So anyway it was hand gliding. I think I left you last time wondering what extreme sport to do in Queenstown which seems such an age ago.
It was great fun swooping around like a giant bird across some beautiful scenery in the south of the South Island, We launched off the Remarkables, a mountain range that was quite frankly remarkable. There are many pictures of me on the flight grinning like a fool, also my nose didn't stop running the entire time so can't wait to see how hilarious I look.
Only had such a short time in Queensland which was a great shame as it's a very cute little town, very compact but loads going on if a little bit of a tourist trap. We managed to meet up with Orlagh and Davey again who we had been in Christchurch and Kaikoura misbehaving with, we also spent time with some more lovely kiwis. They are such a friendly bunch, there is so much less stress and aggression here it seems, maybe it’s all the sheep. We had the best burger ever even better than a TJ’s special (a reference for Leicester people only).
So we set off again the next day in the direction of Fox Glacier, a 500km journey away which we planned to entirely hitch. Hitching is never a problem in NZ but sometimes people aren't going as far as you want them in. Three hours and three friendly kiwis later we were only 150ks down and wondering if we were going to make it in 1 day, we stood on the side of the road in the middle of nowhere with an American guy thumbing every car of which there weren't that many. We got a ride a bit further with 3 kiwis going off for a hunting week, an interesting bunch, as close to Rednecks as you get in NZ
Again we found ourselves in the middle of nowhere and really wondering if we were going to get there, a problem as time was running very short on us. Finally the god of hitching smiled upon us and three English travelers turned up who were going all the way to the glacier. Such sweeties, they had hired a car and it was both their transport and their home for the couple of weeks they were there. It was a little cramped and pongy but great and we promised them food and beer in return for the lift.
Getting to the glacier we found that all the walks were booked up, handily there's another one just down the road so we booked for a walk on that and went down there the next day. It was cold and wet to say the least but wonderful, trekking across the ice with cramp-ons, we passed crevices and caves where the compacted ice is the most perfect blue. I went in the fast group for some bizarre reason and was pretty tired out by the end, ill fitting boots also gave me blisters that have barely healed a week later.
Luckily for us the guys who picked us up were on the way back to Auckland too and we got a lift the whole way. On the way we stopped to see the Punakaki blowholes which were pretty stunning, just seeing how powerful the sea can be is amazing forcing itself up through cracks in the rocks and creating great sprays that shot 30 feet up in the air.
We got back to Auckland safe and sound and even got to chill for a bit, doing some shopping and seeing the people we had met on the way into NZ. Setting off for South America was a little nerve racking, it was made a little easier by going with a girl who we met in NZ who a had a good level of Spanish and meeting her sister there who we also had met and had been there for 2 weeks. We got our first taste of the S.A vibe even on the plane where the Chileans were treating it like a bar standing around with drinks chatting while we Brits plugged into the films and fell asleep.
Well the salsa dancing, pisco sipping portion of the day begins next stay tuned…
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