Lazing by lakes

 Over the past weeks I've sat reading my book by the side of three different lakes; Lake Wakatipu, Lake Wanaka and Lake Tekapo. I'm now in Picton for a few days before starting my next wwoofing just north of Blenheim.
It's been a very relaxing week; I've mostly been going for day walks and soaking up the sun whilst paddling along the lake shores.

 I started in Queenstown where I got everything sorted after the Routeburn, climbed Queenstown hill and failed to do a bungee swing.
The walk up Queenstown hill was magical; it started through the trees with white spotted toad stools littering the ground, then opened out on to the grassy hill side with fox gloves lining the path and spectacular views of Queenstown and across to the top of the gondola.

On the Sunday I was meant to be doing a bungee swing, which my friend Mealiny had given me as she couldn't make it. I was all ready to go with a girl from my room, just waiting for the bus, then they called our number and told us it was too windy and all we could do was reschedule but I was leaving for Wanaka the next day so couldn't do it. As consolation, and because it was raining, I went to vudu cafe for a hot chocolate instead.

Next morning I caught the 8am bus to Wanaka, possibly my favourite town in New Zealand. Once checked in to the YHA where there was a kitchen in my 6 bed room(!) I went next door to the cinema which had been recommended to me. Here I watched the Book Thief from the back seat of an old car; others were sat on old sofas.
The next day I walked to puzzling world, a place full of optical illusions; I ended up just looking around the entrance area as it was too nice a day to spend inside. Instead I took a walk up Mount Iron to take a view across Wanaka (seen below) then had one of the best Mochas I've had in New Zealand (pictured above) before going for a paddle in the cool water.

Next day I was on the move again, north to Lake Tekapo. I was hoping to do some star gazing here but unfortunately, although there were clear skies both days, the clouds rolled in at night.
During the two days I had there I went for some short walks, including one up to the Mt John Observatory. From the top of Mt. John I was able to see for miles across parched flat land with mountains in the distance (pictured to the right and below). It was a lovely walk which I ended with another, colder, paddle. On the first evening the clouds had their use as they created a beautiful sunset; a lovely backdrop to the Church of Good Shepherd; I definitely took far too many photos of this (one of these is below). I attempted some star gazing on my last night and managed to see Orion framed by cloud; I gave up when a Chinese family shone their headlights in my eyes and questioned why I was sat alone, on the ground, in the middle of the golf course, in my pyjamas,in the dark.

My final days of the past week took me to Christchurch for one night then on to Picton. The bus to Christchurch was only 4 hours but seemed to stretch on for an eternity due to the very loud and very drunk Irish girls in the back.
It's now February meaning I'm in the final month of my travels; just two weeks left. I hope they continue to astonish and inspire me and that I meet yet more friendly people.

The Routeburn track

 After my last post I took a 9 hour bus to Queenstown where I spent a couple of days relaxing, walking up to the top of the gondola, watching magnificent sunsets and getting everything ready for my three day trek of the Routeburn.
The Routeburn track is one of New Zealand's great walks and it winds its way through the Mt. Aspiring and Fiordland national parks.

 In order to start the walk I took a bus from Queenstown to the Routeburn car park, then I was on my way. The first day was mostly through the trees with the bright turquoise river below and frequent swing bridges. When I reached clearings the views were spectacular as I was blessed with a very rare weather type for this region: sun. It was a nice simple walk which took much less time than expected meaning I had arrived at the hut by 1pm so had plenty of time to meet new people and bask in the sun. (To the right is the view from the Routeburn falls hut, where I spent my first night.) In the evening the hut warden set us a challenge of naming 20 languages on his flag; our team managed 19 but he gave us the chocolate bar anyway.

 Overnight the temperature plummeted from 27C to 6C. I set off around 7am as I had seen that rain was on its way in the afternoon. The day started with fantastic views down the valley and after a couple of hours I was enjoying myself so much I decided to do one of the side trips up Conical hill. This involved a steep scramble for about 30 minutes; unfortunately when I was about 50 meters from the top the cloud came down so my view from the top was a white out. For the next couple of hours I was walking along the side of a mountain and I'm sure there were incredible views beyond the cloud. I finally dropped down below the tree line into 'Fairy woods'; I can see why it got its name; you can just imagine nymphs and pixies flitting between the moss and lichen covered trees and boulder, just magical.

I made it to the Mackenzie hut at midday and was lucky that I was the third to arrive as it meant I got my own bed rather than having to be one in a long line.
We sat huddled around the fire feeling quite grateful for our early arrival as other trampers arrived soaked to the skin, by around 4pm it had even started to snow on the tops.
I had a nice relaxed afternoon and evening chatting to Peter (German), Kim and Kiara (Australian) and Bailey and Becka (American).

On the third and final day I set off in drizzle, meaning there was barely any view. I was having a lovely time walking through the trees taking photos of the many different types of moss and lichen and marvelling at the vast array of ferns. At one point I came to a particularly nice waterfall and was just admiring it when I noticed it had got slightly lighter. I turned around and was confronted by a jaw dropping view. The clouds had parted slightly and the snow capped mountains were poking through in the circle of blue, with the moon just above them. To add to the moment a few flurries of snow began to drift around me; this coupled with the sound of the gushing waterfall had me standing alone in the middle of the path with a huge grin on my face.
I continued with a spring in my step past numerous amazing waterfall, including the 174m Earland falls which was even more spectacular due to the rain. Around 10am I reached the Howden hut where I waited for the rain to die down for around 3 hours. Whilst waiting I was joined by Peter, Kim, Kiara, Becka and Bailey.
Once the rain had finally turned to a light drizzle we continued on to the end!
 After the 4 hour bus journey back to Queenstown I had a nice long shower then the 6 of us met up for celebratory pizzas. I had such an amazing time on the Routeburn and met some lovely people. I hope I can do more tramping both here and back in the UK.

Goodbye Mum and Dad!

 So much has happened in the past week I don't even know where to start! I think by the end of my last post we were in Franz Josef, just about to head down to Queenstown on the most beautiful drive of my life. We drove from mountains with glaciers, down alongside the pebble beaches which were covered in drift wood (Mum's heaven), through the Haast pass and past a few clear, blue lakes then finally were blessed with a fantastic view down to Queenstown (shown at the top). Along the way we stooped for a very nice coffee overlooking the lake in Wanaka (a place I will definitely be returning to) and we took a look in a few sweet little shops in the historic Arrowtown.
Our accommodation in Queenstown was quite a step up from the YHAs; we were staying at Nugget Point Boutique which had the most amazing views over the Shotover river (shown below), a very swish bathroom with a jacuzzi bath and free use of the spa facilities. We decided it was much too appealing after the long day of driving so we stayed there for a very nice meal and dip in the hot tub and sauna.

I was quickly reminded why I had loved Queenstown so much on my previous visit. After a morning wandering around the town and eating a rather good lunch, at Vudu Cafe on the waterfront, we hopped on the bus for white water rafting. 
The first task was putting on the thick wetsuits, jackets, boots and buoyancy aids. A bus then took us down skippers creek road; a pretty scary, narrow route down into the valley, right along the cliff edge.

The rafting itself was great fun; whizzing down rapids and even jumping out from time to time to cool down in the water. My favourite part was the last couple of minutes; after a long dark tunnel we reached the most extreme of the rapids where we were told to turn sideways so we wouldn't hit our noses. We hit the rapid at a strange angle meaning we were thrown sideways so that Dad and 2 others fell out. (this is pictured at the top).
All this rafting worked up quite an appetite so we went to Queenstown's famous Fergburger restaurant for a huge, but very good burger. 
After another night at Nugget Point then patisseries by the lake front we head South for Manapouri.

Manapouri is a small place where we were staying in a cute, cosy little bach. The weather there wasn't so chipper so we had a slow morning then went into Te Anau for a coffee before a short walk along part of the Kepler track (another of the great walks). That evening we snuggled up inside, as the temperatures had dropped to around 4C, and started a tricky puzzle. (such party animals!)

  The main reason for staying in Manapouri was to visit Doubtful Sound; a stunning area which is actually a fiord, not a sound.

In order to reach the sound you have to take a boat trip then a coach journey meaning it is very remote; there was only one other boat out there. The scenery there was absolutely breathtaking. Steep sided mountains rose out of the deep blue water (fresh on top and salt below) with clouds pouring over their peaks and through the valleys but also sun leading to awesome rainbows. A bonus was the large pod of dolphins which played along side the boat, flipping and jumping high out the water.

On the way back, as part of the coach trip, we wound our way down a long tunnel underground to the hydroelectric power station (pictured to the left); here Dad was in storyboard heaven. We finally arrived back to our little bach around 3.30, very cold but having had a fantastic day, with hundreds of photos to show it.

 On Tuesday we had a long drive up from Manapouri to Lake Tekapo, over the Lindis pass and through yet more amazing scenery. We were blessed with perfect blue skies for the drive up meaning that when we stopped in Twizel to check details for a our helicopter flight the next day they said they had a slot at 5pm that day. We decided to make the most of the amazing weather and go for it.

 We drove up the side of Lake Pukaki admiring the views of Mount Cook as we went then with in the hour we were in the helicopter, headsets on, ready to fly over Mount Cook (the highest mountain in New Zealand). The flight was breathtaking. It was a physical geographers paradise, flying over glaciers, glacial rivers, towering mountains, exceedingly blue lakes with icebergs in them, a tectonic boundary and many amazing rock formations. 

A few minutes in we stopped off on a snow field so take in the view of Mount Cook and take countless photographs; just in case we hadn't got enough from the helicopter. The 45 minute flight flew by (excuse the pun); I could barely concentrate on what the pilot was saying as I gawped at the breath taking views whilst we zipped between the peaks and along the valleys. It was a truely memorable experience and the best birthday present I could have asked for.
The flight all seemed very surreal by 8pm as we sat in the retro bach eating our chilli con carne then went through the mammoth task of sorting through the photos. This next bach was just North of Lake Tekapo and fitted out in retro 1970s decor; again very cosy.

We had a nice relaxing day on Wednesday, went for a stroll by Lake Tekapo and a coffee but the 30C was too much for us brits so we spent the afternoon in the shade. After trying to finish off the last of the food with our pork we watched yet another great sunset before watching the King's speech.
Next morning we drove to Christchurch where we were staying in a nice 'motel' with a lovely bathroom (2 showers)!
It was 32C so we took it slow and went for a stroll into town through the Botanical gardens.

The gardens were lovely but Christchurch's centre still bares the scar of the earthquake in 2011, making it like one large building site.

As it was our last evening together we went out for a Japanese meal; we were able to sit at the teppanyaki table, it was great fun watching our food be cooked and the chef set the table on fire for us. It was my first taste of Japanese food, other than sushi, and I thoroughly enjoyed it.

Today my parents left me in Christchurch so I am now a lone traveller again. I was going to meet up with two of my French friends in Queenstown but unfortunately their car broke down so they've returned to Wellington, so now I'm planning my month ahead.

I've had the most amazing time travelling with my parents over the past few weeks; thank you so much for so many fantastic experiences.

It was a shame Tom couldn't join us, I look forward to being reunited in just over 5 months.

Onwards to the next stage of my adventure!

Travelling the wild West

 It seems like ages since I last wrote although it's not even a week ago; we've visited so many places and seen so many sights since then!
We started in Wellington and took the ferry across to Picton where we picked up the car and drove via the Abel Tasman to the West coast; so far we've travelled down to Franz Josef.
Wellington put on a real show for Mum and Dad, living up to it's name of 'Windy Wellington'; after the first day of sun, gale force winds and rain lashed against the windows of our YHA room. On arrival we drove up to the top of Mount Victoria, where we took the view across the city. I showed Mum and Dad around the university before going for a walk along the water front, followed by an Indian meal. Mum and Dad spent the Friday bobbing in and out of Te Papa, Wellington's famous museum, whilst I went up to the university. We then met in the evening for a yummy Thai meal. (Below is a photo of my home in Wellington).

On Saturday we set off from a slightly sunnier Wellington, and luckily a lot calmer, for our 3 hour ferry crossing to Picton in the South Island. We spent the day driving across to Motueka, just east of the Abel Tasman. Stopped off in Nelson to stock up on food; had to cram shopping bags into every last space in the car; you'd think we were off to Antarctica!
We spent the evening relaxing in the hostel; hopes of a stroll to the beach dashed by the lashing rain.

 Next morning the weather had improved considerably meaning we were able to catch a boat from Marahau to Anchorage, a bay on the Abel Tasman. From here we walked back along the Abel Tasman track, via multiple golden beaches and numerous beautiful viewing spots. From Marahau we then took a winding route through the soaring, bush covered mountains to Golden Bay hostel in Takaka; here we discovered a huge Countdown supermarket, rendering our big shop in Nelson a little pointless. 

 On Monday morning we set off in the sun for our 5 hour drive over to Hokitika on the West coast. We drove through stunning scenery, between mountains, along side the gushing Buller river then past the wild ocean on the West coast. We stopped off by a beach with huge, crashing waves for lunch then continued down the coast to the Pancake rocks and blow holes at Punakaiki. These rocks were amazing, with distinct, horizontal layers of limestone jutting out the ocean and funnelling the powerful waves to explode through the rocks. We were lucky as we happened to arrive at high tide when the blow holes are most impressive. After taking many photos and videos of the rocks and the water erupting from between them we got back on the road and drove to Hokitika, via Greymouth for yet more food.

When we got to our hostel in Hokitika we were met by a glum looking woman who informed us that she had accidentally given away our room so we would have to stay in the owners' house down the road with her. It wasn't the best of nights as we sat awkwardly eating our stir fry whilst she gnawed on her chicken in a very cluttered house. I guess at least it was memorable.
The next morning we were glad to get back on the road and move on to the hostel in Franz Josef. Unfortunately it was pouring with rain so the glacier wasn't very visible. We walked up to the end of the Franz Josef glacier anyway and the cloud lifted for a while so we got to see the blue ice. We just timed it wrong so on the way back we got soaked to the skin! It was nice to dry off in front of the fire in the cosy hostel with a good mug of Milo.

We were lucky on Wednesday morning; we woke up to clear blue skies so we drove across to Lake Matheson where the mountains are reflected in the water. Unfortunately it wasn't quite mirror like when we were there due to a slight breeze but it was beautiful none the less. After a relaxed coffee looking up at the snow capped mountains walked up to the end of Fox glacier just before the clouds came across and the rain started again. 

It was amazing gazing up at the huge mass of ice and seeing the crevasses and caves in it. markers showing where the ice used to come up to were  quite amazing; can't deny global warming when you see how far the glacier has retreated in just 50 years! We couldn't actually walk on to the glacier as it was too dangerous; we could see where land slips had happened on the walk up and whilst taking photos we saw a huge block of ice roll down into the valley.
It's been a wonderful week and we've seen such a range of scenery in such a small area and short time. I still can't believe how diverse New Zealand is.
Can't wait to explore the rest of the South Island with Mum and Dad and then my French friends.

Watts reunited (minus Tom)

 Happy New Year! Mum, Dad and I have just arrived in an extremely wet and windy Wellington after a fabulous week with the Howes. So much has happened since my last post; Christmas, Mum and Dad arrived, Auckland, Rotorua, the Tongariro crossing and now Wellington. 

Had a lovely Christmas despite the rain; managed plenty of delicious meals and even a walk on the beach; a strange experience on Christmas. Many large family groups (mainly Maoris, Pacific Islanders and Asians) had gathered along the beach for their Christmas BBQ and swim. The Howes were so kind to me and made it a memorable day.

 On Boxing day Karen, Andrew and I packed up some turkey sandwiches and went across to the West Coast for the day. After a short detour and a winding road we made it to Karekare beach; a black sand beach where ‘The Piano’ was filmed; just behind here was a brilliant waterfall.

The 27^th was a very exciting day as Mum and Dad finally joined me in New Zealand! Spent the morning tracking their plane on the internet and making a sign (just in case they didn’t recognise me). Once we had met them at the airport we had to make sure they stayed awake in order to get used to New Zealand time. We took a trip up Mount Eden to see a view across Auckland then after having some fresh fruit at the Howes’ we went for a stroll and a drink along the water  front.

 On Saturday morning we went for a longer walk along by the sea, on the volcanic rocks, with a stop for some very yummy ice cream at Tekapuna beach. After a lunch of home made pizza we head across to the west coast where the gannet colony lives.  I spent the evening prodding Dad to keep him awake as he fought against jet lag whilst we had a good laugh at some old home videos.

 Sunday was our last day in Auckland. Given that the forecast was for stormy weather we went to the Domain, Auckland’s main museum, in the morning; the volcano exhibition scared us slightly as it showed how vulnerable Auckland is; we wondered why we were going to go and walk on an active volcano in a couple of days time! Once we left the domain the weather had brightened up so we went for a stroll along Auckland’s waterfront and had a lunch of some very fresh fish which we just finished in time to go and change ready for our next meal. That evening we went up the Sky Tower to the revolving restaurant where our delicious food was accompanied by amazing 360 degree views of Auckland and a fabulous sunset. We had a slight worry about our navigational skills for the Tongariro crossing as we couldn’t even manage to find the car in the car park!
 On the 30^th we arrived in a rather wet Rotorua where we were staying in the YHA hostel. After dropping off our bags we went for a stroll in the rain to see the lake front and some steam and plopping mud. After our tuna and pasta in the hostel (a slightly different setting from the night before) Karen, Mum and I went to the Polynesian spa to sit back in the hot pools which ranged from 37-42C; rather warm but so relaxing.

 We packed in a lot on New Year’s eve. We started with a lovely walk through the giant red wood forest then went to Wai-o-tapu to see the Lady Knox Geyser at 10.15am before seeing all the amazing colours at the Thermal Park in the sun. Drove down to Taupo where we stocked up at an exceedingly busy Pak N Save and sat by the lake front to eat our lunch. Then on to National park where the cute little batch we were staying in for 2 nights was. We brought in the New Year tucked up in bed ready for our early start in order to walk the Tongariro Crossing; one of the great walks across an active volcano.

  The Tongariro crossing was fabulous. We were blessed with beautiful blue skies for the first half of our walk then just cloud in the afternoon. We completed all 19.4km of it in around 7 hours and celebrated with champagne and a very nice meal out at 'The Station' when we got back.

 The Walk was a geologist and volcanoligist's paradise. Volcanic rocks littered the ground and the path wound its way around past lava flows and steam; this along with many warning signs reminded us how active the ground beneath our feet was.
Some parts of the route were very steep and once we got to the top it was exceedingly windy making the narrow path a little precarious, but it was definitely worth it for the views.  
 We looked down on emerald lakes and volcanic features such as the fissure above and it was just breathtaking. At 1pm we celebrated the British New year with a round of Auld Land Syne and a photo with the Union Jack.
It was a fabulous walk and made me feel slightly more confident and excited about doing the Routeburn in Janurary.

This was the sweet little bach we stayed in in National Park.
On the morning of the 2nd we went our separate ways; Mum, Dad and I went down to a very wet and windy Wellington and the Howes returned home to Auckland.
I've had a fantastic time with the Howes, it's been really lovely to see the and share both christmas and some other wonderful adventures with them.