica exhibition (with the actual huts from the Hallett Research base of 1956 and a simulated skidoo ride), the Maori culture and natural history sections, the sections showing the early colonial settlement of the Canterbury plains – with reconstructed huts – and a ‘typical’ Christchurch street in 1900 with shops you could go in and a pennyfarthing bike to sit on.  There was also a very strange exhibition about a New Zealand couple who polished Paua shells and made shell crafts and then covered the walls of their house with them…they bequeathed their living room to the museum – and there it is….very odd indeed…..

We did a bit of shopping and then walked through Hagley Park along the river back towards our hotel.  We stopped for dinner in a small local restaurant and returned in time for an evening swim…except that the pool was full of kids – and would my swimsuit dry before packing to leave??? Hmmm, a coffee instead and a start on the packing….and I really do fancy an early night!

Day 40 New Year’s Day in Christchurch

Day 40 New Year’s Day in Christchurch

We breakfasted in our room and met up with the group for our last walk….One member cried off, saying she needed a full day’s shopping in Christchurch before heading  homeward, so Rob gave the speech thanking Nicole for making this such an excellent tour and gave her our group tip.  (Thank goodness Jenny had had the foresight to collect it yesterday!)

Nicole drove us a half an hour south of Christchurch into the Port Hills…where many of the houses and roads suffered earthquake damage as the cliffs collapsed or from liquefaction.  In places, there are lorry containers lining the road to protect it from further rock falls. We walked a 10+km section of the southern coastal walk from Taylor’s Mistake (A lovely little bay…Nicole didn’t know who Taylor was or what he ‘mistook’….) up to Taylor’s battery – gunpoints from WW2 – and the summit where we could look down into Lyttelton Harbour.  This is the only volcanic part of South Island….and it was reminiscent of the dark grey cliffs and beaches we saw first off near Auckland. There were quite a few other people on the path…clearly ‘tramping’ is something to do on a sunny New Year’s Day. It was a really nice walk….possibly one of my favourites of the trip….I think I’m more a seashore than mountains kind of girl……

We returned to Taylor’s Mistake Bay by a quite steep ‘goat track’ that was fun to go down - but would have been a nightmare going up - and had a swim in the Pacific surf….rather fresh, but not as cold as some of the other places we have swum….and watched the surfers and paddleboarders.  Beach activities are obviously another popular New Year’s Day plan….

We returned to the hotel in time to say Happy New Year with our best British accents and have a free afternoon before our last dinner together.  Rob and I just chilled….we have a full day exploring Christchurch tomorrow – when it isn’t a bank holiday…..

Nicole had booked us all a table at Strawberry Fare….another restaurant near the hotel – noted for its extensive and amazing desserts menu.  When we arrived they asked if we were there for a meal – or just dessert!  The main courses were delicious as well…..and we had a very jolly last evening together – before wending our separate ways.

Day 39 Mt Cook to Christchurch

Day 39 Mt Cook to Christchurch

It began raining heavily during the night and didn’t let up at all this morning…We had around 8cm in less than 8 hours…Also, dreadful news that 3 climbers on Mount Cook hadn’t been heard from in 2 days and the weather was too bad to send in mountain rescue…We were right at the foot of the mountain and couldn’t even see it.  Nicole said she was glad at least that we got to see more typical New Zealand weather…

Nicole made us a lovely breakfast in the beautiful common room of our lodge and we then went to explore the Department of Conservation museum and the Sir Edmund Hillary Centre….just a 3 minute walk with umbrella and waterproofs, but we still got soaked. We spent an hour looking at all the mountaineering history and wildlife exhibits and watched 2 films at the Hillary Centre: a 3D exploration of Mt Cook and a film about the mountain rescue team – particularly poignant today.  It was interesting to note that the rescuers are all volunteers…they take low-paid maintenance jobs in the national park for the opportunity to work with mountain rescue…It gave us a lot more respect for all the people we had seen gravelling the many hiking trails and tending the drop toilets…..

Once the bus was packed, we drove up to St John’s Observatory….a World Heritage Dark Sky site and Christchurch astronomical study facility.  It is reputedly the windiest place in New Zealand…and with the stormy rain, we were blown the last bit up the hill to the Earth and Sky café for hot chocolate….As we sipped our drinks, the sky miraculously cleared, revealing fantastic views over Lake Tekapo….There had been a wedding party just finishing some rainy and wind blown photos as we arrived….If only they had just waited 20 minutes….  Nicole was astounded; she said that usually that sort of rainstorm lasts all day.  By the time we had driven back down the hill and into St John township for lunch, it was a beautiful day and the colours of the lupins against the turquoise lake, purple mountains and brilliant blue sky provided the photo that will probably be the cover shot for our trip.

For the next 3 hours, we drove across Burke’s Pass and the Canterbury Plains to Christchurch.  We passed farmland and towns such as Fairlie and Geraldine that could have been somewhere in middle America….very flat, green and pleasant…quite different from the dramatic landscape we had left.

We arrived in Christchurch around 5:30, first travelling through the new shopping areas of Riccarton – not badly affected by the earthquakes and where most shops, restaurants and bars have set up as the damaged and unsafe buildings of the CBD are demolished and replaced – then around the enormous and lovely Hagley Parks, and finally around the CBD….vacant lots, boarded and crumbled buildings waiting for demolition and a few temporary street art exhibitions and pop-up cafes.  We are leaving our major exploration of the city for Friday…..so we were happy to check in to our Disneyesque Camelot motel, check out the pool and spa and then go out for a New Year’s Eve dinner at a restaurant down the road.  A bit of bubbly, a lovely meal….and we waved off those who were going to the party in the park.  We stayed up for the midnight fireworks….but decided to do the rest of our celebrating with the UK in 13 hours time….or the US 5 hours after that…… 

Day 38 Queenstown to Mt Cook National Park

Day 38 Queenstown to Mt Cook National Park

Another lovely breakfast overlooking the lake and we packed up for the drive to Mt Cook National Park.  We had a great view of Mt Cook from the West Coast, but today we are approaching from the southeast….where the base camp for the climb to the summit is located.

Instead of lupins, the road out of Queenstown is lined with flax, ‘Pampas’ grass, yellow-flowering gorse and the white flowers of menuca….which bees use to make the special honey that sells for £25 a jar…We crossed the Shotover River – where the Queenstown jetboats go – and drove up to the world’s first ever bungy.  One member of our group did this bungy yesterday….way too scary for me – and he said he had a headache all day from bouncing upside down.  We watched one petrified young lady make the jump – she did not look like she wanted to do it, forgot to dive head first and was yanked upside down, screaming the whole time…..no, thanks….

We drove through the Gibston Valley wine region – if I’d been driving, we would have shopped at the very inviting ‘Winery and Cheesery’, though perhaps it was a bit early… There were also cherry orchards, sheep and cattle ranches….It is impossible to name all the different shades of green….but as we then began to follow the Kawarau Gorge, the vegetation became scrub and we entered the historic goldmining area….Again, if I’d been driving, I would have stopped to look at the buildings and equipment, including a ‘flying fox’ just abandoned when the gold ran out.

We passed through Cromwell with its huge fruit sculpture – and ‘Wooing Tree’ where the goldminers would take their women to propose – and the tiny newtown of Tarras – built as a temporary town when the Lake Dunstan hydroelectric scheme was built. (The old town is at the bottom of the lake.) and now a major centre for merino wool…particularly the Icebreaker brand of clothing.

We drove over the Lindis Pass and had a quick stop in Omarama….unfortunately missing the rodeo, which took place yesterday…..We passed another lake formed by a hydroelectric scheme that has been designed as a competition rowing lake.  (This is why New Zealand rowers win so many medals…) and finally stopped for lunch at a garden café in Twizels. 

After lunch, we drove the last bit to Mt Cook National Park and began with an hour-long hike up to the Blue Tarns (They are actually green…) with floating icebergs at a glacier terminal.  We then did another hike – this one 3 hours - up the Hooker Valley….The walk was much more gentle than our recent walks except that the wind was about 40mph, blowing us off the track, and there were three high suspension bridges over the river on the way to the terminal lake and another glacier.  This was one of my favourite walks of the trip….much less ‘up’ and some great views…another rare plant for our collection, too – the Mt Cook lily only grows in this one valley…it has leaves like lily pads and a daisy-like flower.

A much-needed shower in our alpine lodge hotel and off we went to dinner at Sir Edmund Hillary’s favourite mountaineering bar and restaurant.  The décor was historical mountaineer…(I’m sure my dad had skis like those…) but the food was good…and there were views of Mt Cook and surrounding peaks out the double story floor to ceiling window.

With all that walking and a good meal, we collapsed into bed and fell almost immediately to sleep.

 

Day 37 Queenstown

Day 37 Queenstown

Having gone to bed early and exhausted yesterday, we were up at 8 and ready to go….of course it was the one day on this section of the trip that we didn’t need to get up at all! Anyway, we had a lovely breakfast overlooking the lake with the mountains in the background and then found a walking trail through the forest into town….  We went first to the Kiwi Birdlife Park – arriving just in time for the kiwi feeding and talk at 10…perfect timing to see the curious little creatures – actually a bit bigger than we thought…and almost mammal-like with whiskers, bone marrow and furry-looking feathers.  We also saw the various kinds of native parakeets, ducks and – with some persistence – the wekas.  The other star of the park is a reptile….the tuatara - - a 200 million year old species – possibly the only remaining reptile from the time of the dinosaurs and that lives to be 200 years old…very cool….  There was an excellent ‘conservation’ show and explanation of the breeding and release programmes undertaken by the trust that runs the park.  It wasn’t inexpensive but they receive no government funding and profit is put into further conservation…so it is well worth the entrance fee.  They made the point that one of the best things that tourists could do to help endangered species was to buy possum-fur products….to encourage the trapping of possums, introduced from Australia, deadly for all native land-based species and running rampant through both North and South Islands.

We walked from the park down into the town, exploring a few of the touristy streets (a queue for ‘Fergburgers’, sales in the mountain sport shops, ever more effusive advertisements for bungee jumping, skydiving, 4x4 safaris and dozens of other ways to maim or kill yourself and all at a stupidly high price)….got a coffee at a café in the Queenstown mall and sat in the shade near the lakeside beach watching the gondolas and paragliders behind us and jetboats, pedalos, sailboats, swimmers (oooh..cold!) and steamboat enjoying the lake.  We strolled along the harbourside and found the underwater observatory where the trout, salmon, diving ducks and New Zealand long-finned eel obligingly put on a show for us.

We had a late lunch/early dinner at Hell Pizza….Rob had a ‘lust’ pizza and I had ‘Purgatory’ - - not sure what the psychology of that might be… and then climbed the forest path back to the hotel.  Our plans for the evening include repacking, reading, chilling - - and ordering room service if necessary!

Day 36 Milford Sound to Queenstown

Day 36 Milford Sound to Queenstown

Another exhausting day….We awoke at 6:30 for our onboard breakfast and then joined our fellow passengers on deck for a cruise out of Milford Sound onto the rolling Tasman Sea. The ship’s nature guide regaled us with stories of explorers (Captain Cook sailed right by the entrance to Milford Sound twice without ever noticing it…), Maoris (There is a legend that the biting sandflies – the only creatures to spoil the absolute perfection of the place were sent by the gods to ensure that people didn’t stand and stare but moved on with their work…), geology and wildlife.  We saw seabirds such as shearwaters and black-backed gulls and a large group of New Zealand fur seals – the young males – playing and sunning themselves on the rocks.  The young males are kicked out of the colony and stay in the relative safety of Milford Sound until maturity, when they return to the colony to fight for their place in the hierarchy.  We saw one seal climb several metres straight up a slippery vertical rock – and another tiny pup try and try again to climb up a much smaller crag….very cute, poor thing….still a bit of growing to do…..

We cruised back up the sound…fewer waterfalls today, but patches of blue sky between the misty peaks…under the waterfall again and smoothly into dock where Nicole was waiting for us to drive us back up the Milford Highway.

We passed the ‘Chasm’ waterfall again and drove through thick fog to the Homer Tunnel. Once through the tunnel, the sky suddenly cleared to brilliant sunshine – and we photographed many of the same places of yesterday, now sparkling in the sun.  We stopped again at Macpherson Glacier….and then at Falls Creek – where Nicole decided to jump off the falls….”It has to be done,” she said – we were a tad worried for her as we do need her for the rest of the trip…but she had done it many times as a child and was quite determined.  Several other buses stopped to view the falls, so she had something of an audience as she jumped in, swam to the side and safely climbed out….It was a bit colder than she remembered though…she said it knocked the breath out of her……

We stopped at ‘The Divide’ to make the trek to Key Summit - - - a 3 hour walk including a climb of 300 metres for fantastic views….another of the more challenging walks of the trip…and then took the hour-long nature walk at the summit, stopping for lunch halfway around.  We saw a beautiful moss garden – and a rare Kaka bird…and ran into another Adventure South group at the top to compare notes…..

The rest of the drive to Queenstown – through Te Anau, Mossburn, Garston and Kingston passed uneventfully….though the sun streaming through the windows made it much hotter and seem much longer than the trip out yesterday…..

Nicole gave us a ‘turkey tour’ of the very busy town…..so much civilisation after the wilderness of the last few days….and took us to our accommodation for the next two nights.  It’s quite a ways out of town….we were told a 15 minute walk….but I think at least double that and halfway up a mountain (thank goodness there’s a shuttle bus).  Tomorrow is a free day in Queenstown to sample some of the touristy delights…..it is supposed to be our chance to bungy jump, go whitewater rafting, try river surfing or sky diving….but I think we are going to have a rest day instead…This trip has been a bit full on….and I have more than a little laundry to do!

Day 35 Wanaka to Milford Sound

Day 35 Wanaka to Milford Sound

We breakfasted at the Cherry May café and set off on what was billed as a ‘driving day’ with a short, but challenging walk – but the heavy rain meant that Nicole changed the ‘short’ walk into a number of ‘short, short’ easy walks – leaving the more challenging one for tomorrow when predictions are for better weather. Nicole – and every Kiwi we met today – told us how lucky we were that it was raining…..  We eventually found out why….as we reached the Milford Highway and Homer tunnel, temporary waterfalls sprang into life, cascading hundreds of metres in thin ribbons of white threaded through the mountain vegetation.  It was equally spectacular in the fjord itself….

Our drive from Wanaka was filled with notable sights….colourful lupins (planted by colonists and later by tourists) along the roadsides and rivers, the beginning of a tent city at the location of the famous ‘Rhythm and Alps’ music festival which begins in a few days, the famous, historical Cardrona pub from the Speight beer adverts, cyclists fighting the rain and hills on their way to or from Queenstown, Arrowtown (a historical and touristy goldmining town), the Remarkables Mountains, filmed as the fiery mountains (Ered Lithiue) in Lord of the Rings (every time I think we’ve finished the LotR tour, another film set pops up….apparently there were 350 of them….), Garston (NZ’s most inland village) and the Kingston Flyer.(a working steam train – just for tourists, of course).

We actually stopped in Mossburn – the deer capital of NZ.  Red deer and wapiti were gifted to NZ by Theodore Roosevelt in the early 1900s for hunting but – as with most introduced species – became a pest…and in the 1960s it was decided to farm them.  So….a number of well-paid, brave (and foolhardy????) ‘cowboys’ jumped off the  skids of helicopters onto the backs of stags and wrestled them to the ground, capturing them to be transported to stations around Mossburn.  This story caused much hilarity on our bus as we imagined the meeting where it was decided that this was a good idea…. (Eventually it was decided that dropping nets might be a bit less risky..) 

Our lunch stop was at Te Anau, the gateway to ‘Fiordland’. There were some lovely cafes and shops and a beautiful lakeside.  We didn’t have time to do the cruise to the famous glow-worm caves…our intimate adventure at Punaikai will have to suffice for that….

Back on the bus, we passed Charteris station in Te Anau Downs – a huge station, made up of the parcels of land given to WW1 vets on their return from war after the vets gave up trying to farm land so far from everything with no roads….then   followed the Eglington River (world famous for fly-fishing, apparently) for a couple of hours, then stopped at Knob’s Flat for the ‘last flush toilets until Milford’ and to find out about the wildlife in the national park.  The pekapeka bat is New Zealand’s only native land-based mammal – and this is one of the only places they are likely to be seen….but only at night – so we’re not likely to see them here either.                   

We took the Lake Gunn walk in the rain….120 different types of moss, 3 types of beech, very unusual burls or galls and a plant called ‘stinkwood’ that certainly lived up to its name…..The lake was named for a farmer that had to walk his cows to market eight days from his station, along this lake with his dog Fergus….and who drowned with his dog one time when there was a flash flood…..The bodies were apparently found this time….but still another tragic story.

 We drove across ‘the Divide’ so back to the West Coast….along a section of road with 40 avalanche chutes….quite often closed in winter – no surprise… to a beautiful series of waterfalls, first at Falls Creek and then  beneath the huge MacPherson glacier, just before the Homer Tunnel.  We got out in the rain to photograph the beautiful scene and were rewarded by the additional sight of 2 cheeky kea birds, raising their green outer wings to show off the brilliant red/orange underneath.

The Homer Tunnel took 10 years to build – spread over 18years because the build was interrupted by WW2.  It was dug through 1.2km of solid granite – even dynamite explosions only moved it forward 30 cm at a time…. It is now the location of a naked race on every April 1^st….our guide, Nicole, came second last year…..

We then drove down to the edge of Milford Sound….arriving at 4:10 with boarding time for our cruise at 4:20….Nicole is a master of timing…..even fully clothed…..

We boarded the Milford Wanderer for our overnight cruise and were immediately served a delicious potato and leek soup.  I am not generally a great fan of cruises….there isn’t a lot to do so they stuff you with food and drink, but this was better than most…  We cruised the fjord, looking at the temporary waterfalls, impressive mountain walls and went under Stirling falls – the largest of the permanent falls.  We then got into a tender for a guided nature cruise closer to shore. There was also an option to jump from the boat and go for a swim…..but that was just too cold.

It is a particularly interesting bit of coastline because the tannin-filled freshwater from the high mountains forms a layer on top of the salty seawater…..fooling deepsea life into thinking it belongs.  It is one of the few places on earth where black coral grows at a level where it can be seen.  There is an underwater observatory in the sound….but it was closed by the time we got there….

Anyway, a lovely dinner and pleasant evening, moored beneath Mitre Mountain – so named because the summit resembles a bishop’s hat….and a good night’s sleep, gently rocking in the sheltered cove…..