South Island
Jenny 13/7/05
The ferry across was pretty much like a cross channel ferry- not very interesting! But On the South Island it enters through the Marlborough Sounds- making a fifty km journey take 3 hours as it weaves in and out of the fjords. When we arrived in Picton we decided for the first time to brave a cabin in a campsite- and that changed our habits for the rest of the time here- we couldnt believe we hadnt done it before. For less than the price of two dorm beds in a hostel we could get a really nice cabin all to ourselves , sometimes even with a tv or kitchenette! All the campsites have fully equipped kitchens and bathrooms and are generally nicer and less crowded than the hostels (except when theres a Lions tour on of course!) After a good nights sleep we decided to head down the East coast, to Kaikoura- famous for Whale watching. On the way there we stopped at the side of the road and saw a huge seal colony- hundreds of them just sat on the rocks by the side of the road, and just generally marvelled at the scenery which is what makes this place so great! In Kaikoura with much pain in my wallet we did go on an overpriced whale-watching trip- we were actually there during the very limited season so we decided to risk it. Fortunately they did have a lot of success- after only about half an hour they pulled up alongside the first spermwhale as it came up for air and we all watched and snapped away until it finally swooped its tail into the air to dive down. Then we were rushed back to our seats to go to the next one, and the next and the next! They missed the fifth one as it dove back down into the 6km deep water! I as glad wed found them but personally found the whole thing a bit disappointing- the whales themselves wereactually the size of our boat but only a section about 6m long was visible in the water until the tail-flipping money shot. I think perhaps a helicopter flight might have been better as you might have been able to appreciate the size of them as they lurked in the water below you!
The rest of the time we were in Kaikoura we visited the peninsular and climbed up to the lookout where we got our first glimpse of the stunning views that the South Island has to offer-amazing view of snowcapped mountains rising straight out of the sea.
On the advice of some people wed met we avoided the city of Christchurch and only stayed one night before driving out onto the Banks Peninsular- which proved to be a waste of time- especially after the Rough Guide joined up to roads that didnt quite meet and we drove for about 30 kms down a bumpy gravel track only to reach the end of the road- the gate to someones house! and turn around and go back. On the coast down towards Dunedin we stopped for the Moeraki boulders- huge spherical rocks which pepper the beach and sit in the surf- they were originally in the cliffs but left behind after the sea washed the earth away. We didnt think to check the tied tiems and were glad we had gone when we ddi as the tide came in all the way up to the cliffs and we had to stand on a few of the boulders to stay dry!!
Atabout this point we started the quest for the rugby tickets- Mark really wanted to go since the Lions tour was on so we sped up our trip to coincide with the Invercargill game- but the reservations line wasnt working so we just booked a room and decided to try on the gate. As a result we arrived in Dunedin the days after the game there and discovered the dull extent of the Barmy Army! The street were lined with campervans on a scale youve never seen , everyoen was wearing the compulsory red top, and when we found the campsite there was a campervan on every available patch of earth! Luckily many of them left that day but it was a lot busier than it should have been. On very bad advice we deiceded to buy the brewery and cadburys- combo ticket. We went to cadburys first, and after I specifically asked if it was for children I was a bit annoyed at how ridiculously patronising it was- especially given there were only adults in the group!! Luckily it was redeemed by the Speights Brewery tour which was much more interesting and really worthwhile. Mark ended up bloated after I made him drink all my free tasters so I could drive , while I tried the ice cream- which didnt really taste like beer- just sickly sweet caramel.
We arrived in Invercargill on the day of the game, having tried numerous times to book tickets, but their computers were do3wn. Having been assured thta there were tickets available Mark was extremely disappointed when he arrived at the ticket office to find they only had the top price ones avilable. What made it worse was that we wouldnt have bothered going to Invercargill at all except for the rugby, and the campsite wed book was horrible(although cheap) since it had been the only one with room for the night! We ended up going to the cinema to avoid our depressingly dingy room, and leaving promptly in the morning.
The road to Te Anau was very scenic and we stopped a few times buit were thwarted by the rain, especially when we stopped to see some caves which proved to be a series of tunnels which would have been really good if it wasnt for the pool of water inside! Driving alongside Fjordland, we stopped by lakes and mountains and generally gazed at the views and went walking around the lake. The next day we drove up the long road to Milford sound, having declined to pay double for the bus ride there, and stopped at all the interesting sights along the way- mirror lakes reflecting the snow capped mountains and valleys. Finally we stopped at the chasm- a gorge with white water pouring through it. We were just peering over the handrail when we realised that the people next to us were my friend Kate and her husband NAthan, whio were emigrating to Oz but had come to look round NZ first, and they were even staying in our campsite!! Unfortunately we were ina rush before we met them and stopping to talk to them made us late. Worse, as we sped down the road I read for the first time that the car park was a ten minute walk from the ferry terminal where our boat was leaving for. WE drove into the nearest spot and started running, only for mark to realise hed left the wallet in the cr! He ran back and I continued to run, arriving panting in the ferry terminal to beg the woman to let us on. Mark arrived in the nick of time and the two of us continued to sprint down the dock, trying to avoid the patches of ice. WE ran onto the boat and collapsed, only to watch as some more people casually wandered on after us! After wed recovered we settled in to what was a stunning boat trip through the fjords and out to sea- with lush green , snow-capped mountains on all sides, waterfalls running down the cliffs, and huge dolphins swimming along the front of the boat. On the way back we stopped to take a more leisurely look at the chasm and drove slowly back to The campsite where we spent the evening catching up with Kate and Nathan.
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