New Zealand May 2012

Chris,Ali and myself

Chris and i with Mum

The time spent in New Zealand went very quickly. For the first week we were in Auckland staying with my sister and her family. Although we have been there many times before it is always a lovely part of New Zealand to visit and Auckland is one of the easiest cities to get

around in.

Church of the good shepard

While there we also caught up with my Mum. Over the last twenty six years she had been living in Tauranga but with her health not being what it used to be she is now in a nursing home just up the road from my sister’s house.

From the north island it was a short flight to Christchurch located on the east coast of the south island. After picking up the hire car we headed to Ashburton for the first night. The following day we made our way to Twizel (Mt Cook region) via the small town of Lake Tekapo which has the most beautiful church we have ever seen. Called ‘the church of the good shepherd’ it was built on the shore of the lake with the main window having stunning views overlooking it.

The view from the window

After checking in at Twizel we got to Mt Cook forty five minutes later in perfect weather to view the scenery, lucky for us, because the following day was overcast and drizzly.

The drive to Queenstown was partly obscured by a heavy fog that slowed us down considerably, until we got to Lindis pass when it slowly began to burn off (at -1 describing it as ‘burning off’ might be slightly incorrect !!!! )

Mt Cook/Aorki

Arriving at Cromwell which is on the 45 th parallel we caught up with Nick, a friend we made when working at Seppeltsfield winery in South Australia.

The next three days were spent in Queenstown which also included a trip to Arrowtown which has a gold mining history and a drive to Glenorchy, located at the top of the lake Queenstown is situated on.

A snow fall during the first night gave us a chance to drive up Coronet peak the following morning and see what the area would look like in the middle of winter.

The gondola ride to the top of the hill overlooking Queenstown should not be missed and would not be complete without lunch and a glass of red.

Leaving Queenstown at around ten in the morning the drive to Te Anau follows the lake for around eighty km. After an area which consists mainly of farm land you once again see the Southern Alps.



Mirror ponds near Milford sound

Mitre Peak,Milford sound

Te Anau is the closest town to Milford sound which is where we did the four hour cruise that takes you out to the Tasman Sea and gives magnificent views of Mitre peak and cliffs that tower 700 metres above you. On the way back we left the cruise to spent an hour or so in an underwater observatory that gives you the chance to observe rare black coral in its natural state. Here there are two different types of living organisms, fresh and salt water, due to large amounts of fresh water (11 degrees) cascading off the towering peaks, accumulating on top of the salt water (15 degrees). This area also has seven to eight metres of rain per year.

The drive there takes you through the Homer tunnel (1.2 km long) which is the only access to the sound.

On leaving Te Anua we decided to take the scenic route to Dunedin which incorporates Invercargill and Slope point which is the southern most point of the South island.

Arriving at Dunedin around 4.00 pm it was time to hunt down a good pub for a beer and a meal which ended up a convenient ten minute walk from our motel.

The following day we drove into town to see the beautiful Dunedin railway station. Not being one to generally admire railway stations I was really impressed in what I saw.

Later that morning a drive along the Otago peninsular was well worth it and especially the pub at Portabello where we both indulged in a few Speight’s beers and a chicken wrap each.

Moeraki boulders

Then it was off to conquer the steepest in the world located back in Dunedin. Now that was a climb to remember. Before the day was through we drove north to see the Moeraki boulders. Virtually perfectly rounded and of varying sizes they are a must see when in the area.



Chris standing straight



Next destination was Wanaka which again saw us heading west towards the alps. One of the most beautiful areas of the south island, surrounded by snow capped peaks with Lake Wanaka laid out before you. This was also where Puzzle world is located. Optical illusions at their best.

With only one night at Wanaka we drove on to Fox glacier on the West coast which also takes you through Haast pass and the Knights point lookout which has great views of the Tasman sea.

The two days at Fox glacier were mostly overcast and drizzly except for the time we spent walking on the glacier on an organised tour. Another must do when in the area.

Entering the Moulon (Fox Glacier)

The Fox glacier is thirteen km long from the top (Neve) to the bottom (terminal face). The hike required the fitting of crampons to our boot to get a grip on the ice. We were also able to crawl through a Moulon, which is an area on the ice where water has penetrated it and formed a tunnel.

Once again the evening meal was at the Cook saddle café for a Speight’s and a meal near a raging fire, very cosy !!!

With petrol costing NZ $ 2.50 a litre in Frans Josef which is a short drive from Fox, we decide on a very small top up before heading to Christchurch the next day via Hottitika and Arthurs pass.



Fox Glacier

An overnight stop over in Christchurch was the end of two weeks on the south island. Unfortunately we were unable to see the northern areas but will have to do that another time when visiting the ‘Land of the long white cloud’