Chapter 13 New Zealand - South Island

After a night in the hostel in Wellington, we took the ferry to the South Island to Picton. The sea route led through pure nature and ended in a fjord-like bay.

We spent the night at a very windy campsite just a few meters from the beach. One of many durability tests for our second-hand tent.

The next morning we drove to Nelson, a small town in the far north of the New Zealand South Island. There we gathered information for the Abel Tasman National Park. We booked a water taxi, which took us to Onetahuti the next day, because the Abel Tasman National Park can only be explored on foot, by water taxi, or by kayak.

From Onetahuti we started the first stage of our two-day hiking tour. After four hours, 16 km, beautiful bays, and a partly steep trail along the coast, we reached our overnight spot, Totaranui Bay. Fantastic.

The next day, we timed the tide and thus saved a big detour, because at low tide the path led directly through the bay. The beauty of nature did not diminish on the second day and after another 14 km we returned to the car. The heavy luggage caused some back pain for some of us, but what we saw offset that.

If we were still blessed by the weather until here, after the Abel Tasman National Park the familiar weather slap came. The entire west coast was shrouded in a gray, cloudy veil. On the way to Greymouth, the first drizzle set in, but that didn't stop us from taking a quick photo of the Pancake Rocks.

The only reason we stopped in Greymouth was the Super Bowl (THE American football event for every enthusiastic fan and people who like to eat chicken wings). After an entertaining final game, we continued our journey.

The next destination were the Fox Glaciers and the Franz Josef Glaciers. On the way there, the continuous rain started and all the sights, whose highlight was clear, turquoise-blue water, were transformed into muddy, raging rivers. The glaciers also fell through for us and since there was no improvement in the weather, we decided not to waste valuable days and drove towards Wanaka.

Wanaka is a small idyllic town located on Lake Wanaka.

Here we could finally lace up our hiking boots again. Max quickly exchanged his hiking boots for golf shoes and pursued his favorite hobby, while we devoted ourselves to Rob Roy's Peak.

The path to the top of the mountain turned out to be a small challenge. There were 1000 meters of altitude to climb within 8 km. In short, there was a certain incline. But it must also be said that the two sports enthusiasts set a brisk pace. After three hours we reached the summit. Was it worth it? See for yourself.

On the way down, we fell into a light jog due to the incline, which, in addition to the fact that we both urgently needed to go to the toilet, was the reasons for the only one-hour descent.

The next day our Nissan Tiida Latio took us to the backpacker city of Queenstown. A growing city, also located directly on a lake. Here we strolled through the alleys, ate at the famous burger shop 'Ferg Burger', and ended the evening with a game of mini golf.

Next stop: Mount Cook.

The wanderlust struck us again and with the well-known hiking song 'Hiking is the Miller's Joy' on our lips, we tackled the approximately three-hour Hooker Valley Track. The pictures speak for themselves here as well.

The next morning, we had to surrender to the weather. It was simply too cold for our summery camping gear that night, so we set off for Dunedin very early.

In Dunedin, we spent two nights in a hostel. After three weeks without doing laundry, it was urgently needed.

We drove to a viewpoint that offered a good view of the city.

Then we went to Tunnel Beach, hoping to see seals again, without success.

The next highlight was supposed to be the steepest street in the world. And yes, it was a street and it was steep, so the criterion was fully met.

Our last activity was another round of mini golf, in which Max and Louis officially competed against each other. - Jonas played out of competition due to absolute lack of talent.

It started off very evenly. The sun was shining and a last summer breeze blew over the lush green before Louis' shining hour began. Hole after hole he merged more with his 6 iron. With brilliant strokes, Louis even used decorative stones and overcame large obstacles. Some would call it luck, but those who know him know that pure talent springs from his mini golf arm. So he drove Max to despair and in the end, the dismantling was determined.

From Dunedin, the road took us on our last leg to Christchurch.

The city is still marked by the earthquakes and the rebuilding is progressing slowly. However, the shopping street as well as the bars and restaurants at the Riverside Market were definitely convincing.

That is unfortunately the end of the New Zealand chapter. We look back on beautiful nature, many game nights, consistently delicious pasta dishes, beautiful hiking trails and excursions, and 4000 km traveled. We would have liked to stay a few more days in some places, but we think we made the most of the last four weeks.

Max flew to Brisbane this morning and we are on our way to Melbourne, from where we will fly home a day later. Unfortunately, the coronavirus prompted us to rebook our flight and not fly via Hong Kong, where we would have spent three days exploring the city. But we are also really looking forward to coming home. Wanderlust will probably come back later.

We wish you, Max, lots of fun for the rest of your time, enjoy it!

In the next few days, we will write a little summary of our time.

Until then,

Your Louis & Jonas