Roller Coaster of Emotions

We've already "ticked off" that we happily reached our Te Araroa endpoint - Sterling Point Bluff on 10.03. Below is our insight into the emotional world of the past few days.

Just over a week ago, we set off for the final stage of the TA from Invercargill to Bluff. It must be said that the walkway creators didn't put much effort into the last few meters. Of the 27km, 15km were on the highway😕. The only motivation was the excitement of reaching the endpoint and the occasional "well done" from passing or jogging Kiwis. After what felt like an endless walk on asphalt, Bluff suddenly came into view. We were very tired and our legs were screaming: Please finish. Since the campground of our next stay was closer than the endpoint, we checked in first and then proceeded to finish with a full sense of accomplishment. First surprise: No staff there and the notice: "Please pay in cash". Feeling frustrated, as we didn't have enough cash on hand. Oh well, we have to go shopping anyway. The ATM will surely donate something. Unfortunately, that wasn't the case. So Susi took a shuttle back to Invercargill the next day to get money. Keep in mind: This is an international walker's endpoint. We were really exhausted, but we still had to finish. And we enjoyed it. What a moment of happiness. The sun was slowly setting, suddenly a cyclist stopped. I offered to take the final photo and we started talking. It was so emotional and touching. He is 70 years old and he cycled from the northernmost to the southernmost point in 4 weeks. We shared our experiences and he couldn't hold back the tears of joy. We thought to ourselves: "These are the special moments in life!" We gave him one of our finisher medals and I exchanged headgear with him, which had accompanied us the whole way. A beautiful memory. The rest of the day was a great feeling of satisfaction.

As the last major highlight of our trip, we had set our sights on Stewart Island. However, there were still a few days left until then. We spent these days resting and going on smaller excursions. Mentally, we were already days ahead when another weather change occurred. In the second-to-last night, there was a fierce storm. The tent and we "shivered". Sleep was impossible. Phew, we survived with a feeling of tiredness. The following day, the same weather conditions. Intense storm and constant rain from all directions. We hid in the common room and occasionally checked on the tent. Suddenly, Susi called me. There was a 1m cut in the tent's "outer skin". The mix of emotions in that moment was too complex. With that, our tent stays were over. Luckily, it happened at the end of our great time here. We then spent our last night before crossing to Stewart Island in a backpacker dorm. Shared room, not exactly romantic. But it didn't matter, we had a roof over our heads and another slightly different, unplanned experience.

Finally, the crossing was scheduled and we could leave Bluff. The sea was very agitated and it felt that way for about an hour. The fast-moving boat created a mix of emotions. At the beginning, a feeling of joy, and gradually a queasy feeling in some of the passengers. We coped well with the rough sea and it felt like a jet boat ride.😁 Oban is the central point of Stewart Island. Allegedly, there are more Kiwis than humans living here and, to anticipate, despite all efforts, we were not able to admire one. Kiwis are nocturnal animals and you need red light and a lot of luck to see one. We are now spending a few more beautiful days here until tomorrow (20.03.18), including a 3-day walk through the beautiful nature and Susi with a wonderful boat trip to the local wildlife. But see for yourself in the attached pictures. It is beautiful here and a worthy conclusion to our wonderful time in New Zealand. Tomorrow we will return to Queenstown as a stopover before reaching Auckland on 23.03.18 to fly back home on 25.03.18. Time until then to relive memories and the corresponding emotions once again. We are so happy and excited to see our family, all of our friends, and our home. We will check in one more time before our departure to our home country.

In the meantime, please chase away winter. Time for spring feelings☺.

Best regards from the

Koewis