Rich and Cat's Travels: February 2015

Monday, 23 February 2015

Greymouth and onwards

Right so we decided to hire a car again and head to Aurthur's Pass for a couple of days. There is absolutely nothing there apart from some mountains and walks, one over priced cafe, one very small over priced grocery shop and the information centre but all we were here for were the walks which was lucky. So on our first day we decided to do a medium walk called temple basin that was a three hour return walk so we thought we could handle that in an afternoon....

So off we merrily went to climb a little hill.... it wasn't so little.... it essentially was a 500 metre climb over 1.5km and took just under an hour and a half to get up but it was a tough walk. The pathway consisted of just rocks, some little which you slipped on and some bigger which you had to climb over. It definitely wasn't easy but the views from the top were great. we could see all the snow capped mountains and the ski lift which, in winter, brings people to the top of the mountain we had walked up.

The next day we decided to try a hard walk, although I decided I would only do part of it as it was a lot harder than the first walk and a lot higher and as I am not a huge fan of heights I didn't think i would like it. The walk was called avalanche peak, which gives you a hint what the walk was like. For the part I did it involved rock climbing over big boulders and up small rock faces with no safety measures. So i gave up pretty quickly (as i knew i would have to come down by myself) and let rich climb the rest. He made it up to the top in 2.5 hours where he managed to have a small rest, although it was interrupted by a cocky Kea who wanted to sample his lunch. So he made his way back down, managing not to fall over (or off the cliff) in about 1.5 hours.

For our final morning in Aurthur's pass we decided to do a couple of short flat walks (well in New Zealand they do not exist) and we ended up doing a couple of slightly hilly walks but they were only a couple of kilometres each. After that we headed back to Greymouth where we thought it would be a good idea to have a relaxing bike ride on the free hostel bikes. Some how (and i fully blame Rich for this) we ended up riding 15 km down a coastal track which was fine but it meant we had to ride 15km back. So after the long ride back we decided we needed a big beer to take our mind off the pain we knew we would experience tomorrow and we went to the local brewery (Montieths) where we were able to sample some very nice beers and ciders. My favourite was their raspberry larger.

The next day we hopped onto a coach and headed for our next destination, Franz Joseph, which is home to a large glacier. For the first afternoon/evening we just relaxed but we were sharing a room with two Germans who snore sooo loudly that we did not get any sleep. The next day which jumped (rather cautiously in my case) onto a helicopter which took us to the middle of the glacier where we were able to get out and hike, following a guide, for three hours. We got to walk over crevasses and in caves and marvel at the colours of the ice. We also saw a large waterfall and got to drink some glacier water all before having to get on the helicopter (which I sat in the front of) and fly back to the safety of dry, unfrozen land.

Following that we also had free entry into the hot springs so we went and chilled out (do you get the pun) in the hot baths for the next couple of hours. After this we were nice and relaxed for bed, however the Germans were still here so sleep was difficult to come by. The next day we went on a walk to the bottom of the glacier which is about 7km from town and we did a couple of walks around the area. We are also looking into some other little outings we can do as we are in this area for the next couple of days before heading on to Queenstown which is the centre of adventure where lots of fun is to be had. New roomates tonight so we are hoping for a better nights rest!

One Terrified Cat

One chilled out Rich on top of the Glacier

A crevasse on the Glacier

more glacier

Another crevasse, which is essentially a large crack

Us looking cool on the Glacier (im getting good at these puns)

Yet another crevasse

A Cave we got to walk through

Glaicer

The big waterfall

Tuesday, 17 February 2015

Christchurch to Greymouth

So after heading out from Christchurch we headed back to Kiakoura to try again to swim with seals and just like last time we got all dresses up not sure if we would be able to get out on the sea but as we headed to the boat we got news that we would be able to head out. We went out in a little speedboat (for those of you who were there it was a little reminiscent of Sardinia). We quickly found some seals and jumped in the water. They did like to investigate and play from a suitable distance and we jumped in and out of the boat a few more times around some rocks and got to interact with a few different seals. There are lots of photos and videos and below is a link to the best video.

After the seal swim we headed to Hanmer Springs where we checked into our hostel and headed straight out to go to a spa where we lazed in some hot pools, ranging from 38 - 41 degrees which was bliss. There was even a little lazy river we could float around on.

We went for a nice little walk up a large hill the next morning to go and see a waterfall which took a couple of hours. This was our preparation for the next couple of days walking in Arthur's pass which will be a little more difficult.

After that we headed to Greymouth to drop off our car and stay for a couple of days but on the way there we stopped at pancake rocks (apt as it was actually pancake day, not that it is celebrated over here so we didn't realise). The rocks are layered and form stacks and do look like pancakes, there are also some blowholes that when the tide is in and the sea is rough spurt water from the top which can be impressive however for us the sea was too calm for this to happen. From here we also spotted some Whales which was amazing. Then we headed to greymouth and after staying for one night we have decided to hire another car and head out to Arthur's pass for a couple of days as Greymouth is a bit of a dead town with nothing about. We need to come back here to catch our coach to our next destination so we will be back on the 21st.

The Waterfall in Hanmer springs

A seal having a bit of fun with us

Pancake rocks

Pancakes rock blow hole

Sunday, 15 February 2015

Caves, Auckland and the start of South Island

After an overnight coach to Wellington, on which we managed to get a couple of hours sleep we picked up our new hire car and started the drive to Waitimoo. The views were beautiful which helps the time fly by. We got to our accommodation, with a crazy bird lady, and decided to go out for dinner. The next morning we had to get up early and headed for our tubing in the caves which involved putting on wetsuits, gumboots and helmets, we were an attractive lot! Then we had to walk to the entrance where there was a steep and tight climb down a ladder (it was scary, partly because you couldn’t see the bottom and partly because there is no room for error as there were rocks everywhere. We then had to walk for a while before jumping off a wall into some water, in an inflatable tube. We all then floated on through the caves before getting out and walking again. Once we were in the heart of the caves we all turned off our head torches and looked at the glow-worms which light up the cave.

They are really a form of maggot and not a worm but they do look spectacular and there were thousands of them down there.

After the trip we jumped back in the car and headed for Auckland so that we had a couple of days to explore the city and we decided to take a little detour up to the top of Mount Eden on the way into the city. The views up there were great and we could see the whole city, Rich did say we had cheated as we drove to the top rather than walking but I disagreed.

After our night in Auckland we headed out to Devonport which is a suburb only accessible by ferry or bridge. It is a very old suburb and is very small but it was a lovely place to walk around and we decided to climb its highest hill, which was Mount Victoria (which is a little smaller than Mount Eden). Again we got some great views of the harbour and over into the city. We then had to return our car and we proceeded to explore the city but there really wasn’t that much to it so before we knew it we were in a bar taking full advantage of their happy hour for $3 Heinekens!

We had an early morning flight the next day so we had to get up at 3am to get to the airport on time for our flight to Christchurch. Once there we went and dropped our bags at our accommodation before heading into the City to meet one of Rich’s friends from Uni, who was also travelling through Christchurch on the same day. After a lovely lunch by the river we went into the city to explore. At first glance you don’t see the effect of the earthquake 4 years ago but once you look closer you can really see the damage. There is a lot of space where buildings used to be that is now empty and then there are lots of high rise buildings that are fenced off as they are not safe to enter, or that have sections like their roof missing. There is also a cathedral that looks fine from one side but has been decimated on the other side. There is also a section called re-start where a lot of shops have been able to reopen in shipping containers, including the bank and the post office. It was really interesting to walk around and see how the city is trying to rebuild itself.

After Christchurch we got another car and headed up the coast to kaikoura to go swimming with seals and after putting on all our wetsuits and heading out on the bus to the boat we got told the tour was cancelled due to bad weather at sea. We did managed to rebook it for a few days later, and then we headed on to our next destination which was in the Abel Tssaman National park, which was a 5 hour drive away. The next morning we jumped into some Kayaks and had a guided tour of some of the park where we were able to see some seals, some spotted shags (birds not the other type) and a rare herron. After the tour we got back in our car and headed to our next destination of Nelson where we stayed before heading back to Christchurch by car and coach (which we are currently on). We are spending the night back in Christchurch before heading out on the road again!