Day 26 - Around Sydney

We really only had an afternoon and evening in Sydney by the time it was all said and done, but we still got around a bit. We were staying in the neighborhood called "The Rocks" which was right near the harbor and the opera house. So, we got to see that a bunch, which was cool. And we saw two cruise ships docked in the port. Those boats are mindblowingly enormous! They just look plain big in pictures or commercials, but in person it was just amazing.

Opera House

Anyway, Bridget had been to Sydney a few years ago and said we had to do the coastal walk from Bondi beach south. So we caught a bus over there and walked down the trail and back. The sun was out and there was a nice breeze off the water. The path weaved in and out of the beaches and bluffs along the coast. The rocky bluffs looked otherworldy. It looked like those rock formations used to be underwater and slowly were lifted (or pushed) up and out of the water. It was wild.

Rock Formation

Another Rock Formation

After the walk around, we grabbed dinner and a jacket and walked over by the Opera House after the sun set. We sat opposite the Harbor Bridge and watched the boats go by as we soaked in our last evening before heading home.

Opera House at night

The next morning came early but was started with a nice hot breakfast included with our room at our hotel. Sweet.

Breakfast

Then it was off to the train to the airport and our flight home. We bid farewell as the plane rolled back from the gate. We are both happy and sad - its always great to get home after being away for a while, but it's sad that our Pacific Adventure is over. You all know how it goes.

Day 22/etc - Around Queenstown

Queenstown
As I mentioned in the previous post, we spent a bit of time in and around Queenstown before and after the Routeburn tramp. Queenstown is a relatively small city considering the sheer number of activities and people that go through. The activity list is a mile long - bungee jumping, skydiving, canyoning, rafting, river-boarding, cruising, kayaking, speed-boating, etc. etc. etc. We had our adventure-sports fill in Wanaka, so we just walked around. And, to be honest, after 4 straight days of adrenaline sports in Wanaka, we kind of needed a bit of a break (and by "we" I mean I). So we just walked 10 miles all over the city and around the lake. :)  The views across the lake were fantastic - the water was so blue and the gentle sunshine felt great. And it felt great to walk around without a pack on! During our walk around the lake, we saw a poor plane try to land three or four times before getting on the ground. Apparently it is so challenging to land in Queenstown that only 59 pilots are certified to land there! It was nice to find that out after we safely landed without incident. :)

Lake view

Queenstown is situated in a valley surrounded by mountains - kind of like most of New Zealand. The mountain range to the south is called the Remarkables - and with good reason! The jagged peaks tower over the valley and are just awe-inspiring. The backside is home to a ski resort in the winter time.

Sun clipping the tops of the Remarkables

Queenstown has a cool gondola that goes up a small mountain right above town. Since we wanted the exercise (and didn't want to pay for the gondola), we just hiked up. The views were totally worth it. The sky was clear-ish, the water was blue, and the breeze was refreshing.

Pano from the gondola viewpoint (click to enlarge)

For the more adventurous types, there is a "luge" at the top. These were like mini go-karts (without engines) that race around downhill then catch a lift back up for another lap. And there were downhill mountain bike trails from the top to the bottom. These trails were intense and people were flying down them. And incidentally kicking up alot of dust at the same time. Anyway... the downtown area had a nice selection of restaurants and shopping to burn a few hours. One of the more unique places is a place called The Winery. The have a huge selection of over 80 wines that can be tasted at the same place. The tasting is a la carte, so you pay for each individually but most are only a few bucks. And if you like any particular wines, you can get a half or full glass.

Our AirBnB was situated up on a hill a bit east of downtown Queenstown with a great view. The host was great and the breakfast spread was amazing! We definitely didn't leave hungry in the mornings!

View from the AirBnB porch

Breakfast spread!

Sunset from last night in Queenstown (click to enlarge)

So, this gets us to the end of our time in New Zealand. Bummer! But, alas, the end was inevitable.

We've got one last night over here (in Sydney) before we fly back across the Pacific. Until then!

Days 23 - 25 - Routeburn Tramp!

I know, I know. We're out of order a bit. I'll do an "around Queenestown" post after this since we spent some time around the city before and after the tramp. Ok, back to what you're more interested in anyway. :)

Routeburn tramp stats
Pronunciation - "root-burn"
Distance: 26.4 miles (including both optional trails)
Elevation gained: 6,459 ft
Days/Nights: 3 days / 2 night
Trail type: One-way


Day 1 - Up to the falls
As the tramp start date approached, I started keeping a closer look at the weather forecast. Which, as you might be able to guess, forecasted rain. Of course. Not buckets and buckets of rain like Tongariro, but it could be "heavy at times". The timing kept swinging back and forth, but the update the night before we started suggested it would clear later in the day. So we shifted our transportation to the trailhead to later in the morning (with the side benefit of getting to sleep in and enjoy the fantastic breakfast at our AirBnB). We got picked up around 10:45am from Queenestown and headed off into the mist. Literally, it looked like we were driving into the clouds and rain. Lovely.

Guess where we're headed...

We arrived at the trailhead around 12pm or so and the wet stuff was falling, and trampers finishing looked pretty damp (soaked through). Since we weren't in a huge hurry, we hunkered down with our lunch and Kindles and waited to see if the clouds would break. Slowly but surely, around 1pm, the sun started peeking out a bit between the rain showers. We gave it another hour and then set out with our hopes buoyed by the sun. The first part of the trail was a pretty flat jaunt along the valley and the Routeburn stream all of the way to Routeburn flat, which was (surprise, surprise) a nice flat area at the base of the surrounding mountains. There was a nice shelter and a smattering of campsites with spectacular views looking up in just about any direction. We had our afternoon snack and soaked in some sun before heading up to the Routeburn Falls hut (our desitation for the night).

One of the many swinging bridges we crossed

One of the many reasons we had bridges

The climb up was pretty steep at times scrambling up and over the rocks, but totally worth it. We arrived at the hut a bit quicker than expected (always nice!) and just beat the next wave of rain (even better!). And the word "hut" doesn't really do it justice- alpine lodge is a bit more appropriate. There weren't fireplaces and rugs everywhere but it was clean, had a bunch of cooking tops, and organized bunkrooms. The rain kept coming in fits and starts with the sun almost taunting hikers between the spells. The nice thing about rain and sun, though, is rainbows! We were treated to a few rounds of rainbows across the valley!

Spectacular, eh?

Tree at Routeburn Falls

We finished the rest of the afternoon sipping hot chocolate before making dinner and playing a few rounds of Dominion. We got quite a few stares with our piles of cards all over the table. "I love it, pure addiction" was the comment from the hutmaster. Ha ha. It's just one of the few games I have a prayer of beating Bridget at... Anyway, the sun started setting around 9:30pm, but the sky wasn't dark until after 10:30pm.

Day 2 - Up and over the saddle
Per the hutmaster update last night, the forecast for today was supposed to be rain early and easing in the afternoon, so we planned a lazier morning and waited until the weather broke again. However, the weather flip-flopped and switched to fine in the morning and isolated showers forming around midday. By the time we saw the change, ate, and re-packed, it had started raining. We waited around for about an hour until we had a break in the rain and set out on the trail. The trail climbed up and past the Routeburn Falls, into a valley, and then up to Harris Saddle in the mountain range that we would cross to get to the other side. As we hiked along, a few small drizzles popped up for long enough to stop, put on a rain jacket, and start sweating. Oh well. Better to have a rainjacket than to not. The trail up ended at a large alpine lake with a day-use shelter.


Harris Lake just under the saddle


Harris Saddle with some small alpine pools full of fresh rainwater

There was an extra spur trail for those wanting more leg burn, so of course, I went up there. Bridget was kind enough to watch my bag inside the rainproof shelter while I went up. The trail up was pretty touch-and-go in spots. The rain had made the rocks pretty slick, so scrambling was a bit more exciting that usual. By the time I got to the top, the clouds had descended once again, and I was having flashbacks of Tongariro. The visibility was pretty close to "just forget about it" with a light drizzle accompaniment.

All socked in

However, not more than 15 minutes later, the clouds had broken and pockets of sunshine were poking through. I could see the mountains behind to the East and sort of make out the range across the valley to the West. The photos don't really do it justice, especially since timing was key as the clouds moved so fast.

Somewhat cleared up

Everyone says the weather in the alpine can change quickly and they aren't joking. It was surreal to sit and watch the clouds come and go, rise and fall. After my break in the clouds passed and the rain began to fall again, I headed back down to the trail. The rain this time, though, was much stronger and I was pretty well drenched by the time I got back down to the hut. We had our lunches and waited for the next few waves of rain to pass before getting back on the trail. When we saw a break in the clouds, we went for it. The rest of the trail for the day snaked its way along the mountainside slowly descending below the treeline before one last climb over the ridge to Lake Mackenzie (our destination). Our timing was pretty impeccable. We seemed to line up with the break between the showers lining up down the valley. The clouds across the valley slid their way up and along, giving us glimpses of the peaks shrouded behind their cover.

Clouds clearing across the valley with some glaciers peeking through

The trail ended at Lake Mackenzie, but not before winding back down through a "fairy" forest on the north aspect of the ridge lining the lake. This forest was quite unique in the incredible amount of moss all over the place. Like all over. It blanketed everything in sight. It almost looked like a nice layer of soft, green snow. Maybe that's more the snowboarder in me than the hiker, or maybe not. Anyway, this happens due to the 18-24 feet of rain they get here every year. It rains over 200 days per year and is considered rainforest, so the moss gets its favorite damp environment to grow. And grow it does. It actually creates a deep enough layer for the trees to grow into. So it wasn't uncommon to see huge boulders covered in moss with trees growing out of the top with moss on the tree trunks and hanging from the branches. It was wild.

Moss Forest

Anyway, the hut/lodge was a welcome sight after truding nearly 8 miles by that time. It is located just next to the lake, which was refreshing to soak my feet and wash up a bit. The hutmaster gave his evening talk after dinner, and he was hilarious. He probably talked for 30 minutes about the geology of the region, the park's work to eradicate the pests (he even had a stuffed stoat as a prop), and the history of the trails we walked. Quite educational and entertaining. Oh, and two of the fire exits in the hut are windows that you just jump out of - seriously. We finished the evening on the front porch sipping hot chocolate and watching the sun try to cast some color on the clouds.

Lake Mackenzie nestled in the valley

Lake Mackenzie from below

Sunset

Day 3 - And back
Despite having plans to wake up early and make sure we had time for a bonus trail on the way out, the hustle and bustle in the cabin didn't wake us until well after our alarms were set. Oh well. We packed, ate, and got out in the trail without too much of a fire drill. Luckily, long legs make for fast walking, so we made up the time. The trail climbed back out of the valley where Lake Mackenzie sits and wound its way down and around to the parking lot at the end but not before passing by cascading waterfalls, alpine lakes, and majestic views of the mountains in the Fiordlands.

Earland Falls

Lake Howden

We also had enough time to catch the bonus trail up to Key Summit. This was quite an anomaly. The summit is actually relatively flat and home to its own ecosystem complete with carnivorous plants, ponds/peat bogs, and trees. All on top of this big hunk of rock jutting out into the valley. Totally wild, eh?

Alpine lake at Key Sumit

Can't get too many pictures of that view!

After exploring Key Summit, we finally finished the last few kilometers (total distance of 10 miles for the day) down to the end of the trail where our shuttle back to Queenestown was waiting. Since this route was a one-way trail and not a loop, we had a 3.5 hour trip back to Queenestown. But our shuttle driver was pretty funny as well, so he made the trip go more quickly. After an extra 30-minute delay at some bridge construction (funny story as to why it is still under construction), we made it back to our AirBnB and started prepping to pack up and head out the next day.

Anyway, all said and done, another excellent tramp for sure!

Days 17-20 Lake Wanaka

Lake Wanaka is a decent-sized lake north of Queenstown that is home to all kinds of outdoor sports and activities, hence the reason we went there. We spent a total of 5 days/4 nights there which I will attempt to summarize in chronological order below.

Day 17 - Arrival and Mtb
We rolled into Lake Wanaka to our Airbnb in the early afternoon after a drive from Manapouri (about 3 hours in the car). The place has a fantastic view of the lake and surrounding mountains as well as fresh rolls, juice, and coffee each morning. It was great! Lake Wanaka is surrounded by mountains and was dug by glaciers back in the day. There are still glaciers higher up in the mountains, but we'll get to that in a few days. :)

View from our AirBnB

View from the patio table

Bridget wanted to rest, so she took a nap and I went mountain biking (our Airbnb had a bike I could use). It was overcast (forecast called for rain, but it didn't end up raining) and a bit on the cooler side. I biked out around the lake a bit and then ventured through some single-track (narrow, winding trails) in the woods. There is a pretty active bike club that maintains the trails, so they were really nice. I got in about 2.5 hours of riding (about 25 miles) and only a handful of wipeouts (but nothing too serious). The GoPro videos are so shaky they'd make you sick, so I'll spare you that experience. :)

Quick view from the beach on the way back

Day 18 - Canyoning
With the steep, glacier-carved valleys around the greater Lake Wanaka region, there are lots of canyons with ever-flowing water. These canyons are filled with waterfalls, whirlpools, and deep basins filled with fresh new zealand water. So, as with anything adventurous, exciting, and slightly dangerous, we signed up to adventure our way down through one of these canyons (based upon a friend's recommendation). So, with a guide (a pretty cool, funny one at that) leading the way (and manning the double-belay setup in spots), we rappelled (abseiled), slid, swam, and jumped our way down the waterfalls and sheer rock faces.  Rappelling is fun, but rappelling down a waterfall with the water thundering onto you is a blast! I put my GoPro to good use, so see a quick video below (the others were too large, so I need to edit them shorter before I can post due to file size limitations...). At the final spot in the canyon, there was a nice 20ft cliff to jump off, so we of course did that a few times. :) The water was cold, but the wetsuits we had kept us nice and warm-ish.

Gear on and ready to go!

Halfway down and still having fun!

Jump from 20ft cliff

Day 3 - Wakeboarding and Rob Roy Glacier Hike
After recovering from canyoning, I did a wakeboard session on Lake Wanaka in the morning. The water was nice and refreshing, which means pretty chilly but comfortable with a wetsuit on. The boat driver was super nice and found/made some smooth water despite the breeze and other boaters on the lake.

Enjoying the water

Catching some air

Post-wakeboard photo

After wakeboarding, we headed straight for the mountains! As I mentioned earlier in the post, there are still some glaciers in the area. One of the more famous and accessible glaciers is the Rob Roy Glacier. It's about 32 miles out of town (most on a gravel road), but lots of folks make the journey out there. The scenery is spectacular. The hike up to the viewpoint we went to is almost 4 miles with a flat section at the start and uphill from there. The glacier is hanging out at the top of the mountain (as they usually do), and the glacial stream is a thundering river down at the lower elevations as the water passes over and around boulders in its path. The canyons created by the glaciers and now occupied by the streams are pretty densely populated with trees fed by the water so we were in the shade for most of the hike. Once we got to the top, we popped out onto a clearing with a panoramic view of the glacier (see below). The clouds never really pulled all of the way up and off the top of the glacier, but we had some blue sky peek through a few times. It was really cool. As the sun popped in and out of the clouds, the view shifted slightly to show the water shimmering on the rocks as it crept its way down the cliffs, the blue hue of the glacial ice at the edge of the glacier, and the spray from the water pounding off the rocks as it shoved its way to the valley floor.

This is where you walk really quickly (Bridget is the little orange dot in the lower left corner hoping the boulder doesn't give way!)

The indigenous birds are preyed upon by invasive animals (possums, rats, etc.) so there are traps all over the place with blue markers showing where they are located. This is the 9th trap on this trail.

Panorama of the Rob Roy Glacier (click to make bigger)

View of the huge waterfall off to the west with the valley in the background

View on the trail down

We finished off the day with some drinks and apps with our AirBnB hosts and caught some wisps of a sunset.

Sunset

Day 4 - Mountain Biking and Mt Iron
We both went mountain biking together this morning. There is a small forest with well-groomed single track trails. It's called Sticky Forest, but it wasn't sticky so I'm not sure where the name came from. But it had some nice trails and we rode around for about 2.5hrs.

On the trail

After mountain biking, we grabbed a snack and went and hiked Mt Iron which is a small-ish mountain at the edge of town. It was only a few hundred feet of elevation, but gave great views of the very small amount of flat land around. We capped off our last night with dinner out at a place across the street from the water.

Pano from the top of Mt Iron (click to make bigger)

Sun and Sky

Days 15 - 16 - Manapouri and Doubtful Sound

With the excitement of the Tongariro Northern Circuit behind us, we spent our last night on the North Island in Taupo, as mentioned in the last post. We got up relatively early and set off for the Taupo Airport. There was no TSA Pre-check, in fact there wasn't even security at all! We got our tickets, grabbed a coffee (of course!), hopped on the free WiFi for a bit, then walked out and boarded the plane on the tarmack (not jet bridges here!). Unfortunately, we had to fly north to Auckland then transfer to a plane headed to Queenestown, but we made the connection no problem.

Smile-atte anyone?

After getting in to Queenestown, we picked up our rental car, which turns out to be an old Subaru hatchback with 158,000 miles and lots of wear. But, no worries - it'll work for us! After getting that sorted, we drove the 2 hours to Manapouri, which is east of Queenestown. I was interrupted during blogging by a magnificent sunset over Lake Manapouri. See below.

View with the sun high in the sky

Sunset pic 1

Sunset pic 2

The next day, we did a kayak adventure on the Doubtful Sound. We paddled around for about 3 hours on the sound. We did not capsize, so it was a successful day! And easiest told by picture. :)

Ready to paddle!

First look out on the Sound

This is called a "tree avalanche" - the trees grow on moss that grows on the rocks. So when the moss gets dry during a drought then gets too much rain, it can give way, and the trees go down with it.

Out in the open water

Kayak Limbo!

View along the shore

Sun at the top of the ridge

Group photo!

We then head off to Lake Wanaka for some more excitement! Stay tuned!