New Zealand : It's a bit steep

There are no jetways in Queenstown New Zealand.  You exit the plane cabin onto a set of stairs and are confronted by a vertical wall of mountains seemingly sprouting from the tarmac at the far end of the runway.  We arrived at the tail end of a storm system, so the peaks were white with the first snows of autumn.  It was stunningly beautiful and none of the pictures or video I had seen could convey the impact of stepping down those stairs. You can read as much as you like, pore over maps, and study photos, but some things can only be conveyed by experiencing it.  

Our journey around the South Island was one jaw dropping vista after another. 

 

However our tramps on the trail were far more than we bargained for. While the Department of Conservation visitor center staff would caution that a trail was "a bit steep", we found ourselves in over our comfort zone with class 2/3 scrambles on exposed ridges or climbing upslope on the roots of thick beech forests.  

After three attempts of tramping on varied terrain, we retired our backpacks and adapted our stay to enjoy coastal pursuits instead.

The town of Hokitika is a blend of a Dairy/Arts/Beach retreat town. You  can walk the beach for miles looking for local greenstone hidden among the driftwood that litters the beach for miles.  Then you can bring it into town and have a Maori elder mentor you and carve it into one of their traditional designs or a unique one of your own at Bonz & Stonz. 

Wandering the sleepy streets barely requires a look over your shoulder for traffic, and the consignment galleries are mainly a social gathering of locals, with a sprinkling of tourists ogling the wares.  Every year there is a festival of local artists creating works on the beach from the driftwood, but the signature work where the main drag meets the beach is always lovingly maintained, and appears in photos in every establishment in town in a variety of shots covering every season and light of day. 

My shot does not hold a candle to the Real Masters

At the north end of the South Island we spent a couple of days at Totaranui beach on the Abel-Tasman coast track. We explored the walk to the east and west of the beach and relaxed in the tranquility of the gentle waves of it's sheltered waters.

We completed our South Island adventures with a drive down the East coast past stunning views from the town of Kaikoura.

We ended out circuit of the coast in a delightful tiny house in Christchurch on a dozen acres of greenspace with grazing llamas.

Our final day in New Zealand was spent in the International Antarctic Centre* learning about the history of Antarctic exploration and the species that live on that continent.  It is right across the street from the US National Science Foundation building that equips the staff before heading off for their deployments to the duty stations in Antarctica, which really brings home the lessons learned in the centre*.

Alas our last day in New Zealand would throw a bit of a monkey wrench in our RTW plans, but that is a tale for another blog post...

* I'll change the spelling, when I change hemispheres.