Te Waipounamu - The Routeburn Track

It rained most of the night, but stopped before dawn. Woke early - 5am, most people stirring by 6am.
Sat on the verandah admiring the moonlight shining on a nearby snow-capped mountain and Venus sparkling in the pre-dawn skies.

On the track by 8.15 in a light drizzle, which then became a light rain. Donned the wet weather gear, gloves and beanie. Trekked past impressive bluffs to the left of the trail and passed Lake Harris to the right. Reached Harris Saddle in1 and 3/4 hours. White-out conditions meant there was no point in climbing up Conical Hill to the lookout. We sheltered out of the weather in the hut, putting the gas burner to good use and making some coffee to warm us up.

We set off to Lake McKenzie, passing tarns and hills of tussocks but with poor to no visibility from any of the "lookouts" along the way. To keep ourselves amused, we decided to pretend we were Spanish and greet everyone we met coming along the track the other way with a "Hola"and "Buenos Dias".
Luckily for us the only people we encountered were a large group of Japanese hikers in the Ultimate Hikes group who replied each time with a very polite "konnichiwa,".
The clouds did lift enough for us to sight Lake McKenzie and the Hut on our descent and we arrived at the Hut at 1.15pm.

We managed to score the last two bunk beds in the bunkhouse above the communal dining room, hopefully away from some of the snorers from last night. We had lunch, and with the rain not abating, we chose to take a walk around the lake with a side-trip to Split Rock. Water was cascading down off the mountains creating little waterfalls - so this is what hiking in NZ is all about!

The fire in the potbelly stove made the hut very cosy and hopefully our damp clothes would dry out. Dinner tonight was Backcountry Cuisine- "Beef and Pasta Hotpot" - a much better offering than the night before - quite tasty. The safety briefing by the DOC ranger, Evan, included an informative chat about a stoat trap program he had initiated with the aim of encouraging bird life back into the area.
In bed by 9pm, needing only the sleeping bag liner to sleep in owing to the bunk-room being located above the warm communal area. Zzzzzzz.........

Te Waipounamu - The Routeburn Track

Early start - Breakfast from Ferg Bakery - their world famous breakfast rolls - egg and bacon with homemade tomato chutney - yummy!
Bus pickup at 8am - Jack scored the front seat thanks to careful manoeuvring.45 min drive to Glenorchy where a couple disembarked to head to the Greenstone Track trail-head. We arrived at the Routeburn Shelter just after 10am and after the obligatory photos at the trail-head, we set off at 10.15 over the first of 6 suspension bridges for the day

We followed the well-marked path, walking through beech forest, crossing many streams forded by wooden bridges.
We walked at a slow but steady pace to account for Jack's back injury. He was carrying 9kg - a little more than he was advised to....
I was carrying 14kg, but that included 3L of water, which I soon discovered was not necessary in a country where water is in such abundance.
After 6. 5 km and 2 and a half hours - lunch at Routeburn Flats Hut

The section from Flats to the Falls was a fairly steep ascent -300m in a little over an hour. Not too much joy during that hour - struggled with the pack weight - maybe not enough pack-carrying or hiking over the past week. Maybe I shouldn't be so hard on myself - it was very steep.....
We arrived at the Falls Hut at 2.20pm. The skies looked ominous so we opted to walk up to the Falls, had a good look around and took some photos before the heavens opened up.

We used our own new gas stove to make dinner instead of the hut facilities as we wanted to work out how many meals/snacks we would be able to make using the one small gas cylinder. We sat down and chatted to another couple who we had been passing on the track today - a Polish couple on a 2 week holiday away from their three young sons for the first time. We nicknamed them "The Walking Poles".
Dinner was Backcountry Cuisine - "Chicken a la King" - which was OK, followed by Apricot Crumble.The safety briefing by the Hut Warden brought news of more rain for tomorrow. He then issued a challenge to all hut dwellers - to identify 20 or more Christmas greetings adorned on a wall-hanging decorating one of the walls of the communal room. We formed a Team United Nations comprising us, the Walking poles and two NZ couples sitting at the next table. After the Hut Warden collected the walk passes, the lists were checked and our group correctly identified 25 greetings - we won!!! and shared the prize of a family sized block of chocolate.

Te Waipounamu - Queenstown - The wallet is getting lighter!

One more day before we set off on the Routeburn Track.

Jack booked himself into the physio for a massage, so I spent a couple of hours browsing in Queenstown's galleries and shops.
We met up  at the DOC centre to check on the weather forecast, buy a map and pick up out Hut Passes. All the talk over the past few days has been about the weather generated by Cyclone Lusi in the North Island moving down over the South Island. The weather forecast was not perfect, but here was our chance - to hike in NZ's famous rainy weather - and get our boots wet!!!

We headed to the wharf for our next adventure - para-sailing! We decided to face our fear of heights and volunteered to be the first couple to go up. So harnessed in, we soared into the air behind the boat, just a cable between us and the sky. It felt like we were flying, with a birds-eye view of the lake below us and the mountain ranges surrounding Queenstown- what a rush. Unfortunately, what goes up, must come down.....

After a bite for lunch, we hiked up to the summit of Bob's Peak as a last training walk - a good hour's climb through the forest. Jack had decided he wanted to do another session of zip-lining and master the upside-down Batman move. I would have preferred to do some para-gliding, but I can save that for next time.... I set myself a challenge and would try and zip down each and every line upside down - Batgirl style. And yes, that's exactly what I did. 

All packed and ready to tackle the Routeburn tomorrow - bring it on, the wallet needs a holiday!!!

Te Waipounamu - Queenstown - Queen Vic incognito!

One of the best ways to see and experience Queenstown is on the water. There are numerous options -the water craft ranging from jet boats to steam boats to a "Shark" - The "Shark" is a jet ski modified with an enclosed canopy. It is highly maneuverable in the water and can be launched into the air and also submerges for a few seconds.
The romantic choice would be the TSS Earnslaw - the steam ship which celebrated its centenary in 2012. We decided on the catamaran cruise which was a slightly longer cruise and included more scenic viewpoints. We were not disappointed, rewarded with fantastic views of Mt Earnslaw when we docked at Mt Nicholas Station. Highly recommended.

 

Wharf in foreground, Bob's Peak in background. Zipline is in the forest to the left of the summit.

After lunching at a cafe on the wharf, our afternoon plans were put into action.
No trip to Queenstown would be complete without a Gondola ride to the lookout on Bob's Peak.
We were astounded to see hoards of mountain bikers using the Gondola to hitch a ride up to the top where there are numerous bike trails, varying in difficulty and length all over and down the mountain.
The Gondolas have modified bike racks to carry the bikes.
The Gondola ride itself takes only 5 minutes ascending through a gap in the pine forest, found everywhere on the mountain slopes in many areas around Southland.
The picture postcard views from the observation deck are spectacular - fit for a Queen - though because I left my tiara back at the hotel, I kept a low profile and remained anonymous. 
We sat for an hour, soaking up the panoramic scenery.

There are several ways you can choose to part with some dollars at the summit. We watched para-gliders ($200 per person) take off for a 12 minute descent, and others testing their skills on the two luge tracks on offer.
We booked on to a Zipline tour and spent the next 90 mins conquering our fear of heights on 4 different lines. I decided to take on all of the challenges set by the crew and ended up flying through the air, upside down with no hands attached on the last 2 runs - what a rush! Great fun!
Ended the day at Pub on the Wharf, where we continued our NZ Bourbon and Cider tasting challenge - after all, you have to wash the lamb shanks down with something!

 

 Bat-girl!

Still making friends with the locals!

Te Waipounamu - Queenstown - Frisbee and Feasting!

Opted to walk into town along the bike/walk trail conveniently located right outside our hotel. The path takes you past the Botanical Gardens where we detoured and took the track which loops around the lake. Easy 60 min stroll into the town centre.
After brunch we checked out some retail and gallery stores. Purchased our "Backcountry Cuisine" meals for the tramp and a frisbee at one of the outdoor stores.

We headed back to the Queenstown Gardens to the frisbee golf course. The course is spread over most of the Gardens so it is a great way to tour around while having some free fun (a rarity in Queenstown)!!
I had bought a small 114g frisbee as a souvenir for our granddaughter which posed a bit of a challenge in the windy conditions. However, I still enjoyed the golf round and when accounting for my usual handicap of -20, I carted a respectable score of 76!

The caddy and I then spent the rest of the afternoon eating and drinking and then eating and drinking a bit more with some serious people watching around the wharf precinct.
Queenstown has a good vibe to it, tourists tending to be in the younger demographic compared to other places we have visited - and most appearing to be fitter and healthier that the average tourist!
Plans were hatched to spend the next two days sampling just a few adventurous activities - after all, Queenstown is known as one of the great adventure towns on the planet!

The caddy enjoying his bourbon tasting tour of NZ

The Land of the Long White Cloud

Another Queenstown local!

Te Waipounamu - Day 1 - Melbourne to Queenstown

"I cannot rest from travel, I will drink life to the lees"......let the odyssey begin!

Smooth flight. Watched an incredible movie  - The Book Thief - one of the best movies I have seen.
Not often I give a movie 5 stars

My nose was pressed against the aircraft window as we flew over the Southern Alps and Fiordland and descended into Queenstown. Magnificent mountain ranges!

Our base in Queenstown for the next 4 nights - Oaks Club Resort located on the Frankton Arm of Lake Wakatipu. A little bit of luxury to compensate for the Routeburn tramping in 5 days time.
One bedroom apartment with balcony - fab views of the lake and the Remarkables.

Spent the rest of the afternoon and evening exploring the town and hatching plans for the next few days in Adventure Town!

Sherpa in Training!

Meeting the locals!