In Arrowtown on the last day of 2006

Had a lovely day in Arrowtown, starting with a chatty bus driver on the new Connectabus system to Arrowtown.
He dropped me off right on the doorstep of St John's Presbyterian Church in Arrowtown. At the service, I was surprised to meet Belinda from Singapore, who spoke about her life as a missionary in China.
After church it was down to the river for my favorite walk. Had to cut that short though. Went to see the Queen. Good movie. Enjoyed it in the boutique movie house Dorothy Brown in Arrowtown.
A pie from the Arrowtown bakery was a 'must'. Venison pie and chai latte made for a very satisfying lunch.Now I'm going to do some housekeeping and packing and see if I can stay up for the fireworks over Lake Wakatipu at midnight.
The Routeburn day-walk on Friday was quite a wash-out, the company was fun and the return walk was thankfully dry, although the temperature remained stubbornly low. We had started out from Queenstown early, picking up Mike and Sue (Sydney), a Japanese man from Osaka, and a French couple who stayed at the Kinloch Lodge, across the lake from Glenorchy.
We stopped at the Glenorchy Cafe for tea and cake, then proceeded to the start of the track. The rain chose to come down seriously then, and never let up till we reached Routeburn Flats Hut. My rain jacket gave me good protection, but my fanny pack contents, boots, socks, hat were totally soaked, and I was chilled to the bone. Unfortunately, no wood fire was waiting for us at the Flats hut. After lunch, we could see snow at the tops of the mountains from routeburn flats. The rain had stopped, but we had to walk in soggy footwear. Steve, our guide, seemed in a hurry to get back, and I was left far behind. Though I walked fast and steadily, I never caught up with the group till the last swing bridge!
It was even colder yesterday, and fresh snow landed on the tops of the Remarkables again! I sure put all my merino items to good use, and never even once used my T- shirts in all the 3 weeks here. It sure has been a different kind of holiday this year, but a relaxing one, revelling in nature.

Treading on the Milford track at last!

Well, just did about 30mins on it! Went with Ultimate Hikes to do a day walk on the Milford track and was surprised and pleased that the company did not cancel just because I was the only one who signed up for that day! So Hunter, the guide, gave me a private tour...how cool!
It was literally cool too, but I had three layers of Merino on (top and bottom) not to mention fleece vest and rain jacket. So I was armed against the wind as I sat on the boat deck on the 1 hour trip from Te Anau Downs (about in the middle of Lake Te Anau) to the northern end of the lake, where the track begins.
In this gear I also felt protected in the rain that fell incessantly after lunch till the time we reboarded the boat at 5pm. During the walk, Hunter pointed out the native plants and trees as well as the birds. So, it wasn't a brisk walk by any means, but it was also pleasant because of the interesting conversation we had.
Hunter is definitely an outdoors person and has lived in the township of Manapouri for most of his life, sailing,hunting as a business. He then worked for the dept of Conservation (conservation of natural habitat) till he retired. Now he does ad hoc guiding. One amazing story is of going hunting with the owner(?) of Vodka in Russia. The guy flew into Queenstown, helicoptered to Te anau, spent a night in Doubtful Sound, spent a day hunting deer (which he did not shoot because he couldn't see it!) and then flew back to Moscow. (after drinking vodka with Hunter, of course!).
We had lunch at the Glade House, which belongs to Ultimate Hikes. Non-guided walkers have to walk to Clinton Hut on the first day. Lunch was yummy! The accommodation is also is in pristine condition.
The track is very well-maintained, almost manicured compared to other tracks I've been on in NZ and elsewhere. So it was an easy stroll except for the last part where we went part way up to Glade Burn on a stream bed. So that was a rocky clamber.
Being back in Te Anau was a pleasure. I did not get to stay in any of the usual lakeside accommodation that I've stayed in, as I booked rather late. After Christmas, everything gets booked out fast. I took the usual walk on the lakeside. It was nice to see that this has also been up-graded. I haven't exhausted the walks in this area by any means, so I will definitely be back!

Sunshine bay on Christmas Day

Did my quota of walking today. Headed for the Sunshine Bay track, which I have been wanting to complete for some time. It's 10 mins to the "waterfall" (not much of one!) and then another 20 mins to the bay itself. The first part of the walk is the worst for me...uphill. After that it is very enjoyable.
After getting back to town and eating salmon maki (with nice avocado added), I walked towards the Frankton road track, but did not get on it. Planned to do email at Budget comms. but they are closed today, so went in search of dessert. Sure had a whopping one of waffles and chai latte at Patagonia chocolates, a new chocolate place on the lake front...prime site!
Most ethnic restaurants are open today so they are really doing a roaring business. There are enough activities that are working today so things look lively here. That's nice
Went to 10.30pm carol service last night at at Peter's Anglican Church. Place was packed to the gills. Did not stay for communion service, but watched the Christchurch Cathedral service on TV. That was grand. Hope to be there in person one of these Christmases.
My final day at the Rakaia Gorge was as wet as usual, and after checking email in Methven, took a wet drive to Ashburton. I visited the small museum, which also had an art gallery upstairs. Had lunch, bought Thai food for dinner and hurried "home". That night it snowed on Mt Hutt. Lovely sight, but it was time to leave!
The wind followed me on all the roads to Christchurch...even at the airport! I tried to take the Highway 1, but was frightened off by the big trucks and fast cars, so back I went on the country roads, and after a hot choc in familiar old Darfield, Christchurch was an easy 30mins away.
I spent a fun 2 days in Christchurch with cousin Ambrose and Doreen whom I hadn't seen for about 8 years...time does fly! They are now doting grandparents of 2 lovely children: Cedrick (3yrs) and Warni (2years). The children were away at that time. Ambrose cooked a yummy daikon soup (his mum's recipe) and a very fresh fish with sambal sauce. We talked a lot about Ambrose's time spent working in the Malaysian jungles.

a freezing summer vacation in NZ

I'm finally in Queenstown and it is good to see the sun and blue skies after a week of wind, rain...even snow.
I was in Taupo 2 weeks ago, staying at the Taupo Ika Nui timeshare. It was a very comfortable unit and the weather was resonably good there for me to go for walks on the Aratiatia walkway, the Huka falls walkway, the Acacia bay walkway,and the Tongariro river walkway.
I also had a car, so I drove to Orakei thermal area and the "craters of the moon" in the Taupo vicinity.
Also saw the release of water from the Aratiatia dam, and visited the prawn farm nearby for a prawn lunch. They are apparently cultivating Malaysian prawns.
Met some timesharers at the coffee morning at the timeshare, and had dinner with Jan and Ken Dalley, farmers from Cust in Canterbury. It was fascinating to learn of their life on the farm.

I flew to Christchurch via Wellington. The Wellington airport has been refurbished, and the departure area is bright and active with lots of shops and food outlets, not to mention a full view of the tarmac.

A bright red Daihatsu Charade was my rental car from Budget. The 50min drive to the Rakaia Gorge started out to be quite pleasant because it was a quiet Saturday afternoon. Soon I reached the open Canterbury Plains where there were no wind breaks for long stretches. I had a hard, if not horrifying, time controlling the tiny car, which would slalom if I went at more than 80kph, and when large trucks and fast-moving vehicles passed me. I was glad when I finally reached that winding stretch of road that I recognised from last year's trip. I knew my destination was near.

The Mt Hutt Lodge is right on top ot the gorge, of which it has a spectacular view. I gratefully installed myself in the cozy unit and had dinner at the restaurant on site. Butch is the chef there and Jo is the chatty host at the bar.
The weather was just miserable on Sunday, but I drove to Methven, 20 mins away, bought groceries and checked email, talked to keryn at the info office and booked a Tranzalpine trip for Tuesday. Also attended service at the Presbyterian church. The congregation was very warm and welcoming. Stayed indoors for the rest of the day and later chatted with timesharers from Devon. They own at a very good resort in Madeira.
Monday dawned sunny and bright, as promised by the Met office. I dashed out with my leki to walk the Rakaia Gorge walkway. I did about half of the track and got gorgeous views of the gorge from there. I had thought of taking a jet boat ride, but opted for a drive into the High Country sheep farming area instead. After passing Terrace Downs Resort, I headed for Lake Coleridge. It was a relaxing drive (no wind!) driving towards the southern alps. Having read the book West of Windwhistle which was in the unit, I had a good idea of how hard it was to farm in this inhospitable area. But on Tues, it was all smiles. I reached Lake Coleridge Village but saw no sign of the Lake, only the hydro electric station that uses water from the lake to function.
I expected Tuesday to be cloudy, but the whole trip on the Tranzalpine was done in clear bright weather. This was my 3rd time on the train, but it was the first time I was travelling from East to West. I drove to Darfield and waited in the tiny hut which was the "station".My hosts at Mt Hutt Lodge recommended that I get off at Lake Brunner/Moana and I'm glad I did. I had packed a picnic lunch and ate that on the beach. Later I took a walk in the forest and then had tea at the picturesque station cafe.
Well, I guess I had my share of good weather. The rest of the week was downhill all the way.