I didn't take too many photos of our 3 hour ferry crossing, as the pitch and roll made me uncharacteristically seasick and I spent most of the journey breathing deeply and gritting my teeth! However, the Queen Charlotte Islands are just as gorgeous as ever.
Our first stop along the way (other than lunch at our favourite restaurant at Kekerengu) was prompted by a sign that said "seal colony: seals out!" John scrambled down the rocks and got up close and personal with a few of these
friendly (if stinky) fellows. Very impressive!
By late evening, we had wound our way past Christchurch and were headed inland seeking our home for the next week, a self-catering chalet at a place called Stronechrubie in the village of Mount Somers near Ashburton. The day had turned quite cloudy and dusk was approaching, and we were unsure if we had missed the turnoff road, when a break in the clouds lit up Mount Somers like a beacon!
Shortly afterwards we arrived and were cheerfully welcomed by Madeleine Brown, who, with her chef husband Sean, runs this charming accommodation. We also quickly made friends with their lovely dog, named Schrubie, who came pawing at our door early every morning looking for a walk or a game of fetch.
Our week here was filled with pleasant walks in the nearby lily nursery where Cass insisted on gifting us with several stems of fabulous lilies to grace our chalet, sunset views of the surrounding mountains, and hikes to sights in the surrounding park, such as Sharplin Falls.
We also had a fabulous meal in the Stronechrubie restaurant one evening.
John completed a strenuous day climb to the summit of Mount Somers, as his blog has recorded, only to be disappointed by a view completely blocked by cloud!
A highlight for me was a day trip to the site of the filming of the Golden Hall of Rohan, on Mount Sunday. This stony summit was left in the valley when softer surrounding stone was eroded by glacial rivers, and it is truly majestic--a perfect site for Theoden's impressive hall. Nothing is left of the set now, of course, but Frank and John made a determined attempt to climb the outcrop, only to be frustrated by rushing currents in the braided river that crisscrosses the plain surrounding Mount Sunday. We had to settle for looking from afar! In the photo below, you may be able to make out the two intrepid hikers--tiny in the foreground of the close-up shot!
On another day, we went into the city of Christchurch and enjoyed its beautiful cathedral square. If you look closely, you can pick out a local character known simply as "The Wizard: who delivers his own brand of soapbox philosophy several times a day to curious crowds.
Near the end of the week, we took a day trip past Christchurch to the Banks Penninsula and enjoyed the pretty French colonial town of Akaroa. This is an area we'd like to spend a week in next trip!
Leaving the east coast of the South Island behind, we made our way inland. Along the way we were rewarded with clearing skies over Lake Tekapo, brilliant turquoise from the glacial rock flour suspended in its depths. Truly beautiful!
Our next stop was Mount Cook, but the famous heights were obscured by dense cloud. Frank and John completed a hike to the overlook of the tail of the Tasman Glacier (see John's blog), while I watched three good films and perused the artifacts in the new Hillary Alpine Center within The Hermitage (the luxury hotel at the foot of Mount Cook). All the more poignant because of Hillary's recent death--he was truly an amazing man.
We then continued south to Twizel (the site of the filming of the battle of the Pelennor Fields) where we stayed with Lester and Robin in the B & B in their custom-built home. Lester shared photos and memories of his time as one of the horsemen (and occasional orc) during the LOTR filming and gave us the benefit of an insider's experience.
Under still cloudy skies, we pushed on south the next day, Reaching Wanaka (where Frank briefly renewed his acquaintance with the "Warbirds over Wanaka" vintage aircraft exhibits), we decided to enjoy the now-sunny afternoon
by doing a hike up towards Mount Aspiring (the mountain range featured in the opening sequence of The Two Towers). As we travelled the gravel road to the Rob Roy Trail head (fording many small streams along the way!) we noticed that NZ farmers are much more likely to have a bull in the pasture with the cows--here's one splendid specimen of bovine masculinity!
Once at the trail head, I realized that the 3-4 hour hike was probably beyond my short legs, so I waved the guys off and happily set up my pastels to capture some of the incredible scenery, completing two good attempts of the views shown below.
Later that evening, we checked into the B & B at Kanuka Lodge, home of Heather and Graeme. We enjoyed Graeme's knowledge of the area (as a retired geologist) and Heather's wildflower honey and lovely garden, and their collection of original NZ art. They were kind enough to admire my completed pastels, too.
The next day we enjoyed the town of Wanaka and its pretty family beach where a mama duck let me get REALLY close to her little family.
The following morning, just as we were about to check out using our credit card, the power went out, making it impossible for Heather to use her internet banking service! We were turning out our pockets trying to put together enough cash among the three of us to pay for our two nights' lodging when Graeme mentioned that he'd be happy to take a painting as payment! After a bit of negotiation,they graciously accepted the second of my attempts from the previous day, and everyone seemed quite happy with the exchange!
After this satisfactory incident, we drove happily west, crossing over the beautiful L
indis Pass and ending the day in Franz Joseph on the west coast, famous for the nearness of a slowly retreating glacier. It's still summer holiday time here, so the tiny town's accommodation was almost full, but we managed to find a room in a sort of hostel where Frank worked miracles on a two burner hotplate to produce a delicious chicken curry dinner.
Next morning dawned clear and cool, so we decided to make the 1 1/2 hour return trek up to the foot of the glacier. Even I made it across the rock-filled river bed to the towering ice field--very cool (pun intended, of course!).
Feeling very virtuous for our exercise, we continued north along the coast, enjoying the incredible ocean views, and stopped at Hokitika for some jade/blue pearl jewelry shopping, where we found a driftwood sculpture contest happening on the beach. We also checked out Gillespie Beach, where I tried some stone sculpture of my own.
By suppertime we were with our friends Sheila and Barry Grainger (owners of the Foxton Beach bach where we began this trip), who are just settling into their new home in Westport. We had a great visit, a delicious dinner, a restful night's sleep, and a lovely walk on the beach next morning with the Graingers and their dog Charlie, where we watched a huge dredger clearing the harbourmouth.
Our final evening was spent in Nelson after a leisurely drive across the top of the island. We checked into the quite luxurious Rutherford Hotel, as I had a conference call related to work scheduled for 6 am the next morning and needed internet and phone access in the room. Well, our first room (where I had a shower) had no internet access due to (we thought) a faulty wall socket, so they moved us next door (where Frank had a shower) only for us to discover that THIS room also did not seem to have internet and, as John suggested when the first room was out, in fact the whole floor's access was down. So eventually they moved us a third time (sorry, room cleaning staff!) to a room on another floor--the only available room left in the hotel, which was a huge luxury suite with its own kitchenette, three beds, a sofa and a big flat screen TV--at the regular room price! Very nice! My early morning conference call went off without a hitch, and then we headed to Picton for a midday ferry ride back to the North Island.
So, here we are again back in Palmerston North, enjoying John and Jess's beautiful house. We will be staying here until next Wednesday, when we'll end our trip with a few days in Wellington while John attends a web developers' conference. Then it's back to Canada--but we'll ease ourselves back into winter with a week's stay in Vancouver while I attend a conference myself.
Might post one more blog entry before we leave...
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