13.2.08 11:30am- Te Anau Downs and Curio Bay

Yesterday started off on a slow foot but ended up being my favourite day so far.

We began by cleaning 10 backpacker rooms. After some brief instructions by the housekeeper, Noeline, Seth took over the linens and beds while I cleaned the bathrooms and vacuumed. It wasn’t too bad—it took about two hours and it went by quickly.

We got held up making some bookings for the next night’s hostel, but luckily Matt, the chef, offered us some lunch (very delicious pasta leftovers from the night before, and some tuna-olive-egg salad stuff) and we rushed out to Milford Sound. Not too far down the road we heard a loud bang and looked out the window just in time to see Seth’s famous Hershey World mug spinning across the street, tea swirling everywhere. In our hurry to leave the Lodge he forgot to take his mug from the roof of the car. Though thick plastic, his much-loved mug (like an extension of his body) had its handle bust off, leaving a hole in the outer layer of plastic. We gathered up the bits (and this morning while running we found the lid), and I think he is going to try to salvage it.

We continued up the road to the sound. The road is about 120km long, one way, and packed full of tour buses and stupid-looking Wicked Vans (rental vans painted in 1960s psychedelic style to look real artsy and funky--they are EVERYWHERE). The drive, however, was breathtaking. It passed along rolling hills, gorges, waterfalls, rivers, and other glacier-carved landscapes. We stopped at Mirror Lakes, then at Deer Flat for our pasta lunch, hoping we would be visited by keas. No parrots in sight, we continued through the Homer Tunnel (1207m long) that passes through an amphitheatre-like wall and emerges in a steep canyon near Milford.

Once in Milford Sound we checked in to the loading docks for our 2hr 15min cruise, which is unfortunately the best (and cheapest) way to see the extremely remote fiord. The other options include a kayak tour or helicopter flight over the fiords. I had my initial hesitations about getting back onto a boat, especially since my previous catamaran encounter to go whale-watching in Maine not only included spotting no whales, but also made me very, very sea sick. The cruise in Milford Sound was alright, and I am glad we did it, but since it has been very dry here (just like in Australia), there were hardly any waterfalls. There are apparently thousands of waterfalls after a good rain. Also, the sun was shining and burned away all the cool clouds, so the sky wasn’t very dramatic looking at all. In fact, though this is a rainforest, it has only rained once since we arrived. Hmmm… As for the expense, the cruise was $150(NZ) for the two of us, which is how much we saved on three nights’ accommodation at the lodge. We broke even by working 6 hours each.


10:30pm- Written from Curio Bay

During the drive back from Milford Sound we passed back through the tunnel and on the other side we spotted a group of big, fat, green keas! These parrots were truly amazing: super smart, curious, and real tricksters and trouble-makers. We got out of the car to take a closer look. You could instantly tell how intelligent they are by the way they would cock their head and look at you, like they were analysing you. One kea began following Seth around and started to nip at his ankles, and as I was cracking up at this, I turned around and found three perched atop our poor blue car. One was pulling at the windshield-wiper, another was sharpening his super long beak on the roof, and the third pulling on the plastic strip above the door. More flew down from the cliffs and they had us surrounded, about a dozen strong. They hopped around us and kept coming closer to the car, so we decided to get out of there fast, or else find a way to pay off damages to the rental car.
We next stopped at The Divide (the lowest east-west pass in the Southern Alps, on Milford Road) and walked the Key Summit Trail up to the top. The trail is initially shared with the three-day Routeburn Track, which we had planned to walk but could not because it was fully booked. After about 30min it split off the Routeburn and took a steep climb to the top of a remarkable summit, quite a ways above the tree-line. Near the top we found alpine pools/lakes/bogs nestled in mountain cradles. We also saw several small birds and wondered if they were rare rock wrens: little birds found only in the alpine ranges south of Fiordland. Across the range clouds pushed through the neighbouring mountains, and not wanting to get caught in unpredictable weather we hustled back down the mountain. In fact, we started the trail late in the evening (about 7pm) and knew we would have only a little time before dark, so we walked it really fast: in total it took us only 2 hours, while it is labeled as a 3 hour trek. We definitely made good time.
Driving back down the rest of the road to the lodge we did our part for the environment and hit a hare. We had never hit and killed anything before (while driving together) so we felt kinda bad. At least it was a horrible invasive critter and not a kakapo!

At the end of the night we cooked up dinner and shared some chocolate cake that Matt (the chef) gave us. It also felt great to have a room to ourselves, since similar to the previous night, Sharon did not book anyone else in our room. We got to spread everything out, talk at normal speaking volume and keep the lights on as we wanted. We even had our very own bathroom and TV! Soooo spoiled!!!
So with all the adventures from the day, I would say the Milford Sound Cruise was made less spectacular by the keas, the hike, the beautiful drive, running down the hare, and watching Seth’s mug fly off the car roof :P

This morning we slept in until about 8am, and after a short run we had brunch, and checked out of the Fiordland National Park Lodge. We went back to town to pick up a better and more comprehensive NZ bird book, returned our first one, and got a few more groceries.

We drove the Southern Scenic Route down south, back to the coast, and headed east along the southern part of the South Island (the Catlins). We stopped at Invergargill briefly to get a few more things from a super cheap and gigantic Pak N Save (I love this store!) then continued east to Curio Bay. The drive was scenic, indeed, though I slept through bits of it. I have been sleeping in the car way more than I would like, but I have been just too tired to help it. Between falling asleep at the wheel and not liking to drive narrow, twisting mountain roads, I am glad Seth has been doing the driving! He isn’t supposed to, however, because his NC driver’s license expired since he has been in Australia, so when we hire cars they always have to be under my name, even though I am under 25.

We drove from rain forest to inland pastures and country side and into the very wind-swept southern coast. What an interesting change!
We got to Curio Bay around 7:30pm, checked in and cooked a quick dinner. The hostel, Dolphin Lodge, is a bit cramped but it is in a great ocean-front location with a fantastic view of the bay, which is home to a group of Hector’s Dolphins (the world’s smallest dolphin, about 1.3m long—only found in New Zealand coastal waters) and very occasionally whales. The owner teaches surfing lessons outside. In the late evening, we once again found ourselves rushing, this time to a lookout to see rare yellow-eyed penguins coming to shore for the night. I had never seen wild penguins before so was pretty excited to see them. We got there a bit late so missed the bulk of the little clowns (about 5 pairs of adults and up to 10 large chicks), but got to watch one pair hanging out on the rocks. They were so cute, swimming around, hopping over rocks, and trying to get around on those short legs of theirs. The next few nights we will try to stay at places that also have penguin nesting sites so we can try watching them again.

12.2.08 8:30am- Te Anau Downs II

Yesterday afternoon we drove into town (Te Anau, pop 1785) to check in with the visitors centre about doing some day walks in Milford Sound. We got some ideas then walked to the wildlife centre, which houses a few dozen injured and captive-bred birds, such as keas (very big and ‘cheeky’ alpine parots), takahe (rare flightless birds that look like really chunky purple swamp hens), and kakas. We have not been doing much bird watching so this was probably the most we will get to see of these wonderful and quirky birds.Kaka

After taking a quick look ‘downtown’ we drove back to Fiordland National Park Lodge to check in for work. Sharon introduced us to the kitchen staff (all of whom were very friendly) and we had a little pasta that the chef, a young guy from Wales, cooked up before we arrived. We were shown what to do—Seth was on dishwashing and I was on drying and putting away. He definitely had the hard and messy job! The restaurant was primarily by bookings, and about 40 people were scheduled to come through. They arrived nearly at once, since the bulk of the nightly guests are with a tour group that comes right off a bus, but there was also a higher than expected number of "FITs", as they called them (Free Independent Travellers). The job was pretty laid back, but we didn’t end until after 10pm, so it was a 4-hour shift. Tonight the tour bus won’t come through, so the restaurant will be closed. Seth and I will instead be doing housekeeping this morning, and it is time to check in!

*These jobs, working at a classy lodge in a very beautiful and remote area reminds me of the movie, Dirty Dancing. It also reminds me a little of The Shining, haha!

11.2.08 12pm- Te Anau Downs

After doing a bit of writing yesterday morning at the campgrounds, we had our oat/cornflake/nut delight then called Jude at the Te Anau Lakefront Backpackers. Seth had been in contact with her for several weeks about working at the backpackers in exchange for three nights’ accommodation. Similar to Shambhala, they gave our positions to other people and would not let us work at all to help reduce the cost of two dorm beds. I guess with many places here in NZ, backpackers and travellers are so numerous it is no skin off their back to treat them poorly or go back on their promises, especially if the travellers have less money to fork over. Most backpackers here seem eager to work, probably because it is so expensive to travel for extended amounts of time.

We tried ringing one other place that had a 0 800 number so we would not have to pay several dollars to make a call. It was called Fiordland National Park Lodge, in Te Anau Downs, about 28k north of Te Anau. Just as easily as the Lakefront Backpackers let us down, the Lodge had work available for us. One thing I found is that when some people screw you over, such as Omega Car Rentals, Shambhala, and Te Anau Lakefront Backpackers, others are just as willing to help, like the woman at Avis and the people at the Lodge.

We stocked up at a grocery store, then drove right down south from Wanaka, taking the Crown Range Road via Cardrona (very narrow and windy yet with beautiful overlooks of the hills and ranges). We bypassed Queenstown (I am sure it is lovely, but I don’t really care for the ‘wild-man’ packed adrenaline-seeking city), and continued south before shooting off west, for Fiordland. We hit Te Anau then drove north to Te Anau Downs, eventually getting to Fiordland National Park Lodge.
The lodge is a somewhat larger hotel/motel/backpackers, right on Lake Te Anau, and caters for all types, from people just coming off the 60km Milford Track to retired couples lounging around the restaurant bar sipping wine. The manager, Sharon, checked us in and let us have the evening off. Our dorm was obviously once a hotel room that was overcrowded with a bunk and two beds, and even included a bathroom (en suite). We shared it with an Australian and a Kiwi (we have hardly met any other Aussies or Kiwis in any other backpackers—most people have been European, particularly Germans, and a few North Americans).

The lodge has a beautiful overlook of Lake Te Anau and the fiords. I really like it here and wish we could stay longer than 3 nights. Sharon even asked if we would be interested in permanent positions--I think they especially need workers here because it is in a location where people just pass through for one night on their way to Milford Sound (the only thing located at the end of the road going north), and probably wouldn’t think to stick around to work.
This morning I went running with Seth to the tiny Lake Mistletoe, then down a gravel road through bushland that eventually led to Eglinton River, which leads into Lake Te Anau. A bit boring, but not bad at all. I still feel really low energy, however, and it was hard to keep a good pace.
It is getting late already and I don’t think we will have much time to poke around before going to work at 6pm. We will be washing dishes tonight in the restaurant.

10.2.08- 10:15am Wanaka

After leaving the lake yesterday morning the two of us drove into the town outside Fox Glacier to try to find a shower. In Australia it seemed many hostels would let a person use their showers for just a few bucks, but yesterday when we stopped at a holiday park they wanted $15 per person. We left and tried a nearby hostel. The woman working there got quite uppity and said “this is a hostel, we don’t do that here”. We resorted to splashing off in the sink of a bathroom connected to an information desk.

At that point we were scuzzy and hungry (being about 2pm and not having eaten since the night before) and were getting sick of the little tourist town, yet decided to suck it up and go see Fox Glacier up close. New Zealand has dozens of glaciers, but Fox Glacier and Franz Joseph Glacier are special in that they are very low-lying, accessible, and come down into temperate rain forest. The 30min walk to the glacier, winding between sheer cliffs and cutting through what looks like jungle, once again made me feel like a large tyrannosaurus or giant ape would be around the next corner. The glacier itself was pretty impressive: stratified with the upper layers of ice sky blue, and the bottom a dirty brown. The bad part, however, was trying to ignore the dozens of helicopter tours flying overhead.

When we left Fox Glacier we pulled to the side of the road and ate our oats/cereal milk/yogurt meal while sitting on a big rock overlooking the cliffs, watching the cars and helicopters go by.
We drove down south through the forests and between the mountains (the Southern Alps), stopping at the Gates of Haast (a bridge hanging over the Haast River), Fantail Falls, and a few other points to stretch and take a few pictures. The landscape stayed hilly and mountainous the entire time, but as we headed inland the greenery slowly disappeared until we ended up in Wanaka, which is just as mountainous yet dusty and brown—Overgrazing? Drought? Or just too far inland to get as much water?

We stopped at one hostel, which was fully booked, and were directed to a very large and unpleasant holiday park, where we camped. It was probably the only place with available accommodation (the town of Wanaka seemed pretty full) and not too expensive.

We set up camp next to a fellow from Canada (B.C.), probably the only person at the holiday park not from France or Germany, then cooked dinner (we got to finally test out our ‘billy’), showered (wooo!), and went to sleep on the nice hard ground (once again, only a thin tarp separating us from dirt and rocks).

This morning I decided to let Seth’s legs do all the work and I am just bumming around and getting some writing done. I don’t know what we will get up to today, but hopefully we will have time to explore Mt. Aspiring National Park, which is right outside of Wanaka.

9.2.08- 10:20am Lake Matheson

I am writing from a picnic shelter in front of Lake Matheson and I have a great view of Mt Cook (the tallest mountain in New Zealand), Mt Tasman, and Fox Glacier. Tourists (most of whom are German), pass by left and right :P

Seth and I camped out last night then drove down here to go running around Lake Matheson. It is recommended to visit the lake in the calm early morning because it reflects, like a mirror, the two large mountains and glacier. After doing a lot of walking yesterday my legs don’t feel like working so I cut the run short and now I am waiting for Seth to return from his ‘glacial adventure’.

Yesterday morning we got up early to run up a lookout that provides a view of the Greymouth region. Not only was the climb too steep (it was more like using a StairMaster and less like actually running) but the clouds pouring over the mountains obscured most of the view.


When I returned from the ‘run’ I was able to use the internet (at Noah’s Ark Hostel) for the first time in a week. There are many places that offer internet, but those that have wireless are quite expensive (about $10NZ/hr- or about $8USD), or don’t have USB ports so I can upload photos. It was good to use it for a few minutes yesterday morning, but now I am getting antsy to connect again, since I still have bills to pay, need to vote, and want to send out emails, particularly to my parents who are in South America (though it also makes me anxious to get work done because it reminds me I am falling behind in my writing!!).

We had a quick lunch—the usual meal we have twice a day, which is a mixture of cornflakes, raisins, peanuts, honey, and oats with hot water and milk, with a side of yogurt, of course—then walked to town to stock up on more sunscreen and insect repellent.

After checking out of the hostel (it really was very cute!) we drove a few hours south, along the coast, to Okarito, which has a population of 30 people but can boast a very large lagoon. We went to check out the historic one-room school house-turned YHA Hostel that Seth stayed in when he came through Okarito 10 years ago. It was definitely one-room—bunks and cooking area and common room all in one! It didn’t even have a shower!

We couldn’t decide if we should stay there or sleep at the campgrounds, which were very cheap yet crowded with campervans. Since the hostel was empty we used their cooking facilities to make tea and warm up some courgettes (zucchini), baked beans, and canned tomatoes (another daily staple). I then went to talk to the YHA manager to see if she would give the two of us a deal but she said we couldn’t even stay there because it was fully booked… even though there was NO ONE THERE (even this morning when we passed by it was still unoccupied). Hmmm…

We took a walk up an old trig overlooking the lagoo (the walked looked just like scenes from King Kong, then I remembered that the newest version, by Peter Jackson, was filmed in NZ), came back to pitch our tent, then drove out to the lagoon/‘kiwi habitat’. We meant to go to the lagoon to watch birds but the road split and the path we took actually went up a another stinkin’ lookout. By the time we made it down most of the second track it was very dark and the sandflies were getting pretty aggressive, so we turned around, but stopped to listen for kiwis (NZ’s national bird- flightless, nocturnal, and endangered) along the way back to the car.

We made a second attempt to find a kiwi out by the track where we walked earlier in the day. We planted ourselves near a possible kiwi trail and sat in the dark (almost a new moon) for about 30min then realised we would probably only see one with lots of luck. Feeling tired anyways, we went back to camp and slept on the very rocky ground—we only have one sleeping bag to share so we unzipped it and used it as a top blanket, so there was no bottom sheet, only tarp :o(

This morning we left Okarito and drove about an hour south to the glaciers (Franz Joseph and Fox). We never did make it to the lagoon, ergh.

8.2.08- 10:40am Greymouth

Over the past few days we worked our way towards the northern end of the South Island and are now heading southwest.

On the morning of the 5th (Tuesday) Seth and I took a nice long run through South Bay (Kaikoura), and since it wasn’t raining we had a better chance to look around and explore the suburbs and shore.


We checked out of the holiday park and took off for Nelson, a larger town located on the northern coastline. Along the way we stopped at a Warehouse in Blenheim to buy raincoats and a billy (pot) for when we go trekking. I hate buying more crap to carry and have to worry about, so hopefully they will be very useful, and hopefully the raincoats won’t leak (they were pretty cheap :o( ).

In the afternoon we arrived at Tasman Bay Backpackers, which was a typical hostel—busy, colourful, yet well organised. They even cooked hot brownie pudding every night at 8pm (which we unfortunately missed out on this first night because we arrived at 8:06pm from taking a walk downtown). That night, after we were deprived of pudding, I finally got a little tiny bit of work done on my thesis, and Seth got to practice his guitar. I just wish we had more time like that to relax and catch up on things; it really helps to get focused and organised.
Wednesday the 6th we took a nice long run up a giant hill/mountain thing to the Centre of New Zealand. It is supposed to be the geographical centre of the country, but it seemed a little too conveniently located at the top of a hill with a beautiful view of the ocean. We ran along the mountain ranges (which are used for sheep grazing) for a while before heading back. After brunch we walked into town to grab a coffee and do some work but it was apparently a public holiday, Waitangi Day, so most shops had a 20% surcharge (Conor, from Dash, warned me about this!). We settled for ice cream instead and headed back for the hostel.

In the afternoon we took our carefully planned splurge activity (we decided before we left Australia that we would do one or two bigger outings—limited to one or two since we are on a budget) which was horseback riding. I haven’t been riding since a family trip to Costa Rica, which was about 5 years ago, so I was really aching to go. Seth hadn’t been much (even though he grew up around horses out in the country), but he seemed to have a good time. It was just the two of us with the guide (who looked remarkably similar to my childhood best-friend, Dahlia, who loves horses) and she took us through some great trails up to a look-out and through very green forests. It was well worth it! To top off the day, we made it back to the backpackers just in time for brownie pudding!

Yesterday, Thursday the 7th, we started off by running along the river that runs out of Nelson, following it along the suburbs then later a few farms, between the ranges. We then had brunch, stocked up on a few more groceries, even visiting the one Asian shop in town (in honour of Chinese New Year, I suppose), before heading south (inland) to Nelson Lakes National Park. We did a quick 1.5 hour walk through some forests at Lake Rotoiti, and noticed it happened to be sunny yet rather hot, for the first time in a while. We continued driving west, towards the coast, and made a quick stop to view the Lyell Cemetery (Lyell is an old mining ghost town from the late 1800s), then just missed Westport on the coast, and oriented ourselves south. The drive (which was supposed to be pretty good) wasn’t much at first but once the scrubby beach plants parted and the sun began setting over the cliffs and coastline it became very striking. We took a rest break at Punakaiki’s Pancake Rocks—limestone rocks that formed layers and were carved by waves. We even noticed some of New Zealand’s awkward, flightless birds, which were rather friendly and no doubt very accustomed to the human hand.

We arrived in Greymouth last night around 9:30pm, and checked in to a very cute and quiet (finally!) hostel called Noah’s Ark. It was previously a convent, and now converted to a backpackers--with animal themed rooms! We stayed in the sheep room, and wonderfully enough they were the black variety; I just love back sheep :o)

**I don’t have any photos from the past few days ready yet, but since this was the first computer I found with a USB port I decided to take it- I will try to have pictures up soon!