Farewell NZ

Well my NZ vacation had to end.  But its only temporary as I will return here on my Wandering World Walkabout. :)  Here's a list of tracks I would like to do when I come back.
- Tongariro Crossing
- Abel Tasma (spend 6 days on the trail)
- Nelson Lakes
- Routeburn
- Kepler
- Milford


Thank-you Shaun and Katie for all your help you gave Liz and me.  Storing things at your house and letting us crash there, to helping us stay at your parents place and giving tips on places to check out.  It was really nice reconnecting with you Shaun after all these years.  I will see you both some time in the future whether it be your visit to the US, or my return.

Liz, thanks for letting me travel with you and explore the beautiful country of NZ.  It was lots of fun and we did see a lot of amazing places.  All the best in your continued stay in NZ.  Lucky gal! :)

Randomness

Here's just a bunch of randomness pics that I somehow didn't fit into other posts but are still interesting.

I think the "Happy Cows" are in NZ and all the Sheep ;)

If you need transport, get Hooker!

Picton Sound

Coromandel

On our way back to Auckland we stayed a couple days on the Cormandel Peninsula.  What a beautiful place that is.  I guess that sounds a bit cliche as I've been talking and showing pictures of all the beauty in NZ.  But its true that the Coromandel is beautiful and has some of the most beautiful beaches in the world.  Two places we had time for was Cathedral Cove and Hot Water Beach.  Yes, Hot Water beach has hot water bubbling up through the sand.  Sweet As!

Yes, that pot was used to help make my hot water pool :)

A moon shot and southern cross in the 2nd pic.

Friends of the Road

In our short travel here we have made some really nice friends, some of which I've mentioned in previous posts. A real joy of mine in traveling is making friends and sharing experiences.


I've only met 4 USA people in my travels. Here’s 2 adventuring gals, Alexi and JJ that I met in Wanaka. They’re traveling around backpacker hitch-hiking style for a couple months. Good-on-ya gals for living the adventure and getting out of the USA to see the world.

Wouter and Laure are a Belgium couple that are traveling around the world and doing video projects in various countries. It was great to talk to them about their experiences as I will soon be doing the same.

We stayed with John and Lois in the Christchurch area. (These are Katie's parents.) John and Lois are retired and only have 27 well manicured acres. They use to own over 20,000 acre sheep/cattle farm. We had a wonderful one night stay at their place. I slept in the pink room with the pink bed. haha! (No pics as you have to go stay there to see it. ;)

We also stayed with Andrew and Tania in Blenheim. (Unfortunately I do not have a pic of them.)  Andrew is the son of John and Lois. They have 4 kids and are a very active family. We didn't have much time to get to know them as we got there later in the evening and had to leave early in the morning to catch the Picton-Wellington ferry.

Arthur's Pass - Low Gas

After Franz we drove up the west coast stopping at Hokitika Gorge as I had to have my ice bath for the week. ;) I wasn't disappointed, and the sand flies were a bonus as I tried to quickly put my clothes back on. haha!  Arthur's Pass is beautiful and we were so enthralled with its beauty that we nearly ran the camper out of gas to reach Springfield.  Liz was getting worried, and I was thinking of how I could get Liz to go get gas if we ran out. lol!  The next day I went and pulled on some rock at the world renown Castle Hill. Oh Yeah!  

When we arrived in Christchurch I discovered Pirates in the Botanical Garden. haha!

Franz Joseph Glacier

We did a heli ride up to the top of the Franz Joseph Glacier.  It was money well spent as it was a beautiful day after the rain storm.  I took a panoramic, but I will have to put that together when I'm home.

Paragliding in Queenstown

I've always wanted to paraglide, and after talking to Peter my Slovakian friend I met on this trip, I decided that I should do it in Queenstown. Peter figured out the company that would rent him the wing since he's a licensed flyer.  Liz and I did the tandem flight.  It was all that I imagined and more. Its so awesome to be up there flying like a bird.  Such a feeling of freedom. I could spend hours up there. I plan to buy my own wing and start flying when I get back. When I get over to Europe in my travels, I can do some flying with Peter as he has an extra wing.  Here's some pics from the flight :)

Milford Sound

All that has been said about the beauty of driving to Milford Sound and being there, is true.  Its definitely a place to visit if you come to NZ.  We went there with our 3 friends, Peter, Lucia, and Alvaro.  It was really awesome to travel with them for a couple days as they bring a lot of energy and fun to our travels.  We took the late afternoon boat ride on the sound and the lighting was perfect. Sit back, enjoy the pics and wish you were here :)

We're off for the west coast going through the Haast Pass and then Arthur's Pass to Christchurch.  More amazing pics coming soon :)

Bound For Queenstown

We made a quick stop in Christchurch and checked out the mall which is now a bunch of shipping containers since the earthquake destroyed a lot of the buildings in the city. (Very creative, especially this one. ;) 

Here's my favorite roses at the Queenstown Gardens. :)

Our drive to Queenstown took us past some of the most beautiful lakes and Mt. Cook. Here’s a few pics of that area including a hike in Hooker Valley which took us to...... that's right, a glacial lake at the base of Cook. :)

Sunset in Twizel

Queenstown is a thriving tourist destination with a young vibe. Its set on beautiful lake Wakatipu beneath beautiful peaks.

Bella Cucina had some good wood fired pizza recommended to me by Tom Lloyd.

We met backup with 3 friends we met up near Picton (Peter, Lucia, Alvaro) and plan to go paragliding with Peter. (They're shady people.) haha!

Next up is Milford Sound. The locals have advised doing Doubtful Sound, but because of my time crunch that will have to wait until next time.