Week 33 - Arthur's Pass

This week we hit a bit of a slump. It feels like we are just waiting until we can move into the house next week. Additionally, the weather wasn't that great.

We spent 3 days at Arthur's Pass and wanted to explore the area. Ultimately, we only did one hike because it rained heavily. We didn't see the mountains even once without clouds, and some mountains we probably didn't see at all.

The hike we did was to Avalanche Peak. The 1100 meters in elevation were no problem. The hike didn't have many kilometers, which made it very steep. At times we had to climb up rocks. Going up and down was quite exhausting.

The view was good but was, of course, limited by the clouds. The view of the Devils Punchbowl Waterfall was really beautiful. We visited the waterfall the day before, but the view from the top was even better!

The highlight of the hike, however, were the Keas that we could observe in their natural habitat from the summit.

After rather quiet days at Arthur's Pass, we actually drove to Christchurch on Friday.

Outside of the city, there is a DOC campground at Godley Head, which is free for us due to the pass. Perfect for small outings in and out of the city. We don’t feel pressured to do much since we will be in Christchurch until the end of January.

Our to-do list until then is long, and we have started checking off small tasks and buying things. We will take care of the remaining to-dos during the housesit.

We did the hike over the peninsula today, as it is the nicest weather day we've had in a long time. The sun is quite warm today, but the wind is very cold. Therefore, we couldn't avoid wearing long pants and a jacket today.

We read that summer so far has been about 10 degrees cooler than usual. We hope summer fully arrives soon so we can pack away the jackets for a while.

Now we are looking forward to moving into the housesit, meeting the cat Jake, and a relaxing Christmas.

We wish you reflective holidays surrounded by your loved ones <3