MTB
Mike has been wanting to go mountain biking for a while now, and Queenstown just happens to have a course with a gondola that takes you up to the top so that you only have to worry about going down. MTB has never really appealed to me because I think the pain that every fall would be very very painful, and for me the end doesn't justify the means, but Mike wanted to go, and he promised me that we would just do the easy track, and we would only go as fast as I was comfortable with.
I should have listened to the guy that we were renting our gear from. He asked if I had ever mountain biked, and I said no. At that point he seemed concerned, but I basically told him that I would be OK. We got all of our gear and rode the gondola up. I think that they need a bunny trail. Once I saw what the easy trail looked like I became nervous. It wasn't the end of the world, because at the worst case I could just walk the bike down the hill, but I knew that I was not going to be enjoying the day. We stopped about 50 feet from the very top, mainly for me to get my bearings, and when I tried getting on the bike (privately renamed "the undertaker" by yours truly) my shorts got caught on the seat and I fell twisting my ankle in the process.
I was very upset because this injury occurred in the very beginning, and I knew how much Mike was looking forward to the day. I was also upset because I wanted to still be able to hike another of the "Great Walks", but I would be lying if I didn't admit that a part of me was relieved that I would not be spending the day trying to conquer my fear. It took us a while to get down, and I actually convinced Mike to continue riding while I sat in a park by the bike rental and Skype'd with my friends. This was my Valentine's day to plan for Mike, and at that point I considered it a fail, but I think it was rescued by a nice dinner, on top of which Mike did enjoy his MTB experience, so we will round that up to success.
The first successful bike ride and hike prep
The next day we moved on to walking long distances. We went down the same track for the same 15 miles and timed ourselves. Our walk took 4.5 hours and would have been more of a success if I didn't wear my running shoes instead of my hiking shoes. My running shoes have open screens in the sole (for breathability) which let dust in when you are walking on an unpaved path. I ended up blistering my feet in a pretty severe way, but we decided that I was ready for our Routeburn multi-day hike and booked it.
Due to the fact that transportation from the end of the track to the beginning is very very expensive, and only one of the two campsites that we needed was available, our plan for Routeburn was as follows:
day 2 - kayak trip around Milford and potentially walk around
day 3 - 5 mile one way hike from Routeburn Shelter to Routeburn Flats campsite
day 4 - 15 mile round trip hike to Lake McKenzie Hut (from the other side)
day 5 - 5 mile one way hike back from the campsite to the shelter
It sounds intense, but we have been kicking ass and taking names, so that's what we decided to do. We left Queenstown the next day after doing some very laid back paddle-boarding. We have gotten significantly better at it and this time no one fell.
The Routeburn day hike
I taped up and stabilized my feet and we started on the hike. I think the rain started falling as soon as we got onto the track, but we were in good spirits, and how long can a rain really fall? I was a little worried about the fact that we only started at non, but armed with the fact that we can walk the distance in 4.5 hours I thought that we would be safe..... dum dum dum
The trail took us through the most mossy forest I have ever been to. It looked like everything was covered in a saggy green carpet! There was round moss, and tree moss, moss on rocks, green moss, white moss, and even red moss (feel free to make the Forrest Gump shrimp parallel here). The rain made everything in the forest look extra bright and the fog lent it an alien planet quality. It was really pretty, but I wished that if wasn't so foggy because I knew that we were missing epic mountain views. There was a summit possibility as a side trip option pretty close to the beginning of the hike, but I nixed it due to the rain, wind, fog, and most importantly - because I wasn't completely sure that I could hike with the ankle and monster blisters for even the 15 miles, not to mention and additional side trip. The two highlights of the hike for me were:
- The insane waterfall we walked by (174 meters tall) - it sprayed mist all over us, but it didn't really matter at that point because we were soaked through our shoes and rain jackets anyway.
- a portion of the trail called "The Orchard" where gnarled trees covered by hanging moss stood in the fog. There was a very calm and surreal quality about the whole place.
The trip turned on me a little when we were about 45 minutes from McKenzie Hut. The rain was getting heavier and my feet were getting really wet. I was fantasizing about getting to the hut, warming up, having some lunch and a little rest out of the rain before having to turn around. That did not happen for several reasons. First of all campers and day hikers are not allowed to use the hut facilities at all. The best that Mike and I got was to sit on a bench by the hut so that we would be covered from the rain while we ate. Not only was there not a dry stitch of clothing on us, but our day backpack was completely soaked as well, so we had no dry clothes to change into. The other problem was that the 8 mile one way trip took us 4 hours! We simply did not have time to rest and enjoy our lunch. I started going back before Mike was even done eating since I was getting cold standing still.
On our way back to the Divide, we were beyond soaked. I would make fists every ten minutes or so to wring water out of my gloves. Every step I took produced a squish sound in my shoes, and I was getting tired, but we still had adventures ahead. On our way in we crossed several small streams carefully stepping on rocks. On our way back the water level and current had increased significantly so that a lot f the rocks we had used before were now submerged. Several times Mike had to find some big rocks on the trail and throw them into streams as stepping stones.
Kayaking at Milford
We could not believe that our tour did not get cancelled because though the rain had stopped by morning, it was cold, windy and foggy, but the show must go on I guess. Our guide waited to get a final all clear on the kayaking and then we all drove over to the dock. We were given all of the gear which included thermals, wetsuit vests, fleeces, windbreakers and spray skirts, we we were no longer worried about being too cold. The wind had also died down by then so we were excited to get started. Once we had all of our gear on we went outside for a quick safety briefing and finally got into the kayaks and away from the evil sand flies that were feasting on us.
We found out some interesting things on the tour. The town of Milford has no cell service, which I guess is not that strange, but they also don't have electricity run to them. They use one of the waterfalls to power the entire town. We also saw a baby seal playing by the shore. Our guide said that the reason the seal was alone is that some male seals get kicked out of the colony when they are young. They stay in Milford Sound eating and getting stronger until they turn 3, at which point they try to fight their way back in. Apparently there are too many male seals, and this is how the colony handles this problem. I guess it's good to be a female seal :)
We were also told that Milford is actually a fjord, not a sound. A fjord is a valley carved by a glacier and hen flooded by the sea or the ocean, a sound is a valley carved by a river and then flooded by the sea or ocean. When Cook saw Milford he named it a sound because there are no fjords in England and he didn't know the difference. Rather than renaming all of the "sounds" in the area the kiwis just left the names as is and named the whole region FIORDLAND. (No I didn't spell that incorrectly, they did)
We had another treat on our tour, because the wind and waves had picked up we rafted the kayaks together and sailed back to shore. When I say sailed what it means is that everyone holds on to everyone else's kayak and the kayak passengers on the sides either hold a rope attached to a sail (if they are in the front position) or tie the rope to their oar and hold the oar up (if they are in the back position). The sailing was a lot of fun, but I got stuck holding the rope and at one point my kayak got separated from the on next to me, I let go of the sail, our kayak went perpendicular to the wave and we turned over.
Thankfully, Mike and I had kayaked in lake Superior before and their safety briefing wasn't a 5 minute speech on what to do. In the good old U.S. of A they actually made us turn over into the freezing water and practice getting the spray skirt off the kayak and getting to the surface from under the boat. I will always be grateful to them for that safety demonstration because when you hit frozen water your mind just goes into shock along with your body, but both Mike and I did exactly what we had to do and we were calm about it. Our guide helped us flip the kayak over and we both managed to get in again. The problem was that our boat was still perpendicular to the waves and water would roll into the kayak faster than we could pump out with the little hand pump that we had.
I guide from a different tour company saw that we were in trouble and also came to help. With his assistance we got parallel with the waves, and closer to the shore so there was less wind. I pumped until muscle failure in both arms, and then the tour guides also took turns pumping water out of my section of the kayak. I think Mike pumped past muscle failure by pumping with his whole entire body, but finally we could float reasonably well and were able to catch up to the rest of our group.
This was going to be the time we would beach at an island and have lunch and hot drinks, and let me tell you, those hot drinks were very welcome. The tour was basically over at this point and all we had to do was just cross the sound again and get back to the dock. Once we did both Mike and I ripped off all of the wet clothes and changed into some wonderful warm and dry clothing. Final pronouncement - kayak trip with a side of adventure = great success. Our guide was more shaken up by our capsize than we were because we were his first sea kayak rescue. Hopefully his next ones will be better :) We were both dead tired so we just headed back to Queenstown for the night.
Routeburn multi-day hiking
DAY 1:Our first day of Routeburn was a cakewalk. Even with backpacks on we can walk the 5 miles in our sleep. It was finally a beautiful day and we took our time looking and the turquoise river rapids and walking over swing bridges. It was a nice easy day and we were happy and relaxed by the time we made it to camp.
The temperature at night dropped to about 5C and it was probably the coldest I have ever been n my life. This is what I wore to bed: t-shirt, ski thermal, fleece, jacket, 2 pairs of thermal tights, sweatpants, 2 pairs of socks, a hat, and some gloves. Just so you don't think it was just me, Mike wore: 2 thermal long sleaves, 2 sweatshirts, windbreaker, thermal tights, sweatpants, 2 pairs of socks, a hat and gloves. Until he went to bed, I thought that I was going to go insane from the cold. We both also covered ourselves completely with the sleeping bag. What made matters worse was that we both had to run to pee several times a night. It as so annoying that I even looked up why we pee more when we are cold.
Apparently the capillaries in our skin constrict from the cold. This makes our blood pressure go up. Our body's way of lowering this heightened blood pressure is to get rid of the excess water through urination. Now you know :)
DAY 2: The day of our big hike was miserable. It was cold, and rainy and there was basically complete cloud coverage. We started hiking, but I was limping pretty badly and only hiked about a half mile before realizing that it was pointless. My blisters were hurting too much and there was no point suffering through such pain. I came back to camp, and told Mike that he could go without me - which he did. The bad ass hiked a hard 19 miles in 8 hours!!!! I was so proud of him. Unfortunately, the weather didn't let up the whole time he was hiking and he came back just as wet as he was on our day hike a couple of days before. I was really mad that my feet and the weather were not cooperating, but what could I do? I decided that I will just play it by ear the next morning (my feet were much better by the time mike came back). Our night was a little warmer this time around, so I felt downright rejuvenated when I woke up to a cloudless day and a much better feeling foot.
DAY 3: I think the weather of the day was every hiker's wild dream. It was a high in the lower 60s, a cloudless sky,and plenty of sunshine. Mike and I decided that we would climb up to Harris Saddle (the highest point of the whole track and then see how I feel. We could go around the side and look down on Lake McKenzie or do a more technical climb to Conical Hill which opens up amazing views of the area.
Mike warned me that the hike would be "interesting". I realize now, that what he means when he says "interesting" is very steep grade, and a path where you climb rocks, sometimes very steep ones. The hike up to the saddle was HARD. I'm glad that we saved this hike for last, because by the time all was said and done I was really tired. I can't believe that the climb up to the saddle was only 2.5 hours because it sure felt like 4. Thankfully, due to the weather we had some great views, especially in places where hiking was the toughest. At a point a vista of a deep blue lake surrounded by mountains opens up to the side of you. Just picture cloudless skies, sunshine, a very very deep, blue mountain lake, and mountains all around.
We took a break at the saddle and had a quick snack to get more strength for the climb up to Conical Hill. It's a good thing that we ate, because that climb couldn't be very far, but took us an hour. The grade was very steep and I honestly could not imagine a view that would make it worth while. I am very glad to report that I was very very wrong. As you finally make it up to the top a view that is nothing short of miraculous opens up to you. I saw snow covered peaks standing against a clear blue sky, valleys flooded by the deep blue waters o mountain lakes, and off in the distance so far that you almost cant see it, a faint line of the ocean. We sat in silence at the highest point looking out at the view and just taking in that calm, peaceful beauty...
...Until a couple of Israeli guys came along, let out a victory battle cry and turned on music.... But we still had our moment :)
I think the climb down must have taken us about as long as the climb up, because it was relatively technical. Mike was trying to teach me where to place my feet so that I wouldn't slide down or fall, and he said I picked it up pretty quickly. We made it back to camp at around 7, but we still had to pack up and get out of there, so we got to work immediately.
Before we left we spoke to the hut warden, who was the coolest warden we have met in all of the parks yet. He told us of a place we could camp on the way back (technically illegal) and wished us all the best. We had chatted with him in the past and he told Mike a bunch of interesting things. Apparently there is a place on the south island called gemstone beach where lots of gold, jade, and gemstones wash up. There are farmers in the area who go digging there to supplement their income in the winter by 20-30 grand. I wish we had time to visit it (although I doubt we would find anything more than a trinket, if that)
Our final descent to the car park was pretty quick, but it bordered on"death march" for me. Even tough Mike took almost everything out of my pack, I was tired and toward the end there, in the dusk, with the pebble road was close to hallucinating. We must have been back to the car a little after 9 with a total of 15 miles hiked that day in roughly 9 hours (if you take an hour out for all breaks). I was happy that we had some easy days ahead of us. We celebrated our hike completion with burgers and beers, and passed out.
Christchurch
It must have been a very beautiful city before the earthquake of 2011. We got in to town pretty late so we didn't get to explore until the following day, but even Mike thinks that one day was enough. Nothing has been rebuilt, but everything is fenced and structurally supported so it has become a city of scaffolding in my mind. I did not see a single historic building that was whole. There are whole city blocks where the buildings are ruined and abandoned.
Since we were only staying for one day, Mike and I picked a river walk that started at the Botanic Gardens were e actually made me stop and smell the roses (in the rose garden). The rose garden was surrounded by dahlias which I also found very beautiful, although not particularly beautiful smelling. Outside of the Garden, my favorite part of the walk was Cathedral Square where there were pant and flower sculptures of different animals.
The other part of the walk that was really cool was re:START. Basically since a lot f businesses lost their permanent locations in the earthquake, there was a project where shipping containers were brought in and modified with glass outer panels and painted in bright colors to serve as the new boutique locations. This spans a city block and looks very cool.
I was walking by a lingerie store and saw one of the mannequins in a sexy bra supposedly breastfeeding. Apparently there is a line of underwear that looks very sexy that makes maternity and nursing lingerie. I was even more surprised that the website is a .com not a .co.nz but there are only 2 locations in the US here the product is sold outside of amazon... The company is called Hotmilk, and I have a question to all of my friend who are moms, is it a problem finding cute stuff when you are nursing? Why are there physical stores in Canada, NZ, Australia, and the UK, but not really the US?
I will leave you guys to ponder this. We have now made it back to the north island and are in Wellington. The plan is to stay a couple of days and then to start making our way up north to Auckland. Goodbye south island!
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