Saturday 8 June 2013

Day 15 (May 29th) Wanaka and arrival in Queenstown!

I woke up at about 8am ready to go out hiking. As I walked out of my dorm I was greeted by a massive blanket of snow and a complete white out with very little visibility so hiking could be a bit dodgy. However, after forty minutes and a hearty breakfast, the weather and visibility was improving significantly. Xavier and I decided we would climb Iron, a short walk from the hostel so we could see the beautiful views in Wanaka which is known as a town of natural mountain and lake splendour. The location of Wanaka at the foot of the Southern Alps with the wilderness of the Mt Aspiring National Park nearby makes it a magnet for outdoor lovers the world over. We are pretty chuffed there's been such a heavy snowfall which really add to the beauty. Mount Iron is an impressive, glacier carved, rocky knoll that rises nearly 250 metres above the surrounding countryside. As a result, from the summit there are excellent 360-degree views of the The Pisa range, the Upper Clutha Basin, Lake Wanaka and the Southern Alps. It is approximately an hour to the summit. What a lovely walk! And there's snow everywhere, including some mini snowmans which have been made by other walkers who have been out earlier than us. It really feels like winter now and it's a beautiful, cold but fresh day. There are really cute little rabbits running around everywhere but they are too quick for us to get any decent pictures. I'm still quite excited by this as I have never seen them in such abundance on any walks in Ireland. We reach the top, breathe in the clean air and take some pictures. 








 Views from Mount Iron

I would love to explore some more of Wanaka and check out the cute little town but I'm eager to get to Queenstown where I have good friends waiting my arrival. I head back to the hostel, grab my bag and get out on the road. I am so excited to get there! I have heard nothing but excellent things about this tiny little winter paradise. After about 15 minutes, I'm picked up by Sarah, a young, kiwi artist who wants to 'revolutionise hugging' and really appreciates all the beautiful things and beautiful people around her. She is great fun and obviously talented. Check out her stuff here! She drops me in Frankton and I'm soon picked up by another Kiwi man, Danny, who feels sorry for me lugging my bag along the road in the snow. Yay! It's snowing again as we arrive in Queenstown and I am already loving the city as I admire the place before being dropped right at my hostel, Absoloot. I get inside, have some dinner, get ready and then meet Charlotte in 1876, a cute and classy bar in town with excellent drink prices. We catch up and hours later I go to sleep dreaming of a wonderful winter in a wonderful winterland, Queenstown. 

 
Beautiful Queenstown

Day 14 (may 28th) Hitching to Wanaka

I get up today to better weather and head out to the main road, one minute from Ivory Towers Hostel, to begin hitchhiking. The day is finally clear and there is a great view of the mountains with a fresh dusting of snow on top. I feel like I'm in Franz Josef again as there are very few cars going by. I think I am being picked up by an Asian couple, but instead they turn into the petrol station opposite me, get out of the car and start taking pictures of the petrol pump and the discount signs. Random. Then they drive the opposite direction. Darn! An hour and a half later, I'm leaving the convenience store with a $1.50 Pams pie in hand and no lift. I give it about another half hour and by 1pm, decide I'm going to have to cheat again and get a dreaded BUS! I meet Joe (funny Joe who played charades with us the other night) at the bus stop and we both get on the 1.30pm bus to Wanaka. The driver is cracking jokes here and there and giving us a running commentary on everything we are passing, which is pretty cool. We stop at Knights Point and look out onto the Tasman Sea, one of the roughest in the world. Apparently boats and sailors have just completely disappeared here, without a trace of their existence. To the southwest there is no land between here and the Antarctic. The tremendous energy of the storms across this ocean has a powerful and changing effect on this coastline. Pretty awesome!

We then drive through Haast. This region covers over 2,500 square kilometres of diverse and spectacular landscapes. As we drive up through the mountainous areas, there is snow and ice on the roads from the night before, which may turn to black ice later and cause major problems. Lucky we are driving through when it's not dark! There's also waterfalls cascading down absolutely everywhere. Apparently, Haast gives a unique insight into the 'Real New Zealand', a rare gem unspoilt by humans and thriving with native bird life. E.E Muir said in 1929 that 'the whole district of South Westland is a perfect paradise to the botanist and indeed any liver of nature', and it's easy to see what he is talking about while driving through. Unfortunately I didn't get any great pictures from the moving bus but we stopped at the only cafe along the way and the picture is below! It's an enjoyable drive with good banter from Joe as we indulge ourselves with ginger cookies and oreos along the way.

We reach Wanaka at about 5.30pm, just as it's getting dark. The view of the lake and the mountains behind as we approached on the bus was amazing. It is absolutely freezing when I get off the bus! I wave goodbye to Joe and set off in search of a hostel. I text Sarah, my personal Isite again and she recommends 'Mountain View' which is warm, friendly and good value. I meet Xavier, another charades buddy and fellow hitchhiker and we chill for the night and watch 'Buried' on the big flat screen TV. I'm still undecided as to whether I love or hate the movie. Another early night for me so we can do some hikes tomorrow in beautiful Wanaka!

 Knights Point
 Haast
 Haast




Monday 3 June 2013

Day 13 ( May 26th) - More glacial activity

So I wake up today to thunder, lightning and heavy, heavy rain. I was going to get on the road again but being soaking wet for hours in a car wasn't appealing. I decided to stay in the hostel another night so I could re-group and figure out my next steps. But I hate wasting days so I decide I must brave the rain and at least leave the hostel for an hour. I ended up taking a walk to the glacier. It started in the rainforest which is so nice to walk through in the lashing rain - it seems to come alive - the smells become stronger and the colours become brighter. I then come across 'Historic Bridge' which is your typical, rickety New Zealand bridge that allows a walkway over a rapidly running river. I walk onto the bridge to get some pictures and feel like I'm about to be blown over the side. It's scary but fun! I continue to walk and the wind is absolutely howling. I consider turning back but I've walked about an hour and a half at this stage - might as well power through. I finally reach the walk to the glacier. Physically, the walk there is very similar to Franz Josef. Fox Glacier is also a little more exciting, however, as when you make your way to the top of the stony hill and finally reach the top - you are a lot closer to the glacier than what you would be at Franz Josef. You can also see ice caves which are pretty awesome looking. By the time I get back, the wind is blowing even harder and the rain is pelting down. I am drenched and can barely walk against the strength of the wind. Luckily - two Irish guys who happen to be glacier guides stop and tell me to get in. I wish I met them on the way and maybe they could have brought me onto the glacier. Ah well! They drop me all the way back to town, I apologise for ruining the back seat with rain and muck and I head back for a long hot shower. I spent the rest of the day chilling and trying to plan what happens next. Check out the last picture of the glacier below with the people walking on it to get an idea of the size of it.


 Historic Bridge
 On my lonesome
 Historic Bridge
 Glacial Ice Cave
 People walking on the glacier
Clear waters on the way to the glacier

I decided before I started my hitchhiking travels that I wanted to go to all the places I've already been, but also to Milford Sound, Mt. Cook, Lake Tekapo and Dunedin. I didn't actually do any research on getting to these places, and figured that it was probably very do-able in two or three weeks. I didn't look at the road situation. Nope! And as the first few days carried on and I actually began to look at a map I realised what I was dealing with it. Mount Cook is really close the the glaciers, but you have to drive South for a few hours, then East for a little bit, and back up North again to get there. Google maps can't even figure out the route. But you have to drive at least 1000 kilometers in what should only be about 100 kilometers. I wont even get started on getting to Milford Sound. Have a look at the map below - Fox Glacier is a little more than half way down the West Coast, slightly inland. The routes you see are the only roads to take from town to town. So going to these places isn't really going to happen in the few weeks as hitchhiking could go horribly wrong when I need to hitch so far in one day. The road the Milford Sound is closed at the moment anyway so I decide I'll head to Wanaka next, then Queenstown. And I'll do weekend or day trips from there with friends!