A short flight from Auckland and we were in Christchurch. It was a quick one nighter, as we are heading back to Christchurch for two nights later in the month, before we fly to Sydney. Without any trial we were taken straight to prison. Our accommodation for the night was a cell in a former prison, Addington. We’d chosen a double private cell, as we couldn’t face sharing a dorm with bunkbeds. Up early the next morning to catch the Trans Alpine train from Addington to Greymouth. One of the worlds great train journeys covering 139 miles in five hours and travelling through the Otira Tunnel which is just under five miles long. Arriving in Greymouth, we picked up our hire car for the next three weeks. “Gavin Still” is a bright white (described by hire car employee) hybrid Hyundai Kona. We were off! Rather than head straight to our first stay over, we headed north as we wanted to see the “Pancake Rock” layered limestone formations, marine fossil layers compressed over millions of years and they eroded by the sea. Well worth the detour.
The first overnight stop was just over an hour away in Hokitika, a small west coast town. Chosen to ensure that we didn’t have to drive too far on our first day. A short drive from our motel, was a “Glow Worm Dell” So after dinner and sunset we headed there, to see if we could spot any. As it got darker the glow became visible and the small dell was softly illuminated, it was like standing amongst very subtle fairy lights. A fabulous find, both the town and the dell.
Fox Glacier was our next destination with stops on the way, including Franz Josef for a lunch stop and then Gillespie Beach – which was an 8 mile drive down a bumpy track and finally a viewing point for the glacier. The second day it was thick with cloud and raining, we walked the track around Matheson Lake. If the weather is settled the lake provides a perfect mirror reflection of the mountains behind. We were out of luck on our visit! The second walk of the day took us up the side of the Fox river to another glacial viewpoint. It was amazing to watch the glacier being exposed then covered again by the moving low level cloud. Delicious dinner in the Cook Saddle Cafe & Saloon rounded off our stay in Fox Glacier Township.
Before leaving for our ultimate destination Wanaka, which was a three hour forty minute drive, we bookmarked a few places of interest to stop on the way. Knights Point, Ships Creek, Haast, a couple of waterfalls and then finally towards the end of the journey Lake Wanaka and Lake Hawea. Wherever you looked there were massive views. We were desperate to see the famous “That Wanaka Tree” – the most photographed tree in New Zealand. It didn’t disappoint, the tree has been there for around seventy years and was originally a farm fence post.
Next morning was clear and sunny, so we drove up to Mount Aspiring national park, parked up and took a short walk along some of the lakeside tracks. The sun had a halo around it, due to the atmospheric conditions. A stunning optical illusion. Headed back down to the town for a wander around and browse in the many independent shops. A friend who had been to Wanaka backed up our findings that the bakery there serves the best pies. We have been trying to limit our intake, however it’s hard to resist as they are everywhere. We rounded off the day by taking a walk along the lake to see the tree again and then dinner at the local Chinese restaurant.
Off to the adventure capital of New Zealand – Queenstown, for our longest stay of recent times, three nights. Nothing planned in advance however bungy jumping wasn’t going to be on the list. First, the journey down was another good un! Cardrona bra fence was the first stop, not your usual tourist attraction but back in 2000, four local women hung their bras on a fence on their way home on New Years eve. Since then tourists from all over the world leave their bras behind and it has raised hundreds of thousand dollars for the Breast Cancer Foundation, NZ. A short drive away is the oldest and most photograhed hotel in NZ, the Cardrona Hotel. Onwards over the Crown Range and stopped off at the summit overlooking Queenstown. It was here we discovered that Queenstown was founded by one of the first European explorers/settlers back in 1827 – WG Rees. Of course G is convinced he is a long lost ancestor. Had to laugh at the caption on the monument – “The Promise Land Of Rees” Checked in and caught up on admin and phone calls to family and friends. After a bit of research we found the perfect activity to do. A jet boat ride up the Shotover Canyon, so with that booked we set off to drive to a local town that had been on our to visit list – Arrowtown. A historic gold mining town where Chinese immigrants had settled in the 1800’s during the Otago Gold Rush. Once again the town had a nice mix of independent shops and an attractive main street. G had his eye on a gold panning kit, but we had to leave it behind, no luggage space. Walked through the partially restored Chinese settlement, to learn about the history and hardships the Chinese immigrants faced. Drove back to Queenstown, took a walk through the town, found the WG Rees statue (with a sheep) – obligatory photo of G next to it. Wandered along the lake towards the edge of town and the beaches.
Our final full day in Queenstown and we headed out of town to the Shotover Jet. Watched a few of the jets coming and going before it was our turn. Lifejacket on, G was first on the jet and chose the front seat next to the driver, hoping that he may need his help! The jets are actually large jet skis, they carry seventeen passengers and can operate in just ten centimetres of water. OK, so our twenty minute experience was action packed. Reaching speeds of fifty six miles per hour, through narrow canyons, near misses with cliff faces and 360 degree spins , it certainly got the adrenaline going. In the afternoon, we chose a nice sedate drive along Lake Wakatipu to Glenorchy. Once again the views were stunning and Glenorchy provided a nice pitstop for a bit of cake and a beer for G. M was the designated driver for the return journey. Stopped off at Bobs Cove, which actually sounded more exciting than it was, especially as it was a forty minute round walk. That concluded our first week on the South Island and here’s to another two weeks exploring this beautiful island.
