The South of NZLs South Island - our southern turning point....from here we go north back home

Christchurch, Akaroa, Tekapo, Mt. Cook, Pukaki, Queenstown, Te Anau with Milford and Kepler tracks, Invercargill, Catlins, Dunedin and back to Christchurch!!! It's been a busy 4 weeks!

Winter finally arrived. Snowflakes surrounded us, hail was beating on our coats, we sank into the white fluffy stuff until our knees and we loved it. Turned out we didn't keep the Nepali downjackets for nothing! And apart from the fact that it gets a bit colder by night and we need to use some hot water bottles to heat up the bed; we're doing alright. Jan wore his 10 dollar long pants from The Warehouse and we actually bought a small heater. When having a powered campsite we can really get the van steaming :) And although the temperature around us is cooler, the encounters with new friends are as warm as ever!

Now on the "long" drive back to Christchurch, we have some time to reflect on all impressions. (by long we mean more than 3 hours - so far we're usually not driving more than 2-3 hours a day, equivalent to 150-200 km. That leaves enough time for a proper breakfast, some lazy strolling around beaches and time to search for a sleeping place. The one thing about winter that we don't like is the short days. By 5 it's dusky, by 5:30 we should know where to sleep, as in the dark you often miss out on the easy-to-find freedom camping spots.

As for freedom camping, it seems to be a hot topic amongst politicians and locals here. On the one hand it is turned into an delicate/illegal thing, as some idiots have spoilt the fun for others, leaving (human) waste and rubbish behind. In a country where so many free public toilets are available on beautiful spots, it shouldn't be a real issue. The DOC has cheap campsites, but it feels more that they would like to keep control of where you sleep than of providing you with services. A 12 dollar fee for a long drop is just not ideal. It's something at least, but why wouldn't we be allowed to camp near a normal public toilet?
So where in some places freedom camping is banned, other regions feel it should be encouraged, as freedom campers bring more revenue to otherwise not often visited places, and are those tourists that bring most time with them. It's a bit dual, and leaves us a bit cross. Two nights ago for example, we were looking for a place north of Dunedin. All areas marked in our campsite book as free domains with a public toilet, were actually recently banned as campsites. A big sign at the entrance made that quite clear. So did the patrouilling police car. What happened? We found a beautiful lookout point to stay - no toilet, but no sign, so no possibility for a 200 dollar instant fine :). It just doesn't make sense. The proximity of paid campsites near the "no-camping" signs, makes us think there is more behind it than just politicians. It's a bit sad, as it makes us want to ignore it all and you do not feel welcomed. Also, when we found a beautiful spot near the beach of Dunedin, we were visited by a number of (about 10!) car racers. Loud, screaming, leaving everything from McDonalds bags to beer bottles behind on the street. Turning their cars at the end of the road (right next to our car), yellin loudly that we should "stop fucking and go home". (We moved in the middle of the night). And the locals seem to know about it. Why not do something about this? It just doesn't make sense....Western countries really are not always better than for example Asian when it comes to applying rules and corresponding fines.

But back to our journey. Leaving our friends in Christchurch behind, we headed off for Banks Peninsula. A beautiful, quite deserted piece of the country. So close to Christchurch, yet relatively long to drive as the road is so narrow and winding. Fuel consumption up to 12 l/100 km. :( We were treated with seaspray and seamist at first and didn't find the paua's we so much wanted. Mar's fishing line totally got cluttered into one ball of string by the swell and the eels didn't want to bite. But, whilst diving for Pauas Jan found large green lip mussels instead, the clouds opened up for a short while on top of the hill and we found real agats on the beach! It reminded us much of Faroer islands, with green, steep rolling hills on the coast.

From Banks Peninsula, we continued to Central Otago. Home of the blue lakes Tekapo and Pukaki, and the region of Aoraki (Cloud Piercer in Maori): Mount Cook. The area gets a lot of clouds and rain; sometimes Mt. Cook doesn't show itself for a few weeks in a row, the longest being 6 weeks without a glimpse of its face (the bartender told us :)). We were so lucky! The 60 km dead-end track to Mt. Cook village (eh... Do we have enough petrol to come back??) was worth it. We baked pancakes (ow how we love our van!!) and walked to the Tasman Glacier lake (similar to Jökulsárlón in Iceland. It was simply gorgeos; like an artistic painting, with blue icebergs and green moss contrasting the white snow of the peaks in the back. Something Jan had been waiting for for over 13 years.

Tekapo offered us hot springs. Not as natural as the ones in the north (more like a swimming pool), but a welcome experience on a very drizzly day. A good way to wash of the dirt, and better and cheaper experience than a campsite :) And... we went iceskating!! Almost like being back in Kiel or Hamburg, where we used to go at least once a month during winter time!

Waking up next to the blue glacier lake Pukaki is always a treat; it was in 2008, it still is. This time we had less wind, and it was easier for our nerves (ok, Mar's nerves) to camp right next to the cliff without fearing to tip over the edge :)

The whole area around Queenstown is a horror for freedom campers; over 200.000 dollars of fines were written out over the last summer holiday (only about 1/3 of the people actually pay them..imagine!! 200 times 80000 just by scaring people of... not sustainable from our point of view) it's a warning and a deterrent that goes out to any camper there. We were lucky and could stay with David and his family, which was not just convenient, it was really nice to be part of a family again and have an electric blanket under your bum :).

Of course it's been a long way and time from home now. We have so many wonderful things that we see, so many magnificent places and people, but it doesn't replace the family and friends at home. We're worried about the next steps after our trip, and we don't want this time on the road (wherever it may be!) to end!! It makes us sad, scared, sometimes even frightened. So please understand, it's not that there is nothing waiting for us back home! We realise more than ever that we have so many wonderful people back home that truly make it "home" for us. It's just that the dominant fear of "what now?" is more prevalent. And the nice people we meet are not a replacement; they're a welcome addition to our lives. So for those that are scared we might not want to come back, be at ease :).

Everywhere we've gone so far, we've asked ourselves two questions. 1. Do we want to come back here? and 2. Could we live here? New Zealand is definitely a place where we could be longer and would love to come back. It has everything we want: nature, friendly people, it's relatively safe and the "system" here works most of the time, with not too much corruption eventhough bloody administrative and bureaucratic. But it is a hell of a long way from home. It is literally as far as you could go from home and those we love. So we think it's about the right time to say thank you to those that follow us and enthusiastically keep supporting us!! Enough sentimentality now; back to the road.

In the meanwhile we've got another 124 km to go. Better hurry writing :) As much as we enjoyed the company in Queenstown, it wasn't that city what we came for. We hurried all the way down to do the Milford track. 53 km bush and alpine area in 3 days, accessible only by a boattrip on each end. A bit differently run in wintertime, you need to organise transport, which is only available if there is enough people (min. 6). We were lucky and unlucky at the same time. We called, booked the trip and everything was settled. Finally!! It's been a milestone for the whole trip and were terribly excited!!! Until someone at the tourist info told us that the Milford road would be closed from the same day where we would be entering the track. Taking down a rock above the tunnel. No one in or out for 2 weeks! Bugger. Bugger. Tripple bugger. What now? The only option would be to walk in and out the same way, with a minimum of 6 people. We had a few nervous hours, but in the end 3 others declared themselves prepared for 4 nights, there and back again. And it turned out to be awesome.

We hiked up to MacKinnon Pass and back through the Clinton valley; we got to see the most beautiful part twice. And with 4 seasons in 4 days we had a real and complete experience. Fiordland is wet, like the Norwegian Fjords, the mountains capture the rain. With an average of 6.7 meters of rain annually, Milford is one of the wettest places in the world. As a comparison, those cursing Bergen (NO) for its rain should know that Bergen only gets about 2.25m annually. Three times less than Milford. Oh and raining it did!!! We were lucky on the first two days and were able to hike up to the pass with sunshine!! We actually swam in the river and enjoyed a beautiful view at the top in both directions. (there's also a long-drop toilet with view into the Clinton valley :D. Nice place to sit longer, if the wind wouldnt chill your ass down rapidly :) We decided to spare our knees and hike back to the Mintaro hut. Camping on the track is not allowed, the huts are unserviced from May 1st. Firewood should be chopped, and we made sure that there would be enough (dry) wood in the first hut for our return. The huts accommodate 40, and an additional 50 people sleep in special guided tour huts. For the little :) sum of almost 2000 dollars someone else prepares your dinner, and linen is provided. Ridiculous; this 2 class system made us furious. A bit of suffering is part of the tramp; having someone else making your bed and food is just not the way it's supposed to be. Half the track is not a tramping track, it's a 1 meter wide "highway" paved with gravel. Probably to allow small vehicles to cater the huts and allow basically any idiot to complete the track. Also, in summer time, you have to tramp in one direction, and everyday you MUST move on. In that way we had a really special situation, being the only 5 people in the whole area and staying 4 nights; the last people on the track for the year. Instead of sleeping in the bunk room, we arranged our matrasses around the fire place, keeping us warm in the night.

We allowed ourselves a day in the Mintaro hut. Quite big and badly insulated, it was cold. In the evening of the second day (after managing the pass) it started to drizzle. it rained heavily during the night and the whole following day. We ventured out only for a short hike of 45 minutes to the river. Within one night it rose about a meter; what was a pretty harmless stream turned into a twirling monster :) Mar's Jack Wolfskin jacket is officially declared dead. Dam. soaked to the bones in less than half an hour.

We were paid a visit by a little weka; a small, brown feathered bird with no wings. We thought it was a kiwi; but it only looks like a kiwi. It has a slight different beak, and most of all, It's not so shy as the kiwi (which is more nocturnal). Wish we could say we'd seen a kiwi, but so far we've just met human kiwis and ate kiwi fruit :D

On the morning of day 3 we wake up as the hut shakes. It violently rumbles and rattles; Jan wants to run as it feels like a rock avalanche or landslide; Mar's Leave-me-alone-it's-not-even-8-o'clock-face has less survival instinct apparently. A big flash calms our nerves: thunder and lightning. In the steep Clinton Valley, the thunder echoes so loudly that it makes the ground and the hut shake. It could have been an earthquake too (there were some around that time), we don't know. It's a thunderstorm like we never experienced before.

The mountain radio we were obliged to take didn't work. We were able to receive some information, but not to send anything. A good thing that nothing happened and in some way a bit of waste of the 50 dollar rental. We strapped the antenna over the fixed antenna of the Mintaro hut. Away from the rood, high up in the sky. It didn't work. The radio guys did receive some beeps, but we couldn't get any message through. Too scared to trigger a helicopter ride by trying out more buttons we gave up. 2 kg weight for nothing.

The rain poured down heavier than before; Dwayne, one of our travel friends, checked some of the rivers to ensure our safe return. All the water pours down into the valley, hundreds of waterfalls appear and creeks turn into knee (or waist)-deep rivers. This is how Fiordland is :) in its pure essence. Moss covered trees dripping with water, mushrooms on the forest ground, keas cirling above, the smell of wet wood and fungi, autumn in a nutshell. Jan was the only one to keep dry. All others need to replace some gear :S He also managed to keep dry feet - Gaiters rule :D; Mar's foot got washed away by the stream and landed not on the stone but in deep water. Susan and Dwayne had wet feet anyway and stopped caring about the rivers. Geoff's sneakers never stood a chance. His drying attempt near the fire place ended up in molten plastic. A lesson to all who think their goretex jacket or other synthetic stuff is safe 10 cm away from the oven.

The Clinton hut was much cosier and warmer, all our gear dried nicely (what do 40 people with wet stuff do? Leave it outside to be eaten by Kea's? On the last morning we wake up with snow. A wonderful white world. Winter was there. Sadly enough it turned into rain, and we slushed our way through the last hour back to the ferry-meeting point. It's always strange coming back to the "real" world. You crave for food, warmth and a comfy chair, but at the same time feel so much richer and closer to nature that you can't understand those people that never get out of their comfy chair.

We dried our stuff, took a long hot shower, had a snowball fight and went to the cinema. Te Anau cinema shows Fiordland, a 30 min badly cut helicopter-view nature video. It does have beautiful scenes, but we were somehow disappointed. It wasn't the life-changing video as was promised by multiple people that recommended it. Maybe because we had just been there; we had felt it, seen it, smelled it with our own senses; it was so much better than in a film. Those 4 days showed us most of what Fiordland has to offer, and we consider ourselves privileged. Before we set off, we thought the people that completed the track before us with 4 days of sun were lucky. Now I'd say they missed the real Fiordland, the changing scenery and its shapeshifting weather.

As we couldn't get enough of it, we hiked the Kepler track too. Prepared for turning back (waist-deep snow on the top), we hiked up to the Luxmore hut; one of the few huts with an actual view!! We ran through the forest (bush bush bush is just not our cup of tea) and although we could see the sun growing brighter through the trees, it felt like ages before we finally passed the bushline. Out of the dripping trees and melting snow into the white. Knee deep into the snow we sank, taking much longer than we wanted. The 4,5 hours up (from 200 m above sea level to over 1000m) we managed in 3, the next 45 minutes almost straight took us 75. It was tiring and Mar tipped over twice, buried in the snow with all 4; the backpack preventing her from getting up again :D The Luxmore hut was a welcome sight; the 2 Germans before us lit a nice fire and we were cosy with the four of us until a school class joined us :) (Wasn't too bad though ;) )

We got a visit from a helicopter. For a second we thought it would be DOC rangers to check the hut passes, but it were tourists that didn't want to hike up all the way. In the morning we took a detour to the Luxmore caves, unfortunately no glowworms, and no real caving experience, but still fun. We ran down the hill, got bitten only a few times by sandflies (the cold does make them a little less active!) and decided to move on down south.

Ah... if you're into hiking, don't forget to ask for the annual pass options, especially in winter. Fiordland Great Walks like Routeburn, Kepler and Milford are included. We paid 60 dollars for 4 nights, we could have gotten a 6 month unlimited pass for 92 if the Te Anau DOC lady hadn't forced us the 4 tickets in our hands without consulting us as she wanted to close the shop. As their system (read: manager) doesn't allow upgrades or changes, (you cannot return an "item" you purchased) we were told that we could indeed buy a semi-annual pass, for an additional 92 dollar. It's the same service, but unflexibility of people won't allow us to change it. And as it's not a national wide organisation, there is no way to file a complaint. A rigid system and unwilling bureaucrates prevents service in an industry that is so dependent on its service. We were met with a very rude lady that even told us lies!!! (Won't go into the details) A shame, as it encourages us to not pay a single cent more after we spent our total of 92 dollars.

So off we went, ever driving further south. Near Clifden we found a really cool cave system (Waiau caves). Armed with headlights, we scrambled over the rocks in the pitch black caves. Little blue dots revealed the location of glowworms!!! The further you go, the more blue lights showed on the ceiling of the -sometimes max 0,5m high- cave tunnel system. The caves are prone to flooding, we didn't have wetsuits on and had to return as the water level was too high. A very nice excursion - and all for free!!

We spent the night near Monkey island and built a campfire on the wet beach. Surprisingly enough, the wet wood burnt relatively well! Unfortunately we noticed that our front tyres had totally worn out. Seems like the two second hand not-reinforced tyres for a commercial vehicle instead of van tyres :) (the previous owners had to save money on this appartently :)). Now with the new tyres we put on it's soooo much better! The car is balanced again :) (the other front tyres were simply too small :D) and with better confidence we could leave for Invercargill.

Before we had to fix that, we ventured a call to Invercargill, to Dawn Vermeulen, an aunt of Mar's uncle. A distant relation, but ot soon turned out that there was no distance in the relationship :) So with a bit of delay in arriving (due to the tyres) it was just lovely to meet family at the other end of the world.

We tried out the famous Bluff Oysters; cooked as the raw ones were sold out. Better than we tried before, but still reaaaaally strong and fishy. Jan loved it, but Mar was glad we only spent 2,5 dollar for a single oyster and didn't buy a dozen.
Bluff itself is actually not so small; a nice little harbour; the gate to Stewart Island. Sadly enough, we have to skip the island for this time; it's simply not in the budget, was supposed to rain for 3 days and our time was running out. The kiwi's will have to wait a bit longer.

We spent the next few days in Omaui with one of Dawn's daughters Shari. We probably would never have come here, it was a wonderful twist of fate. We tried to fish for paua, but it was too windy, the water was too murky. Jan tried, but didn't find any. Mar squatted on the rocks, trying to find balance against the wind. Of course tipped over, just missed the water, but hit the rocks with a rib...grrr. It hurts when sneezing or laughing.

At Shari's place, a lovely wooden beach house with an amazing view (We want one like that!!) we chilled a while, did some car-interior-pimping and chopped some unwanted bushes. Living in places we visit is part of the journey, experiencing them like the locals do! And that's what we did. We helped out on Julie & Bill's farm, cutting new horse tracks, found mussels and had lamb roast :) we stayed longer than expected but what's the point in rushing when it's so nice?

The way down to the Catlins was a bit troublesome, as much of the land was flooded in the heavy rain (not just in Germany :)); our road was closed. In spite of us trying to get through (why not with a 4WD?), we were sent back by a guy in an orange vest. Nice try, but "it's really not that nice out there". No further explanation, we were hushed off. At the same time when our own countries are challenged by flooding, the water gave us (minor) troubles as well on the other side of the world.

At Waipapa point we met our first sea lion! Sunbathing on the beach, not being disturbed by us going around, he was just simply lying there, one foot up, drying himself. A beautiful sight. 20-30 km further, we arrived on Slope Point. A short walk took us to the real most southern point of the south island. And there we were. In the middle between the south pole and the equator; both about 5000 km away still. It was never meant to be this way, but it has become the furthest point we were and would ever be away from home on this trip. Not much to see but some cliffs and a funny road sign, but quite an emotional turning point in our trip. Not the end of the world (that is in Argentina, excluding Antarctica) but the end of our road. From now on, we're coming closer to home everyday.

We arrived late in Curio Bay; but right in time to see the march ashore of the yellow eyed penguins!! Amazing creatures. They're really cute when they "run" across the rocks, flapping their feet and hopping over stones every 6 steps. Drying off in the last sun, they're a magnificent view. Two were a bit reluctant to return to their homes (probably they felt a bit intimidated by the tourists running in between them) and stayed until it became really dark. One of them turned his back to us and sprayed a poo with warp speed. Reminded me that it hurts to laugh with a bruised rib.

The next morning we woke up with a sursprise; ice! Not just outside, but on the inside of the car. Our breath turned to smoke, the old creditcard had a purpose and we slowly turned the vehicle back to life. The beach (Tautuku) full of white crystals slowly turned back to normal when the sun came around the mountain. It's lovely to be so close to nature.

The Catlins really are a beautiful place with lots of wildlife; our main reason to visit this part of the country. At Cannibal Bay, we strolled along the beach. 10 male sea lions were sunbathing; only to get up for a pee, throwing their massive body back onto the sand with a big "thump" directly afterwards. Impressive, and smelly. A guided tour group got a little bit too close to a sleeping sea lion, hiding in the dunes. With a loud howl he made them understand that it was not appreciated. I don't like to be woken up either :) Nugget point houses all three animals: seals, sea lions and penguins, though we saw none. A beautiful view on the "golden" sun-lit nugget-like rocks was of course even better from another ridge :) with a breathtaking steep cliff right beside it ("maybe one more step to the edge will make an even better picture..."). A magical and inspirational place where we found peace. It felt more like the end of the world than Bluff or Slope Point.

From there it wasn't too far to Dunedin: Otago Peninsula houses the albatros. This time of year, only 26 chicks are alive on this colony, a rare bird to be protected. Only guided tours allow you to visit them, but if you're patient enough, the birds will soar past you on the viewing platform not too far away from the carpark. Since we were too late for the tours, this was the only option we had :) And we were lucky! A beautiful bird used its glider wings to pass the cliff right in front of us. He turned around, used the wind to climb steeply up and zoomed straight back at us. In one word: wow.

Apart from that, Dunedin was not really our thing. Probably a really nice and lively city when you study here, with Scottish atmosphere and very much Asian food (BYO, meaning bring your own alcohol into the restaurant!!). Many students run around, quite drunk and all dressed up (on a week day). We just didn't feel we'd belong here, they were all so impersonal and occupied with themselves! On top of that, our experience with the New Zealand bogans doing their car race as we wrote about before just made it a place where we'd not necessarily need to come back to. We did have a lovely swim in the aquatic center - our necessary shower. The false fire alarm didn't spoil that, although it's pretty cold outside in just your togs (NZ swimsuits :D). BUT!! we whilst being harrassed by the bogans we actually saw soft Aurora Australis - Southern Lights (Northern Lights in the south so to say :)).... It was white but fascinating...very grateful for that!!

From Dunedin, we drove to Puketeraki. The sunrise on the lookout was simply perfect, a wonderful start of the day!! Further on the road, the Moeraki boulders are a bunch of round stones, formed in an inexplicable way under the earth, and now being washed out of the cliffs. Perfectly round stone pearls. We used the free wifi to upload some images (we're almost up to date again!!) and enjoyed a cup of mochachino, something we both learnt to appreciate on the way :D

Yesterday, Mar had her first Paua-dive. Freeeeeezing. The wetsuit helps a bit, but after 5 minutes you can't feel your feet anymore. And as soon as you out your head under water, a stinging pain punctures your face. Jan caught 4 (limit of 10 per catcher per day), Mar none :(. It's really hard to see under water when the tide comes back in, washes you away and brings hunderds of small bubbles around the rocks. Try spotting a pink paua covered in algea, not mistaking it for a pink rock while you desperately hang on to a rock with one hand, your other clinging to the knife inspite of the frost. It's a really cool thing to do and would have been even more rewarding when the catch would be bigger. They're amazing shellfish, a bit like a massive black tongue in the size of your hand. It twists and turns in it shell, trying to cling back to a rock, sucking its lips to anywhere they find hold. And really nice to eat with salt pepper and breadcrumbs :)

And so we arrived back in Christchurch for a night. (Sorry to those friends we didn't get to see again!) We will be heading up to Nelson via Arthur's Pass soon, before the (snow)storm comes on Friday. Ahh.. but one more day of pottery, rock climbing and Game of Thrones won't hurt :), right?