16th-17th Dec - Day 10-11 - The Way to Manapouri

The next day we left the wild Catlins and headed north towards the fjords. Our destination was Manapouri, the gateway to 'Doubtful Sound', the fjord where our two-day kayak tour would start the next day.

The approximately 3-hour journey there was rainy and unspectacular. We stopped right at the beginning near Cape 'Slope Points', the southernmost point of the New Zealand South Island. From here, it is 5140 km to the Equator and 4803 km to the South Pole, so still quite a long way. There is also a perpetual cold wind whipping through the landscape, which amusingly causes all the trees to grow incredibly crooked in the direction of the wind. Together with some sheep and cows, we enjoyed the green cliffs for the last time before heading north.

Next stop was our favorite supermarket chain 'New World'. Similar to large Real stores in Germany, they have everything you could possibly need. Since our first major shopping trip in Christchurch, we have been bonus customers, which makes our shopping adventures a bit more affordable. Shopping in other countries is always a lot of fun because you can discover the craziest things. Here in New Zealand, our interest is mainly in any 'outdoor food', from freeze-dried main meals like spaghetti bolognese to muesli/energy bars, nut mixes, and porridge, to instant coffee packets with milk powder, everything that provides a lot of energy with little weight and/or can be prepared with just boiling water. This saves weight and extra effort like cooking utensils, spices, and oil, etc. on multi-day trips, and generally saves nerves when cooking in the cold rain. So far, my favorite is definitely small pre-portioned, liquid peanut butter shots that you can just let flow into your mouth between meals, great! But in general, the variety, selection, and quality of outdoor-friendly food in normal supermarkets is very impressive.

But the most fun, as always, are the less sensible products in the supermarket, like sweets, salty snacks, and the beer aisle. New Zealand has a lot to offer in that category as well. There is 'Whittaker's', a really good chocolate brand with large bars and crazy flavors like 'Honey Bubbe Crunch' or 'Japanese Macha with Caramelised Pistachios', also crazy 'Jelly Belly Bean' flavors and really good salt and vinegar chips, and a great craft beer scene, which is so well represented even in regular supermarkets that the selection is difficult. So the normal shopping trip, where you just wanted to get fresh bread and milk, ended after an hour of agonizing choice, as always, with many new crazy products that all want to be tasted.

In the late afternoon, we were already in the Manapouri area, and since the weather there was sunny and warm and we had nothing else planned, we took a short 4-hour part of the 'Kepler Track' over suspension bridges and through a beautiful southern beech forest before checking into our motel and ending the day with burgers and pizza.

------------ Hiking and Wild Camping in New Zealand -----------

The Kepler Track is a 60 km long 3-4 day loop track, which is one of the so-called 'Great Walks'. In total, there are 9 Great Walks in New Zealand, which are considered the most significant hiking trails in the country. They are managed by the 'Department of Conservation (DOC)', a public agency in New Zealand responsible for nature conservation. In general, the Great Walks trails are in better condition than many others in the country but are also overcrowded due to their popularity and therefore subject to certain rules. The 'Huts', which are otherwise freely accessible and mostly have a camping ground, must be booked in advance for the high season from October to April, regardless of whether it is a hut or tent sleeping spot. The booking systems for each season are released in June, and usually all available spots are booked within a few days. This season was no exception, which meant that for our travel planning in October, we had to choose less crowded routes as alternatives.

At this point, the issue of overnight camping in the open with a tent should also be addressed: In the past, it was possible to freely camp with a camper or tent throughout the country. However, thanks to littering, open fires, improper handling of waste, etc. - in other words, due to the thoughtless behavior of (mostly) tourists towards nature - this was severely restricted in 2011 with the 'Freedom Camping Act'. Since then, wild camping is only allowed in designated, few areas, otherwise a fine of 200 NZD (about 120 euros) - 10,000 NZD (about 6,000 euros) may be imposed at the discretion of the authorities. In such cases, it is better to comply with the rules and go to designated camping grounds, which in the most minimalist case offer cold running water and a compost toilet with a waste bin and cost only 6 NZD per person per night, which is really not a financial burden.

However, what unfortunately gets lost in this is the romantic solitude of nature far from any other visitors.