28.12.18 Chasing the Sheep Thief over McKenzie Pass

Friday 28.12.18

It was so cold at night that I needed the fleece blanket again after a long time. When I wake up at 7.30am, it is 9.5°C in the camper. By the time I leave at 9.30am, it's already 15°C outside and the sun is shining. I quickly drive to Twizel for some shopping. I need groceries and now I also need to plan strategically as I only have 5 days left and don't need large supplies anymore. I search in vain for the post office, there used to be one here 5 years ago. It's already 17°C and people are sitting happily on benches and grass, enjoying coffee. I stroll through a few shops before heading towards Tekapo. It's the same route as yesterday, but today it's bright outside. At Lake Pukaki, I follow the road along the right bank, where you have a stunning panorama of Aoraki and Lake Pukaki amidst blue flowers. I can't count how many pictures I have of these two natural beauties... The color of the lake constantly changes from gray to green to turquoise and back with the sunlight and clouds. Along SH8 towards Tekapo, there are massive fields of lupins. It's a dreamy and colorful sight, although the New Zealanders don't appreciate these introduced plants as they are displacing native species.

Tekapo is bustling. I get stamps, an ice cream, and a few socks and a red woolen shirt from the store where I always buy woolen items. You could say I'm becoming a regular customer. Many shops here now have Chinese signs and there are many Chinese or Japanese employees. The number of Asian tourists seems to be larger than that of the rest. Since these people like to travel in tour groups, the bus park between the new shopping center and the old block of shops is full of tour buses. This has become the bus station, where the intercity buses also stop, which is why there are tons of backpackers hanging around and the toilet building is surrounded by endless queues of people. I refuel in Tekapo and leave this tourist magnet at 2.10pm towards Burke's Pass. Before reaching Burke's Pass, which offers a spectacular view of Lake Tekapo and the snow-capped peaks of the Southern Alps when coming from the east on the highway, I want to turn inland to drive to the McKenzie Pass from there. This is one of the pass roads that I wanted to drive on the South Island and had already planned differently, but didn't attempt due to the wet weather. Without my GPS, I would have missed the turn onto Haldon Road to the right at some point. Because this route over the pass is not signposted. It's a backcountry road, mostly gravel, and therefore rarely an option for tourists. Shortly after leaving SH8, I am surrounded by silence. Just the wind, the rustling in the grass, an endless expanse - and me. I could stand here and marvel forever, but I am on a road after all, even though there really isn't a car here. I want to continue anyway, because for now, I'm just on a road that leads to McKenzie. After about 20km on Haldon Road, I turn left onto Mackenzie Pass Road, which looks quite rough, but I'm here now and wanted to drive this route, so I won't have any doubts and start driving. The camper rattles and clatters, and once again, I wonder if I'll have any dishes left tonight.

The story of John Mackenzie, after whom this road and the subsequent pass are named, is actually funny and typically New Zealand. James Mackenzie was actually a sheep thief who managed to steal about 1000 sheep from various herds in 1855. Among them was a very noticeable sheep, and its owner sent people to search for it and the rest of his flock. On his way, he was caught when he was discovered here in the Waikato Plains amidst these animals. He claimed that he was acting on orders and was supposed to take the sheep to Otago. They didn't believe him, they detained him, he escaped and ran 160km to Lyttelton (near Christchurch), where he was arrested again and sentenced to 5 years of hard labor. He escaped from his work group twice within the first few weeks, which was involved in road construction, each time for a few days. He was constantly recaptured, and after just half a year in custody, a court found that there were mistakes in the investigation by the police and in the trial against Mackenzie, and acquitted him. Undoubtedly, he was a scoundrel and he had a huge amount of luck. Somehow, the New Zealanders seem to have taken him to their hearts for that. The Mackenzie Pass became a well-used route through the plains and mountains of Waikato, not least because of him.

There are not as many sheep here today, although you can still see some on the slopes. The road is quite narrow at times, with tight curves - but I only encounter two cars coming from the opposite direction. The weather is fantastic and I take a short break at the top of the pass, enjoying the view of the endless plain on one side and the gentle hills covered in lush green and yellow buttercups on the other side.

I now drive down the steep gravel road in its curves and pray that no one is coming towards me, as I have to drive on the hillside now and - as long as no one is coming towards me - I can take it a bit more generously. Due to the many blind curves, it's always a bit nerve-wracking, so I drive slowly and attentively, constantly applying the brakes and feeling the ground under my feet getting hot again. This car...!! I stop somewhere and film the constant "baaah!" of the sheep. One minute of audio from New Zealand.

The road ends for me in Albury. I could have continued further south somewhere, but that would have taken me away from my general direction of north-northeast, so now I head towards Albury. I turn north behind the town and reach Fairlie around 5.00pm. A small, cute town with a small campground. It's okay for $25. I park on a patch of grass, take out my table and chairs, and quickly start a load of laundry as it's still early in the day. After 2 weeks, I need to wash my fleece jackets and a few pants. I've been sleeping in one of the fleece jackets in the cold nights, but I'll wear them again on the return flight. Since there is no clothesline, I spread the clothes on the grass around my camper, hang some on hangers on the side mirrors in the wind. I sit in the sun for a while until it disappears behind the tall pine trees. Actually, a few mosquitoes still bite me here and there, and eventually, after a meager dinner, I retreat into the camper.