Good on ya.
Brilliant.
(Those things often heard in New Zealand).
This month is a one-page special. Read the text here, see some of the photos there. We arrived blurry-eyed from a 3:40 a.m. flight out of Fiji to Auckland on the North Island of New Zealand, and greeted David's parents at the airport. Mom & Dad Frick then treated us to 12 days of their company on the North Island. With rain throughout New Zealand, we headed for the national museum, and saw a thrilling interpretive show put on by local Maoris about Maori traditions. Auckland is also home to America's Cup - and the largest city in NZ has a magnificant harbour (New Zealander's were devestated by the untimely death of national sailing hero Sir Peter Blake - many people we met spoke of his character, and the prime minister herself said "Sir Peter was to the sea as Sir Edmund Hillary is to the mountains").
With easy transport (thanks Lyman for all the great driving), we drove to Waitomo Caves to see glow worms like the stars, before stopping outside of Rotorua at Bill & Trudy's sheep farm and homestay (a homestay is a B&B, only chances are, if you are there, you are the only guests). The farm and nature walk was brilliant, and Trudy treated us to a wonderful morning of sights and herding (we failed as sheep herders, we got maybe five of them into the pen). Rotorua is famous for it's thermal activity, and we spent a great day hiking among the boiling pools while smelling the sulpher -yum. Over the next week we visited two national parks,Waikaremoana & Tongariro, that upon inspection, could not be more varried. Waikaremoana is famous for its virgin rainforests and Tongariro is home to the active volcano, Mt. Ruapeha (it last erupted in 1998). Despite bad weather (pelting rain and 50 mph winds) Meghan & David completed the famous Tongariro Crossing - through & around volcanic craters and geothermal pools. Then we headed to the capital city of Wellington. Windy and beautiful, we had three days of sunshine to explore the capitol, the gardens, the marina, and wonderful museum of the hilly city (that reminded us of a miniature San Francisco). Jane & Lyman left us in Wellington so we could catch a flight to the South Island, as they headed back to Auckland, where they found sushine and more to see.
We flew to Queenstown (think Telluride, CO, only set on a teal colored lake where every day is the ESPN X-Games). There, we went a little insane - what with bungy jumping and hang-gliding to do. After a day and a half of adrenaline, we met up with friends that we met in Fiji - Torsten & Belinda (from Wyoming). They drove us to Te Anau (in their van they bought here) where we got ready for the Milford Track. Fjordland National Park, where the Track calls home, is famous for rain (they measure rainfall by meters). I mention this because it did not rain on us at all! Described as the "finest walk in the world," the Milford Track starts with two days of rainforest hiking. Through lush scenery and many native tree ferns, we ascended to our department of conservation huts. Day three of the Track took us up and over Mackinnon Pass - stunning views of the Southern Alps all around (this is where they shot most of the mountain scenes in "Lord of the Rings.") We also ran into many Kias, alpine parrots -- curious and social birds, who tried to eat our packs. Day Three and Four also treated us to literally hundreds of waterfalls, including Sutherland Falls, the fifth highest in the world.
After the Track, we said "good-bye" to Torsten & Belinda and headed North by bus up to Christchurch. Another lovely city, Christchurch, we saw "Lord of the Rings," ran in their great city park and gardens, and took in the cathedral downtown. From there, we got to Picton and started another Track - the Queen Charlotte Track. Completely different from the Milford Track, Queen Charlotte is still about virgin rainforrests, but also undulating hills and gorgeous views of the many ocean sounds found in the Marlbourough Sounds area (northern part of the South Island).
From the Queen Charlotte Track (where we celebrated Christmas), we had an explosion of activity and great times. In chronological order, (& because this is getting on a bit) we 1) hired a rental car, 2) drove to the craft town of Nelson, 3) went sea-kayaking in Abel Tasman National Park, 4) explored the glaciers of the West Coast of the South Island for New Years, 5) stayed in the cozy mountain town of Wanaka, 6) went white-water river kayaking (our first time - amazing), 7) did more bungy back in Queenstown (over 400 feet - insane), and 8) got ready to go Down Under. So there - Baaahhh, Good on ya, and Brilliant.
We hope you continue to look in on us, and please continue to Email us along the way!
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Meghan Hang-glides Over Queenstown, South Island
