The Routeburn Track: Mainly Fine

So the weatherman's forecast for our trek down the Routeburn was rain, followed by more rain. On the morning of our departure, skies were looking clearer and there were to be scattered showers in the afternoon followed by "mainly fine" in the evening. We were on the trail for three nights and four days, looking at the weather forecast at each hut along the way. The two words, "mainly fine," were included in each and every report. In my opinion, it's a cop-out. The person reading the weather knows nothing about what's really going on in these mountains...and man, I'm glad for that. Each day, we woke up with a forecast stating showers and then "mainly fine" and we had way better than "fine" every single day. I couldn't have asked for more while lugging 25 pounds on my back down a 32 km track.

When we first discussed doing this hike, we thought that three nights might be too many. It was a lot of stops for a very short hike. Considering I did 19.4 km in one day on the Tongariro Crossing, I thought we might be going a little too slow for what we were in for. In the end of it all, I'm so glad we did it the way we did. We had the perfect pace to take in the views. We hiked through forests and along glacial streams. We walked under the shadows of beautiful mountains, along alpine passes and down to the edges of pristine, blue lakes. It was really a sight to take in and I wouldn't have wanted to move any faster along the landscapes of New Zealand.



We left Queenstown on Wednesday. It was a messy pack the night before after happy hour. We'd known what we wanted to take, but as soon as we put it all in our bags realized exactly how heavy this was going to be. With an 8lb tent, sleeping bag, food and a glass bottle of wine each, it was going to be a tough one. We made the right choice by adding hiking poles to our list of necessary items at the last minute. These things saved my life many times as my center of gravity was way off with all of the excess gear on my back.

The first day took us through a Lord of the Rings-like forest with it's trees covered in green and yellow moss. From there we walked out into a field of brown grass with a perfectly symmetrical tree-covered mountain behind. Beyond that, we saw the glacial peaks that we would soon be crossing, and to top it all off a bright blue river flowing through. Absolutely stunning!!!







Our first hut at Routeburn Falls was out of this world. Who knew a facility like this existed out in the middle of nowhere?! We had the catacomb-like bunk beds and the high tech kitchen, well, meaning stoves and tables (way more than I expected). The whole structure was built with a bird's eye view of the surrounding mountains and the valley we had hiked through, all this with the Routeburn Falls flowing quickly behind us. Brad and I felt like the bad kids immediately upon arriving. No one else found the need to bring alcohol on the trek, and we prepped ourselves with two (very heavy) glass bottles of wine. (I need to meet a scientist who will come up with the solution for powdered alcohol....just in case anyone out there knows someone). We had dinner and talked with a few people in the hut, then quickly moved over to the rocks below the falls to take down a bottle of wine after dinner (just trying to reduce the weight!!!).





The next morning, we woke up to the rain that the weatherman was talking about. It was pretty miserable looking...and this was supposed to be the day with all of the views! We were surrounded by a pea soup-like fog that didn't look like it was going anywhere anytime soon. We dawdled around the hut waiting for a break until after 10am and got extremely lucky. The second we set out on the trail in full rain gear, the sun started to break through. We walked through a valley and up through the alpine terrain as the sky turned perfect and revealed all of the peaks around us. It was really spectacular! Especially after expecting nothing good when we awoke in the morning.



After two hours on the trail, we decided to take a side trek up to Conical Hill to see what all this talk was about. The sky was "mainly" clear, as we could see a lot of blue amidst the white, puffy clouds so we figured, why not? We were able to leave our packs at the nearby shelter and we hiked up to the peak of a mountain with the glaciers underneath us. The view was astoundingly beautiful. The peaks were intimidating, but magnificent. Definitely worth the steep climb to the top.



From there, we thought it was all downhill to our next camp at Mackenzie Lake. This very long downhill slope took us across a long traverse of the mountains. Around each corner, we expected to see our destination, but were unfortunately disappointed. Our feet were sore; our packs were heavy. It was 14 km day and we were ready to be done. With only a little complaining, we arrived at the Mackenzie Lake camp eight hours after starting our day. It was our first and only real camp on the trail, and we definitely felt like we were roughing it at that point.





We made the most unsatisfactory dehydrated meal that could possibly exist and then drowned our frustrations with our second, and last bottle of wine (once again, we needed to get rid of the weight!!!). Bedtime came before it got dark on this second night as we were both exhausted and the weather turned cold quickly after the sun ducked behind the mountains.

It was COLD that night. I'm not sure how cold, but I was told that the temperature was 2 degrees (Celsius) when we woke up. I'm carrying a spring sleeping bag with me....meant for temperatures above 50 (Fahrenheit). Wearing every article of clothing I brought and wrapping myself with a sheet tucked inside my sleeping bag, I was shivering throughout the night thinking of the helicopter that was going to have to drag my ice cube of a body off the trail in the morning. That on top of the fact that we were sleeping on a cement platform with no mat. It was probably the worst night of sleep I've ever had. I woke up at 4:30am and just couldn't wait for the sun to rise to get out of there.

Dawn broke after a few more Z's and life seemed okay again, although still very cold. The morning was beautiful and made even better by a big bowl of steaming ramen noodles for breakfast. I don't think I've ever enjoyed a hot meal so much. We waited out the sun on the lakeside trying to get the tent to dry knowing that we had a mere 9 km to walk on that day. It was to our benefit as the views were still stunning and we were able to really enjoy our last full day on the trail.

The third day took us mostly through forest and across the most incredible waterfalls. We walked slowly and too in the views. We stopped for lunch at Earland Falls and had our last can of tuna with our last bit of crackers (another dip down in the weight!). The 174m falls were so gorgeous! It was a fantastic last meal on the trail.





Last night we found ourselves just an hour from the end at Howden Hut. It was on Lake Howden and covered by the surrounding mountains we had just traversed. Brad took a freezing dip in the lake while I laughed from shore while reading my book. We met some wonderful people in the hut and learned some new card games before calling it an early night. The snorers in the bunks were especially bad last night as my earplugs even couldn't tone them out (another 4 day hike necessity...earplugs!). It took a while to fall asleep, but my aching body soon responded to relaxation and I slept a good eight hours before we had to hike out this morning.



So I did it! Four days of hiking with a whole lot of weight on my back. Apparently, I'm not as out of shape as I thought. There were some tough moments, but the things I was able to see and experience made it all worthwhile. I would do it again any day of the week. I am back in Queenstown now and have enjoyed a good meal and a fantastic glass of wine. We've rented a car for the next four days and have a long haul to the glaciers ahead of us. But tonight is Saturday, and we are in town. It's time to relax before getting on the road again. There is just a little more than a week left of New Zealand for me and I intend to make the most of it.

Nothing out of the ordinary

This should be a short one, as I've done a whole lot of nothing since the last time I wrote a blog. I've been hiding out in Christchurch since my nightmare of a ride ended. My days have been filled with couches and televisions, a couple of nice days in town and a night or two out with friends. It's been really wonderful to have some downtime as I have a packed two weeks that have just begun.

Christchurch was cloudy most of the days that I was there, so I spent a lot of time getting pictures into my blog and working on fun things like taxes! By the way, I've gotten photos put into all of my New Zealand blogs, so if you go back in time, you can see a few of the shots that I have taken. The past week or so has been quite boring with a bit of normalcy thrown into the mix as I have hung out with friends and seen nothing out of the ordinary.

The only fun thing that I did accomplish was getting a new tattoo. I've been wanting one since the beginning of my travels, but have lacked the time and imagination to figure out what new permanent fixture I wanted on my body. Unfortunately, when you get something like this, you're not able to be in the water for at least a week after. As most of my destinations have been beaches, I couldn't take care of business until now.



Sunday was a beautiful, cloudless day out in Christchurch. A friend and I decided to spend the day in the park and art galleries in the area. Around 4pm I came up with the idea of my new ink...a quote that a friend graciously gave to me in the form of a neckless last summer. This phrase is the epitome of the way I feel about my travels. So within an hour of thinking of it, I was in the tattoo parlour preparing to be a human pincushion. It turned out beautifully and I'm so happy with the result. Just another addition to the many souvenirs I have attained throughout my travels. It was my Valentine's Day present to myself.




The day after, I set off for Queenstown. I had originally planned to come down by bus, but a flight just sounded so much better and more efficient...so I took it. I flew down in the company of the most lovely 80 year old woman. She was sitting next to me on the plane and told me of her similar fear of flying. We kept talking for the duration of the flight and she helped me through the spiralling decent into the valley by holding my hand. I was quite a sight; panicked, so early in the morning. I helped her with her bags and her daughter gave me a driving tour of Queenstown and a ride directly to my hostel.

The town I'm in is gorgeous! It's somewhat like Tahoe with it's huge peaks surrounding a perfecly blue lake. It is the outdoor sport capital of New Zealand, so basically a huge REI. This is wonderful in my opinion. There are outdoor stores and activity booking shops galore!



I came down here to meet up with a friend flying in from the states. Brad got here yesterday afternoon and it's very surreal to have a piece of home with me at this point. I picked him up yesterday from the airport and we've wandered the town. Today was a preparation day for our four day hike that begins tomorrow. We had a cloudless sky all day today and took a hike to the top of the mountains surrounding the town. We took in the view of the lake and paragliders slowly making their decent (crazy people!). The weather forecast for our hike is rain, rain, rain, so lets hope Mr. Weatherman is wrong. I'll get back to the blog as soon as we get back and let you know how our possibly very wet adventure went!

It's not always easy...

Each blog I write is a different era of my travels. When I finish one, I feel like I get to start fresh and new. I think of things in between each that I'd like to put in and things that I would never include. I try to stay as positive as possible while I'm on the road as there are always little things that brighten each day. But I'm going to be honest with you on this one. This past little era has been hard and not as enjoyable as I wanted it to be. I'm writing now to clean the slate. I've only got a few weeks left in New Zealand and I'm sure that's it's only going to get better from here.

About 80% of the time, I pick good travel companions. I get along with almost everyone and am very adaptable to every situation. I like to think that I can read people fairly quickly when meeting them, and most of us travelers have the same carefree mindset, which generally makes it easier. In the instance of Daniel from Devon, I failed miserably and have paid the price for it over the last few days.

The thing about New Zealand is that it is much better experienced by car or campervan. The bus systems here just don't take you to all of the little places that are hidden away. The opportunity to sleep on beaches and find far away hikes isn't found on an organized tour. Hence, I've found my way around by hitching rides with people I meet. I took the ride with Daniel because he seemed to have the same opinions on what there was to see in this country. I was able to see a lot while riding in the passenger seat of his car, but man oh man, I was really ready to get out of it as we rode into Christchurch yesterday afternoon.

Things started to go a bit downhill just after leaving Takaka while we made our way up to Cape Farewell, the northernmost point on the south island. His incessant chatter about not spending money and problems with his car were already starting to take a toll on my patience. The fact that he just "couldn't be asked" to spend $6 on a campsite for the night was sounding a little overly frugal. And the fact that he stated this to every new person he met on the street just irked me each time I heard the words. Believe me, I'm all about not spending money, but if I have the choice between paying $6 and setting up my tent or sleeping on the side of the road in a very small vehicle, I'll pay the money.

To be fair, his unwillingness to pay for campsites brought us to some amazing places....and I never did have to sleep in the car. That first night, we hiked about 20 minutes in to the most beautiful beach where we met some really great people. We drank wine by the fire and caught glimpses of shooting stars. Tents were unnecessary on this evening as we had a warm sea breeze that drove away the sandflies. There were six of us, and we all slept under the billions of glittering lights in the sky above.





I woke the next morning with the sun blazing down on my face. While the others had a surf in the waves, I wandered the beach and took pictures of the seal colonies that inhabited the area. We all hiked out in the morning, happy to see that our car (parked right in front of the "no overnight parking" sign) was still there and our windows were still in tact. We took the ride back through the green mountains and then went for a dip in the local swimming hole to wash the salt off our bodies. After that, Daniel and I were back on the road again, heading for the West Coast highway.







We had another 200+ km day, getting us into Westport in the early evening. The road down through the mountain peaks was spectacular. The natural beauty of New Zealand really is amazing. It's just one big national park. Put Yosemite, Yellowstone, Shenandoah and Glacier together, and that makes up the landscape of this country. It's been really incredible to see it all from the highways. We came down through Buller Gorge that day; the road winding along the river through the lush vegetation. We were just south of Westport as the sun started to go down, although it was cloudy, so the glowing sunset on the Tasman Sea was lost that evening. We searched for campsites and found a small beach road with few houses along it. There was a magnificent, rocky cove looking out into the sea with lots of driftwood for a good beach fire. We asked the owner of a nearby house if we could sleep on his beach, and he happily obliged, so we set up shop for the night.



We had a lovely older German couple pull up in their campervan just before dark that night and they joined us by the fire for a few minutes. All was fine and dandy, until I started to hear Daniel's "couldn't be asked" conversation coming on again. As I heard him describe his financial opinions to this wealthy German couple, I yawned and politely retired to my tent for the night at 9pm. It was the exact scenario with me for the next three nights to come. I got up the next morning and told Daniel that I would be hopping off in two days instead of making my way to Queenstown with him. I would get out in Arthurs Pass and take a bus back to Christchurch.

This information didn't sit well with him, but we continued our route as planned. Another long day took us up north to Karamea and back. Daniel was looking for surf, and I wanted to explore some limestone arches hidden deep in the mountains around the area. Daniel's search ended quickly as we drove along a sea made of glass; not a wave to be seen. We picked up a couple from Europe along the way and then took his poor little car 15km down a narrow dirt track to the Oparara Basin. The fuel consumption and weight in the car were the main topic of conversation, as Daniel made it clear to the hitchhikers how much they were costing us. NZ hitchhikers don't offer money, something that Daniel was apparently unaware of before deciding to pick them up.

The arches were huge and the caves around them incredible. In my opinion, they were definitely worth the long drive in. I had a lovely time hiking with the Europeans.. The couple, one from Germany, one from France, has been living in Australia on a working holiday visa for the past year. Both had the same goal of travel as me: that one day we will wake up with an epiphany of how the rest of our lives will work out. I've been on the road for five months, they've been gone for over a year, and none of us has attained this yet...but we all still seem to be having fun trying.





With no surf, we made our way back down to Westport and took a tip from the couple about another free camp not far from the town. We found the site on the beach and as Daniel had a surf, I planned my escape. I didn't think I could last even two more days. For the first time since we started, I removed everything of mine from the car and put it all in my tent to be organized. I made dinner and went to bed with my book soon afterward. When I awoke the next morning, I packed my bags and was ready to bolt into town to find the next bus. I was done with this road trip and ready to make it out on my own again. Just as I was finishing with my pack, Daniel woke up. He got out of his car/tent in a decent mood and told me that he'd looked at the map and it was better for him to go to Christchurch as well. This was a frustrating decision for me, but I said that I'd ride along if he was going my way anyway.

The road from Westport to Greymouth was drop-dead gorgeous. We drove along the coast through Paparoa National Park and took in the views of the rocky sea and the ferntree-covered mountains opposite it. We stopped along the way at the Pancake Rocks. The rocks in the sea here have been layered by weather to look like piles of thick pancakes. At high tide and when there is a large sea swell, the water rushes through the blowholes creating a geyser of saltwater. Unfortunately, high tide was not until late in the evening that day and we needed to make our way into the mountain pass, so we missed the sea spray, but enjoyed watching the hector dolphins play in the water surrounding the rocks just the same.





Arthur's Pass was my first up close experience with the Southern Alps. I have seen them from the air and from afar, but riding through them, and all of their glory, was much different. The clouds started to clear as we made our way through the valley. We felt minuscule below the glaciers sitting high above our heads. There were rocky cliffs far above the treeline that rivaled the the peaks around Lake Tahoe. It was a gorgeous winding drive to my last campsite with Daniel.



There was a free camp on the roadside just six kilometers from the village. Not the best one I've seen as there was a busy logging road and a train track about 100 meters from my tent. The sandflies that night were savage, and I am still scratching to this day. There was a lot of trekking to be done in the area that we were in, but we only made our way into the forest for the most spectacular of waterfalls, Devil's Punchbowl.



This is my last bit of negativity when it comes to my company, but the last straw was pulled as we hiked up the steps of this waterfall and Daniel told me that we'd have to work out how I'd get to my friend's house in Christchurch the next day. After giving him $50 extra for the ferry and filling his tank of gas that I would be riding less than half of, I incorrectly assumed that I would have a ride directly to my destination the following day. He did not want to drive the extra 6km into the city center as he feared he would get into an accident while driving in any kind of traffic. At that moment, the pent up anger in me exploded and I let him have it with every complaint that I didn't divulge over the last week together. Being a 22 year old coward, he quickly changed his tone and agreed to take me to Amanda's house. And that was the end of almost all conversation between Daniel and I. I only regret that it ruined the beauty of the waterfall that evening.

Honestly, he could have gotten into his car and left me at any moment, so the fact that he didn't makes him a semi-decent human being. The problems we had were due to personality clashes that could have happened between anyone. Traveling with people can be hard, and you need to find the right companions. You can be best friends in the real world, but being cooped up in a car with someone for weeks on end can bring on challenges beyond anyone's comprehension. As we rode the last 150km to Christchurch yesterday, we were pleasant to each other, although very quiet. He dropped me off at Amanda's house in the early afternoon and even came in for an hour to charge his camera. After he left, I felt a huge sense of relief. I feel comfortable again. I've been annoyed, anxious and angry for the past week of my life (although with some good bits in between). These are three A's that just do not belong in my happy travel bubble.

After a nice long shower (that wasn't a solar shower...yeah!!!) and a quick unpack of my bags, I'm living the high life again. I woke up this morning and feel like a new person. I've decided to stay in Christchurch until the weekend and get some much needed relaxation after the past few weeks on the road. I've met friends along my trip that will be in town throughout the week, so I'll be able to hang with them and enjoy some downtime. On Sunday, I will happily take a bus down to Queenstown.

Hitching a Ride

Is it bad when sleeping on the ground in a tent becomes more comfortable than a bed? Is it horrible that I became a local yesterday and took a stroll through the grocery store with no shoes? Is there anything wrong with finding a free camp by a river and using that as a shower? Absolutely not! Just after my last blog, I was able to find another ride and I've been doing things the Kiwi way ever since. I've camped my way back down to the south island.

I met Daniel, another British lad, while I was walking with all of my gear to the bus that was to take me to Lake Taupo. It was that easy. He asked if I knew anyone that was going south, and I was, so that was the end of it. I already had a bus ride to take at that point, so we exchanged mobiles and planned to meet up a couple days later. He has a small car and the same need to be frugal, and I needed a ride, so the match worked perfectly.

I made my way down to Lake Taupo (almost exactly the same scenery as Lake Tahoe) that day by bus. My heart was set on doing the 20km Tongariro Alpine Crossing. Tongariro is a volcanic region in the middle of the north island with three massive volcanoes that include Mt. Ngauruhoe, the volcano used as Mt. Doom in Lord of the Rings. The landscape is dramatic and it is renowned as one of the best day hikes in New Zealand. Unfortunately, the alpine peaks are also infamous with bad weather, leaving hikers grounded when storms roll in.



I settled in a hostel in Turangi, about 40kms from the national park to wait out a small cyclone that was affecting my crossing. The rain poured down in buckets with brief spots of sunshine as I was left in a hostel with some new German friends. We were all there for the same reason, so we made the best of it. We played board games and cooked good dinners. On the second day, I was able to convince one of them to rent out the mountain bikes in the rain and had a blast getting muddy on the trails down by the river. Who knew biking could be so much fun!!! The trail took us across golden fields, winded through subtropical rainforest and took us over the stream. It was an exhilarating day and provided me with some much needed exercise.







After two days, the weather was still not so good. So I contacted my new ride and hitched a lift up to the town of Taupo to check out some new things while waiting on the storm. He had found a free campsite just out of town, so we met up and got things sorted at the campsite after taking a dip in some hot springs in the afternoon. On our first evening, we met kayakers determined to shoot down the tunnel of rapids just before the seven meter Huka falls. As soon as they put their boats into the river, we took the car down to the falls and got to see them power through them on their way down. It was really incredible to see, but it all happened very fast. A little to fast for my camera finger, as I really only got them at the very end. Good entertainment for the evening though.



Because I seem to plague cars with problems, Daniel had to get the brakes and a tire fixed the next morning. No, I did not actually cause any of this, but it seems ever car I get into has issues. Could be the sheer number of beaters on the roads of New Zealand though. After the car was sorted, we were on our way further south. The weather forecast for the hike on Wednesday was favorable, and we needed to take the opportunity as we had a ferry to catch in Wellington on Thursday.

It ended up being a cloudy day, so we couldn't summit Mt. Doom. But we were able to do the rest of the crossing which blew my mind with scenery I did not know existed outside the realm of the movies. The rocky landscape, covered in bright green, white and orange moss between blackened lava flows was absolutely stunning. We hiked our way up and over, past the steaming sulfur pools and the glowing turquoise of the Emerald Lakes. The trek took us across a valley and then down into the forest before bringing us to the other end. It wasn't as hard as I thought it would be, but 20kms on anyone not used to it would cause a bit of discomfort. My feet healed quickly, but my muscles still ache today. Though, it was all well worth it.







We were in for a long couple of days as after the hike, we got right back into the car and made our way towards Wellington, a good five hours south. The Department of Conservation has a brochure full of free campsites on both islands. They are rugged. No showers or power, but easy to use when you've already got everything you need. We stopped in one an hour north of Wellington and relaxed our muscles for a bit before moving further in the morning.

It was an early day as I awoke at 5:30am and had to pack up my tent. The ferry from Wellington to Picton was at 8:30 and we still had ground to cover. We made it down with plenty of time to spare and set sail for the south island. The weather was beautiful and the seas weren't too rough. Coming into the Marlborough Sounds and their calm waters was breathtaking! We drove off the ferry in Picton and got right back on the road towards the west coast, with the first stop being a double take for me, Abel Tasman.



The winding roads back to Nelson, through vineyards and along the sea were gorgeous yet again. We had a small glitch with some gravel and the windshield on the way, so had to make a quick stop in Nelson where we learned of last night's campsite on the beach. We stopped in the early evening and made a fantastic dinner on the stove. Daniel set up his hammock in some trees on the beach and I made camp and finally got my things organized. It was an early night after two rough days of travel and hiking.



Today, we've driven through the green mountains of Abel Tasman and Kahurangi National Parks and are planning on camping in Golden Bay. Tomorrow is my one month anniversary in New Zealand and I finally feel like I'm in the groove of things. I have a lot to look forward to over the next month and only regret that it's going by so quickly. The plan for now is to move south slowly. I have ten days until I have to be in Queenstown and there are not too many miles to cover. We'll drive along the coast and try to get some beaches in while driving the highway along the glacier-covered Southern Alps.

Roadtrip

It's incredible how time flies when you're having fun! I'm amazed that the last week has gone by so quickly and I've hit so many spots in such a short span of time. This week was roadtrip week for me as I was able to stick with my English friend through the whole northern tip of the country. I stayed next to the coast and enjoyed the warm water, had my first free camp on the beach and slept amongst the giant kauri trees that dot the landscape on the west side of New Zealand. It's been a memorable week having a ride and making new friends while learning how to really travel across these tiny islands.

I got to do my deep dive while we were still in Pahia. On a cold, gray day, we set out on the water in my first open dive boat, meaning we rolled into the water rather than the usual giant leap off the back (way better this way!). The black-looking water and the lack of sun only added to my usual apprehension of jumping in, but we had a break in the clouds as soon as we were under that turned the water green and made the colors at the bottom brilliant. The shipwreck was small, but riddled with marine life. Thousands of big-eyed fish peeked out at us from the hole in the hull. Little blue fish danced with our fingers and then tried to attack us when we got too close to their young. Swimming under the bow of the boat and looking up at the light coming down just made me think of Titanic. It was truly magical being down there and I'm looking forward to taking the wreck diving section of my advanced very soon.



After my dives, Billy was waiting for me so that we could continue further north. We stopped at a holiday park the first night and caught an amazing sunset along 90 Mile Beach. Yes, there is a beach that long at the tip of the country...and you can drive on it! We did a couple of circles around the area, but never did any serious driving. From what I've heard, there is a car graveyard out there from people not paying attention to the tides. If you're going to drive it, you need to be able to locate the hidden exits and if they're missed and the tide comes in, it's adios to your vehicle. Being the smart people that we are, we decided not to take the risk.



The next day brought us to Cape Reinga and to the warmth of the subtropical sun. It was gorgeous outside and the waters were blue. We walked out to the lighthouse at the tip of the country and could actually see the waves Pacific and the Tasman crashing into each other from opposite directions. The waves do a little dance and swirl about and the two different colors of the water blend together before colliding with the rocks of the penninsula. We were able to find camp not far from there that night and we laid on the beach and played in the surf most of the afternoon.





We went back to the Cape for the sunset that evening and met an Argentinian couple that has been traveling for nine years...and had four kids during their travels!! They are driving around in this weird old car that goes no faster than 55kph, but uses the engine to heat up hot dogs as they drive. Their kids were adorable and spoke both English and Spanish. I got along pretty well with the youngest, Wallaby (born in Australia, of course), who wasn't yet walking. Their story is pretty fantastic and they've written a book, Spark Your Dream, which they tried to have me pay $35 for (this was the second $35 book that I was offered in the exact spot, the first was earlier in the day and the author was an ex-con who used to be the leader of the Mongrols, a gang here in New Zealand...yikes!). They've made it through the Americas and Canada, Australia, now New Zealand and next is Asia. How they've not killed each other or one of their bouncing kids is beyond me!



We met an English girl as we were leaving the campsite the next morning and formed our little Toyota van caravan back down to a surfing beach, Ahipara. We picked up a young American guy, Ben, along the way. Since our 100 kilometer ride with Ben, we've seen him twice and have heard from three others where he is and what he's doing. Apparently everyone in New Zealand knows Ben. It's random.

Ahipara was a beach day. Alexa and Billy surfed and I laid around enjoying the scenery. It was a small town with no accommodation and only one general store, so we stocked up on a few things and then parked the cars by the beach until the next morning. We met another American girl parked next to us who has been living out of her van for a year and heading back to the states soon. I almost bought her van...I need one of these things! That's how people do it out here and I just wish I would've as soon as I arrived. Now I'm down to five weeks left and the time lost on trying to sell it in the end would just be too much. I guess I know for next time.



I got my first little paddle with a surfboard just before leaving the beach the next morning. Billy let me borrow his and I played around in the very small waves for a while. It's a lot harder than it looks! Just balancing on those things is difficult. I didn't attempt getting up, or really even catching a wave. There was nothing to catch on that very calm morning. It was a good lesson in core strength though. I'll be glad I had that when I actually go out and attempt it one of these days.



From the coast, we broke up from the rest of the group and headed down through the giant Kauri forest for a night. It was beautiful, but just a small stopping point on our journey south of Auckland. Yesterday we arrived in Mt. Manganui and this town is awesome. Just a small beach town with lots of things to do and see. We camped last night and this morning Billy and his van left me at a hostel. I've been laying on the beach all day and applying loads of sunblock. The water was warm and I was able to make it out there before all of the kids arrived. Tonight will be chill for me as I am an independent traveler again. Tomorrow I'm pointing my compass south. It's time to leave my beloved beaches and check out some mountain trekking. I'm hoping to stay in one spot for a while down there as I make some decisions on the rest of my New Zealand adventure.

Diving Deeper

Diving and kayaking and hiking, oh my!!! I am out on my own again and quickly discovering the plethora of outdoor adventures that New Zealand has in store for me. I made my way to Auckland earlier this week and have travelled much further north than I expected to be at this point. It's a small couple of islands that I'm on. The distance between stopping points and the abundance of activities is only making my addiction to change that much worse. I came north with the idea of settling somewhere for a while. After five days and three different towns, I'm thinking that might be impossible.

I flew to Auckland on Tuesday evening and had yet another kind offer to stay at my friend Kitty's house on my first night. It was really really great to see her again, and so funny at the same time considering our friendship is only a few months old but has grown over three continents. She picked me up from the airport and on Wednesday, showed me around her town. Auckland is a big one, by New Zealand standards anyway. It's a sprawling city that houses one third of the people in this country. It's nestled close to the waters of Freemans Bay and contains fantastic view of the surrounding islands. It's a little more hectic than what I'm looking for at this time, so I made my visit brief with promises to return on my way back south.



On Thursday morning, I hopped on a northbound bus and officially became a backpacker again. After three hours of gorgeous countryside scenery, I got off the bus in the town of Whangarei. Whangarei is a well known area for the Poor Knights Islands that reside just off the coast. Jacques Cousteau named the waters around these protruding rocks one of the top ten best dive sites in the world. With my spanking new open water certification, you all know I was on the phone with dive companies the second I got into town. Before having my gear unpacked at the camp, I was booked on the boat leaving for the islands early the next morning.



Now, I talked to a lot of people as I was getting my certification in Colombia and told them my intention of diving in New Zealand. Most just gave me this look; this cold water, scary marine life look...and then wished me a sarcastic good luck. Everyone knows what I'm scared of in the water, and I won't mention them in the blog as I think it's bad luck. But yes, there are a lot of them in the cold waters off the coast down here. Of course, I won't let that fear stop me from taking the plunge. I'll just cross my fingers, hold onto my mask and hope for the best. The only way to conquer a fear is to take it head on. I'm so glad I did, as yesterday I had a Discovery Channel experience underwater that I will not soon forget.

No, i did not run into any large objects in the ocean, if that's what you're wondering. We went to a dive site called Blue Maomao, which took us around a huge rock, through an underwater hole and then spit us out into a sea of thousands of fish gleaming in the sunlight that was penetrating the water. The visibility was 18 meters in this sea of deep blue. The sun came through and played tricks with us on the rock cliffs as kelp floated up at us from the bottom. We saw thousands of curious fish, one very large stingray and an array of rocky, underwater landscapes that blew what I saw in Colombia away. Our second dive took us into the depths of a crack in the rock and down a cliff with only the open water of the Pacific on our other side. This dive was not as memorable, but was beautiful just the same. The water was quite a bit colder than the Caribbean, but an extra thick wetsuit and a whole lot of adrenaline kept me nice and warm.



Back at the campsite, before my underwater adventures, I had met a nice Englishman that was heading in the same direction. We made plans for him to wait for my dives to end and we'd both go north together in his van, sharing the expense of petrol. It's tough to get around New Zealand purely by bus, and I knew that hitching a ride was somewhere in my future, I was just lucky to have all of that taken care of so early in the game. Billy and I took off yesterday afternoon for Pahia, a small town full of hotels and summer homes sitting on Kororareka Bay. We found a hostel quickly and decided to settle here for a couple of nights before starting the journey up to the very north of the island, Cape Reinga.

Last night we dug a bucket of clams out of the sea and made a nice pasta dish in the hostel kitchen. I'm pretty impressed with the amount of cooking I've been doing here as there's a kitchen in every hostel or campground that I stay in. I will admit that I'm already getting sick of pasta and canned tuna though, so the next trip to the grocery store is going to get a little more creative I think. This morning was spent sea kayaking (free kayaks at the hostel, what?!) in the turquoise waters of the bay and it's been a lazy afternoon watching the Australian Open.



I've lined up another dive trip for tomorrow and I've had to study the PADI book yet again. There is a shipwreck dive not far from here that requires my deep diver certificate to get to. The Greenpeace boat, the Rainbow Warrior, went down in 1985 and has become a spectacle for divers in the past few years and I intend to see it. The problem I realized while booking is that the hull sits at 27 meters, whereas my certification only allows me to 18. So tomorrow is a day of tests and dives and it should be incredible. The positive side to all of this is that these dives will count towards my advanced certification, if that is something I choose to do (in a less expensive place, like Thailand). What possessed me to choose such an expensive hobby at a time when I am without a job is beyond me! So tomorrow brings another day on the water and some more excitement! After my dives, we will set our course for further north, hopefully seeing the Tasman Sea and the Pacific collide off the Cape within the next few days.