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Keegan and Lisa
Keegan and Lisa

Keegan and Lisa

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  • Keegan and LisaAn NZ Odyssey by Lisa & KeeganReiziger

    Dunedin

    21 april 2019, Nieuw-Zeeland ⋅ ☁️ 12 °C

    We traded in my parents campervan for a little car and headed out to the east coast for the week. We booked an Airbnb (that's enough campervanning for a lifetime) in Port Chalmers, a small suburb and the main port for the city of Dunedin. This would be our base camp for the next week to explore the area. Besides sightseeing, we had a few things planned for our week including a rugby match, biking, surfing, and some birthday celebrations. But for myself, and really Keegan and my parents, the priority was finding penguins! Since we had come up short on our trip to Steward Island, I was really hoping we’d get lucky this time!

    Dunedin is home to the Highlander’s Rugby team of the Super League and our timing worked out so we could take in a home game. Keegan loves rugby and used to play back in his high school/Lethbridge days so it’s a familiar sport to him. Its not the easiest sport to pick up but at this point in our trip, I have watched enough on TV to have a good idea of what’s going on the majority of the time. My parents on the other hand, had no idea! And if it wasn’t for Keegan asking my mom about half way through the match if they knew what was going on, they probably would of sat there smiling and cheering with the crowd. Keegan was able to do some explaining for the 2nd half so I think they understood just a little bit more. My parents watched me play field hockey for years and I’m not sure they ever really understood the game, so they are basically used to it!

    Keegan and I managed to sneak away and get in a couple mountain bike rides in the hills between Port Chalmers and Dunedin. The trails were wet but pretty fun and offered some great views of the city, Otago Harbour and Otago Peninsula. Dunedin also has some beautiful surfing beaches right in the city and Keegan was able to get out a couple days while my parents and I watched. The water is getting pretty chilly now so wet suits and booties are a must!

    It was great to be there this year to celebrate my mom’s 57th birthday (which also happened to be Easter this year). For her birthday, we went over to check out the Otago Peninsula which was right across the bay from Port Chalmers. It is home to the Larnach Castle, the one and only official castle in NZ. The Castle was originally built in 1874 by William Larnach who was an entrepreneur, politician, and alcoholic back in the day. We learned he had a pretty messed up family history and he eventually died by suicide in NZ parliament building. The castle was eventually bought by the Barker family in 1967 who lived there and spent time restoring as much as possible. It’s now a tourist attraction where they charge you a ridiculous amount to check it out. The Castle is pretty cool and has some amazing gardens that surround it but I’m not sure I’d spend the money. Thanks mom and dad for fronting the cash;).

    From there, we went out to the tip of the Peninsula to start our search for penguins! This area is home to little blue penguins so we thought maybe we’d find them there. We were a bit early to catch the penguins coming in for the evening and learned for a fee, we can come back another day and have a tour where you can be up close watching them come in from the sea for the night. The goal is always to see them in the wild but we figured this would be a solid back up plan if we were unsuccessful over the next couple of days at other places. We did get to see an Albatross there which was pretty neat. Basically a giant seagull with a 3 meter wingspan. We headed back to the house to make a yummy Easter dinner and have some homemade birthday cake! Cured ham, like we are used to having on Easter is not the same in NZ, it is really just a pork roast, but great non the less.

    In doing some research of the area my dad thought it would be cool to check out these Meoraki Boulders that he saw in a picture which was about an hour North up the coast. They were a bit of a drive but also right next to the largest breeding area for yellow-eyed penguins so we make a day trip out of it. Turns out these boulders are a big tourist attraction so it was alot busier than expected. These boulders are right on the beach and unique because of their weirdy perfect spherical shape that come out of no where. They are pretty random and perfect for a little parkour practice.

    From there, we took a short drive out to the Katiki Point Lighthouse. This is the most significant breeding site for yellow-eyed penguins in North Otago. These little guys are native to NZ and as you can guess, have a strip of yellow running across their eyes, and grow to 70 cm in heights. This was my absolutely favourite day because we finally saw penguins!! Seeing one penguin was awesome but watching them as a pair was pretty special, I could honestly watch them for hours! Initially one little penguin popped up on the beach and looked as though he was searching for something or someone. After waddling up the hill, his partner eventually hopped out of the water and he quickly waddled back down until he was right next to her, pointed his beak straight up in the air and gave out a call. It was the best!    Meer informatie

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  • Keegan and LisaAn NZ Odyssey by Lisa & KeeganReiziger

    Stewart and Ulva Islands

    17 april 2019, Nieuw-Zeeland ⋅ ☀️ 11 °C

    I had been hankering for a solo trip for a while (nothing against Lisa, see Kaimanawa Forest Park post/ Day 70) and had been looking into a three day adventure in the south part of of the south island. I hadn’t found anything that got me excited, until the day we went to Milford Sound I woke up with an idea. I was going to take the car, head down to Bluff, take the ferry to Stewart Island, and hike for three days, while Lisa would continue on with her parents from Milford Sound to or next planned destination, Dunedin.

    There was a giant problem with my plan, Lisa would hate me, because even though we had decided going to Stewart Island just was not that feasible, she still really wanted to go. Which is pretty much how it went down, or at least she just threatened to hate me, especially if I were to see either a penguin, or a kiwi in the wild. I told Lisa that she should just come with me and abandon her parents in this strange foreign land for a few days. She was about to tell me off, as she was excited to hang out with here parents for the first time in almost a year, when her mom interjected with: “yeah, you should go with Keegan, you will have fun, and so will we”. Problem solved, thanks Elizabeth.

    The next morning, Lisa and I were off to catch a ferry some +3 hours south of Milford Sound. The weather was great and the water was smooth as glass, which according to the staff was very rare. The ferry took just over an hour, and was foggy and uneventful. Stewart Island however is a different story. Stewart Island is the 3rd largest inhabited island in New Zealand, which isn’t really saying that much, as it only has about 10km of road and around 500 permanent residence, most in the quaint and green town of Oban (where the ferry lands). Its quirky, and reminds me of a small east coast Canadian town.

    Most of the island is a mountainous forested mud-fest with very few marked hiking trails passing through the interior. We didn’t stay in Oban long enough to enjoy the small pubs and brightly colored houses of Oban lining the rocky coast because we had 18 km of potentially super muddy hiking ahead of us with only 5 hours of sunlight. Or plan was to hike a 3 day out an back on one of the three marked trails on the island, The North West Circuit, a 10 day 125 km trail travelling the Northernmost coast line of the island. We would start just outside Oban and hike to the Bungeree Hut, stay two nights, and hike back.

    The hiking was beautiful and wasn’t that muddy, although very undulating. The track past through lush ferns, winding through giant 3+ m wide rimu trees (coniferous native to NZ), and occasionally peaking out of the forest for panoramic views of the deserted beaches and the ocean. We reached the Bungaree Hut with enough time to drink a wine and enjoy the setting sun next to a golden sandy beach.

    The next day Lisa and I continued onward down the North Western Circuit to Murray Beach, a 2 km long picturesque beach that we were all but guaranteed to have to ourselves. We spent the afternoon playing in the sand, and visiting with a father son duo of hunters camped out in the area. This was a really interesting experience because we really got the lay of the land on hunting from them. They explained to us the highs and lows of the manufactured hobby of hunting in NZ. I say manufactured because it literally is. Kiwis (people of NZ, I talk about the birds in this post too) hunt wild bore, beer, and feral goats, which were introduced for the sole purpose of hunting. While the Department of Conservation tries so hard to eradicate them, as they are considered pests (completely destructive to native plants and there inhabitants), hunters have (self) managed to keep and maintain a small population of deer. Other pests are a different story, they are just very invasive to the point of being unmanageable. No hunting tags are necessary, and any deer even fauns are fair game, which is pretty different from back home. The two hunters were very friendly, and we ended up chatting whit them for over 2 hours.

    The next day, we hiked the 18 km back into Oban, grabbed a room in the hostel, dumped our bags and ran off to catch another ferry to the uninhabited Ulva Island just off the coast of Stewart Island. Ulva Island is renowned as a pest-free bird sanctuary. Now would be a good time to mention that pretty much all awesome native birds in NZ like the kiwi, kea (mountain parrot), kaka (another cool parrot) and the kakariki (cockatoo) are going extinct, thanks to introduced pests like deer, rats, possums, and stotes. So a pest-free island meant our best opportunity to see rare native birds like the kiwi (they are actually diurnal on Ulva so we don’t have to trouble ourselves with loosing sleep), kaka, and kakariki. There are about 6 km of hiking trails on the island meandering through native rimu and fern forests, of which we hiked most of them. Although we never saw a kiwi, we did see several friendly kakas and a kakariki. I think i can say we have become shameless birders in New Zealand.

    That evening we went to a pub on the wharf for a few drinks, fish and chips, and a burger to sooth or bodies from 24 km of walking. The pub was old, authentic, full of locals, and had really cheap beer (like the cheapest beer we ever found at a drinking establishment in NZ), so we had a great time. We slept well that night. The next day we woke up early to catch a ferry back to the South Island. The morning was beautiful and we got to watch the sun rise over the boat-filled harbour. While waiting to board the ferry a 10 ft (best guess) long seven gill shark swam under the dock, which was pretty sweet. Once again the strait separating the South Island and Stewart Island was calm, making for smooth sailing.

    We had heard mixed things about Stewart Island. Some said its an epic untamed place which will make you feel as immersed in nature as any place in NZ. Others said take it or leave it, its cold, rains a lot, and their isn’t much to do. Lisa and took the opinion of the former having really enjoyed every part. It was authentic, and wasn’t tourist filled like so many other places in NZ. Oh, we were also incredibly lucky with the weather, which would definitely make all all the difference in the world, and so do rare bird sightings.    Meer informatie

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  • Keegan and LisaAn NZ Odyssey by Lisa & KeeganReiziger

    Milford Sound

    15 april 2019, Nieuw-Zeeland ⋅ ☀️ 16 °C

    Next up, Milford Sound! Located in Fiordland National Park, in the southwest of the south island, it is known for towering peaks and waterfalls. Milford Sound is not actually a sound, its a fiord. Sound’s are formed when a river valley is flooded by the sea, whereas fiords, like Milford Sound are carved out by erosion from ancient glacial ice. Its also one of the wettest places on earth where it gets an average annual rainfall of 6800mm and rains 182 days of the year. Although beautiful to visit rain or shine, we were welcomed with a warm sunny day. It’s the most popular place to visit in NZ for tourists and, although, its the off season, we were still expecting a busy day!

    We camped the night before in the town of Lumsden, which is about a 3 hour drive to Milford Sound requiring a long winding morning drive through the center of the south island. It was recommended that we take a boat tour, as it is probably the best way to see all of the sound. We picked a later afternoon boat trip so we could be out there for sunset. The drive out there is incredibly scenic! You drive past farmland, lakes, towering mountains and native forest. Before heading down a crazy windy and narrow road to the sounds you pass through a 1.2km tunnel through solid rock which was pretty neat. Before this tunnel was built there was no road access and it took them 19 years to build. I’m pretty sure my dad thought he was going to die on these roads, although Keegan and I had a great time haha.

    Once you arrive at Milford sound you basically have a few options, look at the fiord from land, kayak or boat. There isn’t really a town there, just a tourist centre and a shit ton of buses and campervans. There are also about 10 boat companies to pick from which are all lined up on the water waiting for you. We went with Mitre Peak cruises; they were the last boat to get out on the water for the day and the smallest of the bunch. There were only about 10 people on the cruise with us which was really amazing because it felt like we had the area to ourselves. What a magical place to see! Besides incredible mountain views and waterfalls, milford sound is also home to some pretty cool wildlife. At the opening of the inlet to the sea, we got to hang out with a large pond of dolphins which was definitely a highlight for me!    Meer informatie

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  • Keegan and LisaAn NZ Odyssey by Lisa & KeeganReiziger

    Alexandra

    13 april 2019, Nieuw-Zeeland ⋅ ☀️ 13 °C

    After our short adventures in Mount Cook, the four of us (Lisa, Rene, Elizabeth and I) headed off to the town of Alexandra in Central Otago for a few days. Our reason for going to this town was a recommendation from our friends John and Diane in Wanaka, and it also was the starting point of the Central Otago Rail Trail, a trail in which we had plans to ride. Surrounded by semi-arid rocky badlands, the town is nestled in the forested Clutha River valley, providing stunning contrast, and a ton of biking opportunities.

    We set up camp at a campground in town, where we almost had the entire place to ourselves, including a weird prison like kitchen/bathroom complex. Lisa and her parents relaxed, while I decided to go for a bike ride up out of the valley to a rocky outcrop on which a giant town clock sat. I was pleased to see that behind the clock was a set of trails weaving between giant rocks to the valley floor, presumably built for bikers, which were not on my mountain bike trail app. I picked one on a whim and it turned out to be awesome. As soon as the sun went down it got real cold!

    The next day we rented a couple E-bikes for the parents, and bike ride “the best” section of the 150km long Otago Rail Trail, an old railway line which once serviced the gold rush, and has since been turned into a multiuse pathway. Rene and Elizabeth got to experience a kiwi level of trust, when the bike rental company (a farmer on his own farm) refused the taking of one of money, or their passports, or any form of identification. They were surprised, but amused. The section runs 17 km from the small town of Omakau over a range of weathered rocky hills to the Auripo Valley.

    The slow climb up into the range was very enjoyable, as it passed agricultural land, wetlands, and boulder fields, then went through a series of tunnels and over several historic viaducts, all while surrounded by snowy mountain ranges. The parents were having a blast on the E-bikes, and Lisa and I had to convince them that we had in fact, reached the 17km turn around point. We ripped back down the trail, took a quick stop at a cafe along the trail, and eventually made it back to the vehicle. Lisa and I did get to try the E-bikes, and admittedly, found them much more fun then our own stupid push bikes.

    Before returning the bikes to the rental farm, we decided to head up the road to St. Bathan’s which is practically a ghost town aside from a few local farmers, and a functioning bar called the Vulcan Hotel. The bar and its name (my birthplace) were really the reasons for our side trip. The bar was basically a smaller version of the Vulcan Hotel in Vulcan Alberta; country music, pool table, a surly bunch in cowboy hats lining the bar, same, same. We learned it’s name came from the owner of the bar previously occupying the property, who upon retiring, refused to sell it or leave it to someone else, and instead burned it to the ground and tried to collect tax money. The owner of the succeeding bar named it after the roman god of fire for obvious reasons. The town also sat adjacent to a picturesque lake named the Blue Lake. The Four of us wandered around the lake taking pictures and enjoying the blue sky, before finally succumbing to the need for cold beer next to a hot raging fire (in a fire place) in the Vulcan Hotel.

    The next day, Lisa and I got back our bikes and rode a few trails off of flat top hill, a protected area just 10 km south of the city while Rene and Elizabeth checked out Alexandra. Our trail selection was recommended to us from our Christchurch friends Sarah and Jenny, which included climbing a trail called purple haze to the top of the hill, riding down, then up The Sphinx Track, and returning to our car on Black and Blue. The area was devoid of trees and had some really awesome rock features which, were incorporated into the bike tracks. The top of the hill provided great views of the crystal-blue Clutha below, the mars-like rocky hills beyond, and the snowy Old Man Range immediately to our west. The trails were very well built, and made great use of rocky landscape. Lisa and I placed Alexandra, largely because of its bike trails and proximity to the mountains, and ocean, in our top 5 places to live in NZ. We also both placed the Sphinx track in our top 5 bike tracks in NZ, so that was cool.    Meer informatie

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  • Keegan and LisaAn NZ Odyssey by Lisa & KeeganReiziger

    Omarama Clay Cliffs

    12 april 2019, Nieuw-Zeeland ⋅ ⛅ 11 °C

    On route to our next destination, Alexandra, the four of us (Lisa, Rene, Elizabeth, and myself) stopped at point of interest just off of Highway 8 called the Clay Cliffs. The Omarama Clay Cliffs are on private land, and you are asked to pay a $5 dollar donation on arrival. The cliffs themselves are towering clay / gravel spires lining over a cliff edge over open dry flat land. Steep ravines weave through the spires, and rosehip bushes up onto the cliffs above. Perfect place to eat lunch and spend an hour exploring.Meer informatie

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  • Keegan and LisaAn NZ Odyssey by Lisa & KeeganReiziger
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    Mount Cook

    11 april 2019, Nieuw-Zeeland ⋅ ☁️ 11 °C

    With Rene, Elizabeth, and their rented campervan in tow, we headed off Highway 8, connecting Wanaka to Tekapo, onto a road which skirts the side of the emerald blue Lake Pukaki to Mount Cook. If you google New Zealand, chances are that one of the first pictures shown is of this stretch of road, with Mount Cook in the background. This road in itself is a very popular tourist destination, as many people come just to take the very same picture of the road, Mount Cook, and Lake Pukaki. It is also very common to see Chinese newly wed couples standing in the middle of the road in full wedding attire begrudgingly moving to the side for parades of rented campervans. I think this behaviour is somewhat justified, the lake is just as blue as Lake Louise, and the mountain range are the largest, and probably the most dramatic in New Zealand. But the highlight is truly Mount Cook, or Aoraki as it is known to the Maori. Unfortunately, our view of all but the hordes off campervans was obscured by the rain.

    While Mount Cook is tall by any standards, at 3700m, it is truly remarkable because of it’s snow jagged nature and provenience. Also, it is accredited as the mountain in which Sir Edmund Hilary (Kiwi, and along with Tenzing Norgay was one of the first people to climb Mount Everest) cut his teeth climbing. As tribute The Sir Edmund Hillary Alpine Centre was set up near an existing hotel to showcase his achievements, the surrounding area, and mountaineering in general.

    Our initial plan was to spend a few days in the area, take some pictures, go for a few hikes, and stop at the Alpine Centre. Unfortunately, our plans were changed due to the weather, so we decided to hideout in the Alpine Centre until the rain let up. The centre was really interesting. I think what blew my mind the most was just how ordinary Edmund Hilary was, like everyone has an uncle with his personality ordinary. Except for his unquestionably insane sense of adventure, I guess.

    The rain did eventually let up, the skies partially cleared, and we were finally granted a view of Mount Cook. Framed by clouds, it was surreal. I could also probably attribute that to herd mentality, as everyone had stopped whatever they were doing to get unreasonably excited and take pictures. We headed off to nearby campground, set up our tent, and got in a short hike up to a view point of the mountain range. We returned to the Alpine Centre that evening to watch a movie on Alpine Search and Rescue in the area. Just watching it was traumatizing, I don’t think I could save alpine climbers for a living. We returned to the campground and tried or best not to freeze, as it nearly dropped below freezing, something Lisa and I have not experienced in over a year.

    Mount Cook area was very beautiful, and should definitely be a stop on anyone's trip regardless of activity preference. The hiking opportunities, and even biking opportunities in the area are suited to one of the most dramatic places in NZ. Oh, and bring your wedding dress if got one, you’ll fit in.    Meer informatie

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  • Keegan and LisaAn NZ Odyssey by Lisa & KeeganReiziger

    Mt Somers hut trip

    8 april 2019, Nieuw-Zeeland ⋅ ☀️ 12 °C

    Once we got back from Fiji, it was time to start our NZ adventure with my parents. I had done a bit of preplanning to get an idea of what they wanted to do. They were not very helpful haha... but they did say they wanted to do an overnight hike so we figured a hut trip was a perfect idea!
    I picked a hut along Mount Somers track called the Pinnacles hut. This was just south of Mt. Hutt area, about 1.5 hours away from Christchurch. The trail was rated intermediate and was described as an ‘easy overnight tramp suitable for children’ and was about 6km from the car park. I knew there was a bit of a steep start but then mostly a walk along the river with a gradual climb back up to the hut. Sounded like a perfect option for my parents; not too long, not too hard.
    We spent the evening getting organized and packing. My parents were in charge of carrying their clothes and lunches for the day and Keegan and I managed the rest of the food and camping gear. It had recently rained but the weather was looking perfect for a couple days of hiking - sunny and highs of 16 degrees. As promised the trail started out with a steady uphill. About 30 mins in both Keegan and I started to have some doubts haha, this was a very steep start, with a lot of tricky roots to climb over and big awkward steps. Both my parents seemed happy for now and I kept thinking its just a tough start and then it will be nice easy walking until the hut. Well... it never really got easy but it was definitely a classic kiwi hut trip which I’m glad they got to experience! A classic hut trip (that isn’t a great walk) generally means a lot of ups and downs, minimal switchbacks, challenging walking terrain with roots and rocks, several tricky river crossings, walking through native bush, and stunning views. Needless to say this was a lot harder than expected and I’m pretty sure both my mom and dad thought were were trying to kill them, but they crushed it!
    They finished the 2 days exhausted with a few new bumps and bruises but feeling pretty proud of themselves:). Dad said it was the hardest hike he had ever done!
    I’d say we were off to a great start to our NZ adventure.    Meer informatie

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  • Keegan and LisaAn NZ Odyssey by Lisa & KeeganReiziger
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    Arrival of the Jolicoeurs and Fiji

    1 april 2019, Fiji ⋅ ⛅ 30 °C

    Lisa’s parents, Elizabeth and Rene, arrived in Christchurch on March 31st in the late morning. Even though they had the opportunity to take it easy and get over the 19+ hours of transit time they were ready to sight see. The four of use headed to Akaroa on Banks Peninsula, just under an hour from Christchurch where we hiked a short trail along the ocean and went for lunch. For the parents, this seemed like a good introduction to NZ as it encompassed the rolling green hills, beautiful coastline, and under flavoured food and beer. That night we stayed in a hotel in Christchurch where we ate Thai takeaway and relaxed. The next day we jumped on a 3ish hour flight to Fiji.

    Now Fiji has been one of the cooler places Lisa and I have been to on the trip, and we probably would not have gone had it not been for the visit of Elizabeth and Rene, who both had there sights set on Fiji as a dream destination since they were young adults. While we had all been to other tropical islands before, Fiji as a concept stood out as having extremely blue water sheltered by coral reef, constant perfect weather, and people made so wonderful through isolation and coconut tree climbing that we would virtually explode from vicariousness. Which was surprisingly not far from the truth.

     We stayed in a very small RCI resort, sandwiched between a mega resort and a residential area, bought with Rene and Elizabeth’s timeshare points which was located along the coast on the south side of the main island between Nadi and Suva. The facility had a restaurant (which threw the occasional evening lovo; an underground cooked feast), a pool, beach access, and about 40 units. The size of the resort was unique in that in order to eat a variety of food and do anything besides relax you had to leave the premises. The area around the facility did have some amenities in a pizzeria, an insanely overpriced restaurant in the mega resort, a small supermarket, and one single fruit and vegetable seller. So I guess the limited food and the price of some food imported in presumably small quantities into one of the most remote countries in the world, required us to eat and drink like a local.

    While we did spend a great deal of much needed time (sometimes vacations and retirement can be so long and variable that they require their own “inceptioned” vacations) relaxing on the beach/ pool area and walking around the surrounding area, we ventured a bit further both into and off of the island. On the first night we were there, the resort threw a Lovo, which is a traditional Fijian feast which involves cooking an entire meal in a hand built underground stove. The entertainment was the highlight several traditionally dressed performers sang, danced, and spun weaponlike sticks. The meal was also accompanied by a Kava ceremony, which is basically the serving of a cool mildly narcotic tea made from a root in the licorice family out of a community bowl and served in a coconut shell. Large amounts of the stuff are said to calm people and reduce stress and anxiety, though the serving provided were to small for us to notice any difference.

    We signed up for a boat tour out to the small Yanuca Island about 15km off the coast. The island is covered in dense jungle, has golden sandy beaches sheltered by coral reef, and has a small permanent population. Unfortunately, we were not able to venture into their village, but a few did come out to greet us. From the island we snorkeled in the coral reef, paddled around on a kayak and an inflatable stand up paddle board (which was hilariously low on air). We were also served at a Lovo, where Rene was selected to be the chief of us gringo visitors and to accept the invitation of meal on our collective behalf. We were also shown how to climb a coconut tree, open a coconut with a rock, and scrap out the insides with homemade tools.

    On the way back to the main island I got talking to one of the local guides named Claude. Some how we got on the topic of music, I asked him if he played music. He looked at me dumbfounded and responded: “yeah, I play the guitar and sing, everyone can here”. I told him I also played, which led to his invitation to come jam with him and his friend later that evening. That night Lisa and I hopped in a cab and gave the driver the address Claude provided. We drove for about 10 minutes where the driver stopped and dropped us off at the side of the highway seemingly in the middle of nowhere. Claude almost mysteriously came out of the bush and asked him to follow us. He took us to his friend Josh’s house where we were led onto a large open front porch area which had enough space and cushions for 30 sitting people. We joined Josh siting in front of his Kava bowl, two guitars, a ukulele, and hand transcribed sheet music. The music we played was amazing. Both Josh and Claude were extremely talented singers, constantly harmonizing with each other, and were both very good guitar/ ukulele players. Their music selection was also great, as it was familiar, and generally easy playing songs.

    We had a wonderful time and I think this solidified our vicariousity of Fijians. Claude and Josh were both extremely friendly, both enjoyed talking about their culture and ours. Lisa and I both drank enough Kava to feel the narcotic calming effect. Our favourite moments was learning the Fijian equivalent of Old MacDonald, where you make a ton of animal songs and Joshes reggae rendition of Elvis’s Blue Sued Shoes.

    The next day I was very hungover from Kava, so I needed a rest day. Lisa and her parents rented Kayaks from the resort next door and headed up an overgrown river to a lagoon. The water was calm and they had a great time.

    One of the other activities we tried was golfing. The resort next door also owned a golf resort which was open to the public. For a reasonable price we were able to rent carts and clubs and golf 9 holes. While it was great to be out, the state of the course made the golf very difficult. To exaggerate, there was no distinction between jungle, green, and fairway; we almost lost all of the balls in the first 4 holes. We skipped the long holes which required driving, and only played the remaining 2 par 3’s. It was fun, but don’t go golfing at the Pacific Harbour Resort in Fiji.

    We also spent another day hiking through the Colo-i-Suva Rainforest resort, just outside of the Capital City Suva almost two hours from our resort. The park provided awesome overgrown trails trough Rainforest that climbed hills and followed streams through a network of clear blue waterfalls. We took a refreshing swim under one of the waterfalls. On the way home we stopped in Suva for some souvenirs. A city is a city even on a small island in the middle of the pacific.

    The trip was wonderful, and was refreshing for Lisa and I. It also was a good ease into adventuring with the Jolicoeurs. I think we all agreed Fiji is a place we could happily go back to both for the scenery and the people. Plus Rene really like the beer Fiji Gold, enough so that he bought a bright yellow Fiji Gold T-shirt.    Meer informatie

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  • Keegan and LisaAn NZ Odyssey by Lisa & KeeganReiziger

    Cass, Craigieburn and Castle Hill

    16 maart 2019, Nieuw-Zeeland

    The Cass Settlement and it’s lone citizen:

    Back to work. Lisa and I spent a few hours looking around the Help-X website for a few weeks of home-stay close to Craigieburn and Castlehill on the Eastern Slopes of the Southern Alps, destinations notorious for mountain biking and rock climbing respectively. We found a place offering a bed, and all the food we could eat in exchange for 3 hours of work, which included tending to his large fleet of egg laying hens, and a bit of gardening. The place was in a settlement called Cass, located about 10 km to the east of Arthurs Pass, which we learned from the internet [http://www.stuff.co.nz/the-press/news/8025081/C…] has a population of exactly one, Our future boss: Barrie. We got in touch with him, and he quickly excepted our tender for 2 weeks of work.

    When we arrived he wasn’t home, so we wandered around to get our bearings. The settlement is nestled in an alpine mountain valley surrounded by farmland (Farm in the first Picture taken from Sugarloaf). Cass is on the rail line linking the east and west coasts and still has an active train station. It also has a few other cottages, a University of Canterbury research station, and a campground and putt and chip golf course, both which were built by Barrie. He either had the best retirement package ever or is the worlds most awesome and shameless squatter.

    Barrie worked for KiwiRail almost his entire life. Some 30 years ago, he was transferred to the Cass station, where he was provided a house, owned by KiwiRail, to live in. At first the house and property were pretty basic, 2 bedrooms, a bathroom, a small living area, situated on a small yard next to a bunk house for travelling rail workers. Over the years he kind of took ownership of it, by building the golf course, a party barn (I'll get to that), campground, extending the house to include a bar room, and annexing more of KiwiRail’s land for the purpose of raising over 400 chicken and 13 sheep. Apparently when he retired, KiwiRail offered to let him stay in the house for as long as he wanted.

    Barrie is a character. He is around 70 years old, and at first came off as a grump and perfectionist. We quickly learned that this was just his sense of humour and in fact, he really enjoyed people and was almost over generous, especially when it came to food and beer. He also told it as he saw it, if he didn’t like something: “that’s fucking terrible”, and if he did: “that’s alright”. His friends came by for visits often and spoke highly of him.

    The Work:

    In exchange for food and a place to stay, our daily tasks focused on the chickens. We would wake up, let the chickens out, feed and water them, steal there eggs, clean the eggs and put into cartons, then put some of the cartons out at the highway in an honesty box to sell for $5 dollars each. We also had to feed his peacocks and doves, which he kept in a separate pen, as well as other odd jobs like gardening, and cleaning out his party barn. The work was generally enjoyable. Barries free range chickens are kind of awesome they are very entertaining, provide delicious eggs, put themselves to bed, and sleep standing up. I don’t think we ever worked more than 3 hours in a day, Barrie didn’t think it was healthy.

    The Area:

    After we put in our few hours of work we had the rest of the day to adventure around the area. 10 km to the east of Cass was the Craigieburn forest, which provided heaps of mountain biking and trail running possibilities. Or first adventure into the forest was epic, it was a mountain bike ride along the Craigieburn edge track which starts at the base of a small community ski field above treeline, and side-skirts the Craigieburn Valley into a beech forest until eventually passing over a saddle into the next valley over. The ride was kind of insane. Long stretches crossed scree runs with angles of greater than 50 degrees on a small 30 cm wide trail. You wouldn’t die if you fell off the edge, but it would probably not end up so well. The rest of the trail was narrow and very technical. Between the craziness of the trail and the views provided, it was an awesome ride.

    From the saddle we headed up to the top of Helicopter hill, which provided a great view of the surrounding mountains. From the saddle downwards the trail got a bit more technical due to an increased volume of wet roots, although was much wider. I took a pretty big fall, nearly impaling myself on an exposed root. While i was able to get back on my bike and finish the ride, I had bruised my abdomen and was out of commission for the next week!

    While I spent my afternoons playing music and doing some online coursework, Lisa kept adventuring. She went on a 10 km trail run in Craigieburn on a trail which she described as “runnable, in a beautiful forest”. She also scrambled up the mountain next to Cass called Sugar Loaf. She returned about 4 hours after she set off, describing how she had gotten a bit lost, how the views were epic, the climb up was interesting and overgrown, and how the decent was absolutely nuts. She pointed out her tracks down the scree face of the mountain, which appeared to be nearly vertical.

    Once my stomach healed, we biked a few more times in Craigieburn, once with our new friends from Christchurch Sarah and Jenny who we had met on the Old Ghost Road. Both times the weather was great and he had spectacular bike rides. I also got to head up Sugar Loaf, which was incredible. My experience was similar to Lisa’s, I got lost, the climb and views were great, and the decent was really fun! Basically a 600m decent down a scree shoot, which was almost entirely runnable.

    My friend Chelsea and her partner David were in the area so they came out and stayed at the campground for a night. We showed them around the farm then went bouldering (rock climbing without ropes) with them at Castle Hill. Castle Hill is this really cool limestone boulder field in the middle of the mountains. We had a pretty great time. And it is 100% worth stopping at whether you climb or not.

    Party Barn :

    Okay, so after building the campground Barrie began holding an annual get together called Cass Bash which involved a Locals vs Railmen cricket match and a whole lot of beer drinking. Eventually Barrie built a shed to house the event which featured a stage, a bar, a fancy commercial kitchen, a sweet wall mural, and some funky decorations and lights. They no longer through the Cass Bash, i guess because to many people started showing up to it, but at it's height over 300 people came, several bands played, and they easily finished off something like 25 kegs over the weekend. The building is used from time to time by Barrie's buddies who camp there on the weekend or for lawnmower storage, but otherwise just collect dust. Either way the next party held there will be a great one no doubt.    Meer informatie

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  • Keegan and LisaAn NZ Odyssey by Lisa & KeeganReiziger

    They are us - Chch terrorist attack

    15 maart 2019, Nieuw-Zeeland ⋅ ⛅ 15 °C

    What I had once jokingly characterized as a strive for mediocrity, signified by common slang like “she’ll be right” or “Sweet as [quince]” (quince isn’t even really that sweet, its somewhere between tart and sour), was completely off-base. Instead, I think kiwis are generally and wonderfully hopeful, and non-judgmental, regardless of skin colour, or whether or not someone is wearing shoes when they walk into a supermarket. I think this gives them an identity, and even though New Zealand has a population under 5 million, this makes it feel even smaller. Compared to Canada, New Zealand is a very new country, and through most of its lifetime non-European immigration has been nonexistent. Our experience up until this point is a general acceptance toward non-Europeans with some fearful racialist undertones, but mostly a genuine curiosity for other cultures. So basically like Canada only with better treatment of their indigenous.

    Anyways,

    After finishing the Queen Charlotte Track, we headed down the east coast, stopping in Kaikoura and Gore Bay for a surf. While we certainly glazed over this part of the country, we were both in awe of how dramatic the coastline was, both full of wildlife (we saw seals, dolphins, and possibly even a whale), and rugged the terrain was, wave hammered rock, green hills, and the towering coastal Kaikoura Ranges. We are not to sure if we will make it back, but the hope is to head back this way before we head home. Our initial plan was to head into Christchurch and stock up on groceries, then head for Cass our next Destination, but on-route disaster struck.

    Literal disaster, we first overheard a group talking about it in a coffee shop not more then 20 km north of Christchurch. This was confirmed by the radio. A shooter was at large in Christchurch, multiple casualties, and the city was in lock down. As the events unfolded we learned that it was an attack on a mosque, a terrorist attack, hundreds of people injured or dead. We were in shock. New Zealand felt so safe. New Zealand feels so safe. The county is so isolated, it typically modern, and progressive, and you honestly do feel a strong sense of security. We later heard, that one of the reasons why the attacker (who is not a Kiwi) chose New Zealand as a target was because he felt like it would be the last place on earth anyone would expect it. What an asshole.

    But from all the sadness something truly amazing happened over the following weeks. The country banded together, an outcry of support for the New Zealand Muslim community was felt and almost overwhelming, rival political parties unified reverberating the words of the PM Jacinda Arden, “They [NZ Muslim community] are us”. Nearly half the city of Christchurch showed up for the memorial ceremony. Nationwide gun laws were changed within 10 days and it was illegal to own a copy of the shooters manifesto even sooner. Under the international spotlight, Jacinda Arden exemplified what a great leader should be. She said all the right things, she showed composure and compassion, she even unknowingly started a movement among non-Muslim mourners in attendance at the various memorials throughout the country by wearing a hijab while visiting mosques following the attack to show support for Muslims. She had the support of the country. Honestly, it was like the entire country shared here sentiment.

    In the weeks that followed, the entire country embraced their own Muslim community. And they still do. The newness and curiosity of Muslims in New Zealand seemed to vanish overnight. The feeling that “they are us” is universal. This, to me is how a country should act, in stark contrast to what goes on in the US. I can’t say if the Muslim community, especially the people who lost loved ones during the attack feel safe or alienated. I don’t know, and it will never be a valid repayment for the lives of 51 innocent people. But I do think this showed a country new to non-European immigrants that love and mourning are universal, and that immigrants are integral parts of their communities. I can only hope that the resulting binding force between Muslims and non-Muslims will extend beyond the boarders of New Zealand, and embed into future generations. There may always be people like the shooter so out of touch with what it means to be human and so disillusioned that are capable of causing so much physical and emotional harm. But for every one of them, there will be millions from all faiths and all socioeconomic branches, like Kiwis, who stand against them and lovingly support the victims.

    So thoughts and prayers to all Muslim communities who have to deal with shit like this, rahamahom Allah jamee'an (Rest in Peace) to those who lives ended before they stopped being good people, and to everyone else, act like a kiwi next time tragedy strikes.    Meer informatie

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  • Keegan and LisaAn NZ Odyssey by Lisa & KeeganReiziger

    Queen Charlotte Track

    12 maart 2019, Nieuw-Zeeland

    With plans to meet Lisa’s parents at the end of the month in Christchurch, Lisa and I made a rough plan to head south from Nelson, stopping in for a hike at Nelson Lakes Provincial Park, then do a multiday bike ride somewhere in between Nelson and Christchurch. Initially, we had chosen to bike the St. James track, which is an 80km alpine track running out of the Lewis Valley popular with mountain bike enthusiasts. After hiking out from the Angelus Hut in Nelson Lakes NP, a quick look at the weather forecast changed our bike plans. Cold and a potential for early autumn snow were in the forecast for the St. James area, while just 200km away, the forecast for the Marlborough Sounds was slightly warmer with rain instead of snow. Biking long distances in cold and snow sucks, so we decided to take a detour up to Marlborough Sounds and bike the Queen Charlotte Track (QCT) instead. The next day we were on our bikes, traveling through ancient forest in the rain.

    The QCT is a trail that was on Lisa’s and my own mountain bike trail “wishlist”. It is a 75 km track which undulates along a rain forested peninsula separating the Queen Charlotte (where the inter-islander ferry lands) and Kenepuru Sounds. While popular with trampers, the track is open to bikers during the low season, and generally takes 2-4 days to ride depending on the riders ability to climb hills, push bikes, or just genuinely suffer. Generally, hikers and bikers access the trail via water shuttles, which pick them up from the town of Picton, drop them near the Eastern end of the peninsula at Ship Cove, and pick them up at the crotch of the Queen Charlotte at Anakiwa, then returning them to Picton. Most of the shuttles offer a convenient service (free of charge with Cougar Lines) which will also pick up your bags and move them to the next point of camping or lodging, thus you don’t need to carry much besides food, water, and beer money. Yup, beer money; there are multiple drinking establishments and restaurants along the track, so you can really adventure in style.

    We were dropped of at Ship Cove with just our bikes and our daypacks and it was still raining. The first 2 km of the track required pushing our bikes due to the rain, but also the extremely steep grade. Honestly we were a bit intimidated. But after cresting the top of the hill, the rain ceased, the clouds parted, and we were gifted a sweet view of the Queen Charlotte Sound, and several km of easy downhill. The rest of the day was pretty mellow, we biked about 30km to our campsite at Camp Bay along well formed track which was never flat but also never very steep. We picked up our bag with our camping gear from the wharf and set up camp. After a quick nap, we walked over to a hotel/hostel several hundred meters down the cove and grabbed a pint of beer. We were more or less warm, dry, and shamlessly boastful about how great of a decision it was to bike the QCT instead of the St. James track.

    The next day we continued on for 25 km to Portage Bay under blue skies. The day started out again with a combination of uphill riding our pushing, this time to the highest point on a ridge at 450m above sea level. While the ridge had a tiresome amount of undulation to it, where we gained and lost over 1500m of total elevation, it was generally fun and scenic riding. Much the same as the day before, we grabbed our bag, set up camp and walked over to the local bar for a pint.

    The last day from Portage Bay to the wharf at Anakiwa probably had the most pleasant riding although there were far more people hiking and biking the trail. We probably passed 4 times as many people on the last 20km of track then we did through the first 50 km. Many of the these people were less then excited to see bikers on the track, and even shared there displeasure with us as they stepped to the side of the track to let us bike passed.

    I get it, bikers are fast, quiet, and take up a lot of space. At the parking lot we noticed a large group of high school kids with bikes, who had presumably passed all the same people moments before us. As a hiker, who might mire at this trail for being seemingly in the middle of nowhere while being highly accessible through well serviced access points to society, might be a giant piss off. Fortunately either because of the weather, or because less people hike or bike any other sections, we hadn’t noticed the negative part of this dichotomy until the very end of the trail. Instead, we were just happy to bike an awesome trail with light weight packs, and drink cold beer by the pint at the end of the day.    Meer informatie

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  • Keegan and LisaAn NZ Odyssey by Lisa & KeeganReiziger

    Nelson Lakes

    9 maart 2019, Nieuw-Zeeland ⋅ ☁️ 6 °C

    I was ready for some adventure after a couple of weeks in Nelson and we had about 3 weeks before my parents showed up for a visit. During our time in Nelson it was hot and sunny with the last dose of rain in December and, of course, the second we decide to leave, it rains... but I've committed to not let the rain get in my way so the adventures continued! We were booked to camp up at Angelus hut, an alpine hut at 1650m that is up between Lake Rotoiti and Rotoroa in Nelson Lakes National Park. There are a couple ways to get there but I wanted to take Robert Ridge route since it would give us the best views of the area. It’s considered a challenging hike with exposed ridge and at times poor visibility but definitely doable and is pretty cool since you are up on a ridge for the majority of the time. Based on the weather forecast the rain was likely going to hold off for a day or two and if it rained it would probably just be light rain. Unfortunately we did not got so lucky in the weather department and the clouds and rain rolled in earlier than expected. It was light rain as promised but we had almost no visibility for the majority of our ridge walk. It seemed pretty safe but really we couldn’t tell what was around us. The ridge starts out very wide and eventually turns in to traversing large rocks and scree field.
    The hut is just down from the ridge between 2 small alpine lakes. We decided to tent (as usual) because the hut was fully booked for 40 people that night. Our tent spot was quiet and eventually the clouds broke so we could see what was around us. I woke up hoping for clear skies so we could at least get some views on the way back. Although better than yesterday, it was still very foggy and cloudy so we decided to take a different way down since the ridge was likely not the best option. This was a longer way around with an initially steep drop down to the river below and then a long river walk back to the car. In hindsight we should have done this hike the other way around and saved the ridge for day 2; especially since our crappy weather cleared up by the afternoon... I kept looking back up at the ridge wishing we were on it but eventually I had to let it go. Can’t have it all I guess!    Meer informatie

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  • Keegan and LisaAn NZ Odyssey by Lisa & KeeganReiziger

    Nelson

    24 februari 2019, Nieuw-Zeeland ⋅ 🌧 13 °C

    We made it back up to Nelson for a couple weeks to visit with friends and do a little house sitting. We were happy to be there but a bit sad about the biking situation. Nelson's been super dry since christmas and with the fire risk so high, all of the biking trails were closed. Not exactly what we were hoping for but with a bit of a drive we still managed to get in a few fun rides!
    Staying at Brandy and Kyle's was so so great! Love the company, and hanging out with Garfunkel their cat. We kept busy but also really enjoyed the downtime. I did yoga most days, read lots, and even did a puzzle:)
    Oh! Keegan also decided it was time for a bike upgrade so we went fancy and bought him a full suspension bike! Trance 2 Giant:) he is one happy boy!    Meer informatie

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  • Keegan and LisaAn NZ Odyssey by Lisa & KeeganReiziger

    Hokitika (round two)

    21 februari 2019, Nieuw-Zeeland ⋅ ⛅ 19 °C

    Keegan and I were asked if we wanted to come back up to Nelson to house sit/watch the cat at Brandy and Kyle's place. They were our first helpx host and new friends:). We both wanted to bike more in the area and so we decided to head back up the west coast. We couldn't go by hokitika without stopping in to visit the Heather and Dave and the kids so stopped in for a couple days to catch up with them.
    Although short, it was great to catch up with them! Of course it decided to rain on the coast while we were there so spend most of our time indoors. We did a little trip to the kiwi centre since we both still hadn't seen a Kiwi bird and thought it would be a fun rainy day activity. I wish the kids could of joined us since they get so excited about fish and birds haha, would have made it fun! But we still have a fun time exploring the centre and we did finally get to see 2 kiwi birds. They are tricky birds to see in the wild since they are noctural and aren't as many around anymore from introduced predators (like dogs).
    We planned a pizza night with the fam as a thank you for having us and it was a great time making pizzas with the kids. Dougal decided to make mini star shaped pizza's and Isla went for a big heart. They were definitely made with some love!    Meer informatie

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  • Keegan and LisaAn NZ Odyssey by Lisa & KeeganReiziger

    Hawea Flat (Feb 1st to 20th) PART 3

    14 februari 2019, Nieuw-Zeeland

    Our last week here was an exciting one because it was Keegan’s Birthday! He is officially 31 and I wanted to surprise him with something fun that wasn’t just the same old biking and hiking activity (although, I don't think he would have complained). I learned that there was a couple of bouldering spots close by, and since we hadn’t tried out any climbing activities yet in NZ I thought this would be perfect. For those who don’t know, bouldering is a form of rock climbing that is done on small rock formations without the use of ropes or harnesses. We unfortunately didn’t bring our climbing shoes with us but was easy enough to hire a pair for the day. It wasn’t possible to hire a crash pad though so instead we checked out the local waste busters which is a second-hand shop and found a couple of large patio furniture cushions which did the trick! It was an awesome day out and had the whole bouldering spot to ourselves. I picked up some of Keegan's favourite foods and we had a fancy lunch which included hot dogs and sauerkraut haha. Fun fact: hot dogs are not really an NZ thing and if you see hot dog on the menu it will actually be similar to a corn dog that is battered and fried, and served with tomato sauce.

    After 3 weeks here, Keegan and I both felt ready to switch things up. Although we still had a few hikes and bike rides on the list to do, we knew we would be back at the end of April with my parents for round two! We didn’t quite get the pond finished during our time but plan to return for a visit and to check out the finished product soon!    Meer informatie

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  • Keegan and LisaAn NZ Odyssey by Lisa & KeeganReiziger

    Hawea Flat (Feb 1st to 20th) PART 2

    7 februari 2019, Nieuw-Zeeland

    On our 2nd week in Hawea Flat, we managed to get out for several bike rides. They talk about mountain biking being pretty amazing in the area however Wanaka was not a favourite. We checked out their bike park, the Sticky forest, a few times however it had really short laps and nothing too impressive to talk about. We did get out for a couple of day trips into Queenstown area which did indeed have some awesome spots! First was 7 mile bike park which is just 7 miles outside of Queenstown and is a pretty fun network of cross-country trails. We also ventured out to Coronet Peak which is one of the ski hills in the area. They don’t have the chair lift going in the summer months here so we biked up to the top for some incredible views of the area and the bike down was good fun! Wish we had more time to check this place out since we couldn’t quite get to all of the trails this time around.
    People talk about how awesome the downhill biking is in Queenstown, where they have a gondola-assisted mountain bike lift at Skyline park. It was on both of our lists of things to try out but with bike rentals and a 1 day lift pass it is not cheap! Unfortunately we decided to pass this time but hopefully we will be back another time to give it a go! I’ve never rented a downhill bike before and this seemed to be a pretty great spot for it! There is still time so we will see what happens:)
    Closer to home, in Hawea Flats, we also attempted to bike up Grandview mountain but only made it up about half way since we both (well mostly Keegan;)) didn’t have it in our legs for a summit view. Still a really beauty evening ride out.

    Aside from all the biking this week, we did a pretty spectacular hike up breasthill mountain. This one starts just off of Lake Hawea and has another steep start but the top offers some amazing views of the lake, mountains and farmland in the area. You can do this as an overnight trip with Pakitihu hut just sitting over the top but we did it as a day hike and had lunch at the top instead.    Meer informatie

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  • Keegan and LisaAn NZ Odyssey by Lisa & KeeganReiziger

    Hawea Flat - Feb 1st to 20th PART 1

    1 februari 2019, Nieuw-Zeeland

    The Routeburn Track was the last of our pre-planned activities and we were excited to find a spot to stay for a bit while we were in the Otago Region. (This is where you find the southern alps, glacier lakes and places like Wanaka and Queenstown). Through the website Help-X, we found a great place to stay just 10  mins out of Wanaka, in Hawea Flat. We stayed at John and Diana's place, in an awesome tiny house, and helped to build a swimming pond on their property.  This was actually fun work and pretty sweet to add masonry to the ol' NZ resume. Our tiny home had everything we could need, and was right close to stunning lakes and mountains! With a few weeks here, it gave us some time for more biking and hiking in the area but also a really amazing place to relax. Keegan started doing some online course-work and it was a nice place to get started on that too. We also decided that we wanted to get back to some trail running, and since John was both a local and an avid trail runner himself, he had some great suggestions to get us started. 

    During our first week here, we got out for our first trail run up Rocky Mountain summit by Diamond lake. This was a perfect 7 km run with a great view of the near by mountain ranges and a lookout of lake Wanaka. We also were able to get away for an overnight hike into Mt. Aspiring National Park, where we headed up the Cascade Saddle Track for some great views of Mt. Aspiring itself, and the surrounding glaciers. After a day’s work we hiked into the park and camped just outside of Aspiring hut. This hut holds 40 people and was packed! We were happy to have the tent with us, although, we did dine that night with hundreds of sandflies! Cascade Saddle Track starts from the base of the hut and climbs quickly upward. Over 4km you gain about 1500M of elevation! This track actually has the highest fatality rate of any trail in NZ, but we felt pretty safe being summertime and the weather forecast showing good conditions. Because of time, we didn’t go all the way to the saddle but did manage to get to the Pylon, which is the high point of the track and had amazing views of the Dart Glacier in the distance. At the top we met some researchers and DOC members doing some Kea work. They were basically ‘fishing’ for Kea’s; tagging them and testing their blood for lead. High alpine fishing involved using what looked like a fishing rod with a loop on the end, attracting Kea’s with bird sounds over a bluetooth speaker and shinny pink ribbon, then snagging the bird when curiousity got the better of them. Since Kea’s like to eat just about anything, especially on the roof’s of huts in the area, we learned they end up taking in a lot of lead, and as consequence are declining in number. Keegan and I both loved the hike and would definitely recommended spending some time in Mt. Aspiring National Park! It is worth it.    Meer informatie

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  • Keegan and LisaAn NZ Odyssey by Lisa & KeeganReiziger

    Routeburn & Greenstone Track Hiking Tri

    28 januari 2019, Nieuw-Zeeland

    Alas we did our first of the NZ Great Walks which actually involved tramping (First great walk was actually a canoe trip). And it was downright awesome! Back in December, when we were in the “lets do Great Walks” mindset, we found out the Milford Track, which might be the most lauded hiking trail on the planet., costs about $130 Canadian per person per night to sleep in the huts, and took 4 days to complete. That was prohibitively expensive, and the track was also fully booked until the end of our trip (July!) so we looked for the alternative. The Routeburn Track is described as “the ultimate alpine adventure, taking you through ice-carved valleys and below the majestic peaks of the Southern Alps/Kā Tiritiri o te Moana” (DOC website), and is considered by some to be the poor mans version of the Milford Track. The trail covers about 33 km and takes either 2 or 3 days to complete. While it was still expensive even to camp on the trail ($40 CAD/person/night), its cost was at least manageable, and there was still plenty of available sites in late January. So we booked a one night stay at the Mackenzie Lake campground, roughly the mid point of the track.

    Our plans kind of evolved when we found out how long and expensive the shuttle linking one end of the trail head to the other, so we decided to hike East to west (less common direction), and return to our car via the Greenstone Track. The Greenstone can be accessed about three km from the end of the Routeburn, and follows the Greenstone river through a valley of tussock flats and beech forests, eventually ending at the shores of Lake Wakatipu. This ultimately would turn our 2 day trip into a Ffour day trip and add another 65 km to the total distance. Because the last 28 km of our route was a gravel road between the start of the Routeburn and the end of the Greenstone track, we decided we would stash our bicycles near the end of Greenstone and bike back to our van. This turned out to have been a slight oversight on our parts.

    Day 1 Hiking:

    We stayed at an Air B&B the night before the hike about 10km west of Queenstown, and set out decently early for the trail. We drove passed the turn off for the Routeburn and headed for the Trail end of the Greenstone, some 20 km south along a gravel road. A lot of roads in NZ opt for river fords as apposed to bridges or culverts and what we failed to plan for was the chance that the road could be impassible due high fords from heavy rain fall, which it was. So we left are bikes about 12 km from the trail-end, accepted that we may be walking a whole bunch on our last day, and drove off to the Routeburn trail head to start our hike.

     The first 13 km of the track starts with a steady climb through beech forests along the Route Burn (Burn is actually a real geographical feature and means a water course sized somewhere between a large stream and a small river). The track gains about 800 m in this stretch, but was easier tramping in expected thanks to the over maintained condition of the track. We were greeted at the brush line by the most ginormous back-country village we had ever seen. Between the hut, and a private lodge for guided hikers, the Routeburn falls area sleeps well over 100 people. We continued past through the village, up along big old waterfall, and into a wide open alpine meadow surrounded by rocky mountains know as the Humboldt Range; some with snow on them. It was very amazing The trail ascended up above a large kettle lake, encased by glacier topped mountains, and up and over the Harris Saddle.

    From the saddle, the trail followed the contour of Ocean peak for roughly 8 km, all above treeline and running parralell to the Hollyford River. This section was the most interesting part for Lisa and I, as the trail got a bit rougher, and we were given a grand Vista of the Darran Mountains on the other side of valley. The trail finally rounded the mountain, allowing us the view of a very blue and inviting Mackenzie lake, our home for the evening, which was some 200m below us. The trail quickly weaved its way down a rocky ridge back into Beech forests, and around the lake. Again we passed a backcountry village capable of sleeping over 100 people and headed straight for the campgrounds on the side of the lake. We set up camp, jumped in the lake, and ate a large dinner. Sleep came early.

    Because this hike is a great walk, it is really popular, and its also somewhat accessible for non-hikers in large part because of the guided hiking service (provide a real bed with blankets, chef-cooked meals, and pretty much provides everything besides extra cloths. Also costs over $1300 per person!). We figured more than 400 people a day are on the trail at any one time, which averages to 13 people for every km (if they are all walking in your direction, and you are going 4km/hour, you will pass someone nearly every minute). Also hiking the trail against the normal flow of foot traffic made Lisa and I a bit weary in regards to our desired levels of solitude. However, our timing must have been perfect as we passed a few hikers on the way up to the Routeburn Falls (probably less than 10), passed maybe another 20 people between the falls and the top of the Saddle, and 10 others the rest of the way (including passed the MacKenzie Lake tourist community). More math, but we probably only saw 10% of all hikers in more than half the distance of the entire trail. What i’m saying is we won and I am both happy and a bit petty about it.

    Day 2-3 Hiking:

    The next day we packed up and took off towards the Mackellar Hut on the the Greenstone track, some 18 km away. The trail once again followed the contour of a mountain along the Hollyford River, this time staying in the Beech forest. The trail was pleasant, more roots, rocks and, and waterfalls. We also chatted with an American on a sabbatical leave from his job as a physiologist with Facebook in Manhattan. It dawned on us very quickly that he could very well be, the reason we are all addicted to Facebook. Still he was virtually unhateable and the conversation was interesting. After having lunch outside the Howden Hut, which was cut short thanks to an angry cloud of sandflies, we headed off down the Greenstone Track.

    The Greenstone Track was great but was much less remarkable than the Routeburn Track. Both days we walked about 20km. For the most part it traveled through a wide open valley grazed by cows, which reminded us of Alberta, especially of the Ya Ha Tinda area. What was different were the amounts of random waterfalls spitting out from mountains high overhead. Also they have mountain parrots. The highlight of this section came in the middle of the night. We were awoken by something landing on the roof of our tent, which I promptly punched. It kind of slide of the tent and flew away. I cannot confirm this, but it was almost certainly a parrot. Alberta has bears, wolves, coyote, and bigfoot, New Zealand has punchable mountain parrots called Kea (they are an endangered species, and there is only 5000 left in the wild). I’ve never really associated with apex predators before.

    Day 4

    The last 12 km of the trail were over very quickly. Much like the last two days, the river valley was very pleasant, and we were still not tired of looking at mountains. We then had another 12km to cover on the road along the side of Lake Wakatipu. Anyone who has ever been to Queenstown will know that Lake Wakatipu and its surroundings are beautiful , so that was nice. But 24 km is a long day when you don’t hike much, and it got hot. No wind and 30 degrees. When we finally got to our bikes we were wiped, but we hoped on the bikes and headed a couple km to the small village of Kinloch.

    We decided that we probably should get some real food, and a beer so we stopped at the Kinloch Historical Lodge for dinner and a drink. We also decided that we wanted to sleep in a bed that night so we overpaid for a room at the lodge and had a nap. Eventually, say later in the evening, we mustered enough energy to get on our bikes and finish our journey with a 16km ride on a gravel road back to our car. Luck would have it that we were biking into a 45km wind pretty much the entire way. But we made it. Our stay was good enough, it had showers and free popcorn.

    Its understandable why the Routeburn is considered one of the great tracks, and why so many people travel on it. Its also nice that NZ has hikes with infrastructure which can support this many hikers. Trails like these literally funnel tourists in, are built in a way that can handle them, and leave the less-traveled tracks like the Greenstone much less traveled. Lisa and I learned we are also in terrible terrible hiking shape, and if we want to punch more parrots, we need to train.    Meer informatie

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  • Keegan and LisaAn NZ Odyssey by Lisa & KeeganReiziger

    West Coast

    21 januari 2019, Nieuw-Zeeland

    Keegan and I are booked to do the Routeburn track, one of NZ great walks, towards the end of the month. Until then the plan is to work our way down the West Coast from Westport (which was our first stop following the Old Ghost Road). We found ourselves another helpx place to stay which turned out to be an awesome spot! We stayed just outside of Hokitika with a sweet couple, Heather and Dave, their 3 kiddos Susie, Isla and Dougal and their visiting grandparents from Scotland, Joan and Hamish. We slept out in the playhouse which had just enough room for a bed but we spent a lot of time hanging out at the house with everyone and we both felt right at home. We didn’t get the best weather while visiting so unfortunately weren’t able to check off as many of our ‘to do’ activities but still really enjoyed our time on the Coast. We spent part of the day staining the house and part of the day relaxing, socializing and were able to get out for some fun. Heather and Dave love their water sports and we were lucky to have a canoe to borrow for a little lake/creek canoe adventure. We also got out to Arthur’s Pass National Park for a pretty amazing hike called Avalanche peak. It was a short, steep hike and our first summit hike with the best views! We also got to see at least 6 Kea birds hanging out at the top which was pretty cool. Kea are alpine parrots. They are super curious birds and like to pick apart little shining objects or rubber, like tents or rubber on cars. Some might call them a pest but they are on the endangered bird list and, we thought, pretty neat!
    Because of the rain we didn’t get to do all the biking we wanted but did get out for a bit of a ride on the near by rail trail. Other activities that we got up to at some point during our west coast time included some surf days (up in Westport), did the tourist lap of the pancake rocks just north of Greymouth, and hiked up to Fox glacier.
    Highlights for me was having such a great place to spend our time. Spending time with the kids was great fun, even though it was full on at times. Also Heather is in the process of finishing her masters in child psychology so was awesome for me to talk a bit about work stuff which i’m actually starting to miss! We were sad to leave after a week but definitely plan to come back up for a visit.    Meer informatie

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  • Keegan and LisaAn NZ Odyssey by Lisa & KeeganReiziger

    Old Ghost Road Bike Epic

    15 januari 2019, Nieuw-Zeeland ⋅ ☀️ 20 °C

    The Old Ghost Road (OGR) is an 85 km track which winds through the South Island's Glasgow Range situated on the westcoast, starting or finishing at the historic ghost town of Lyell in the South, and Seddonville in the North. This relatively new trail has gotten a ton of national and international hype, and is either on the bucketlist, should be on the bucketlist, or has been returned to the bucketlist after a successful completion, for all mountain bikers, trail runners, or trampers.

    Trail Background:

    -------------Every hut contained the same book about the construction of the trail, which turned out to be interesting and well written. May as well share the highlights. -----------------------

    So the story goes, an old map resurfaced in the mid-2000's showing a proposed road linking Lyell to Karamea (Northernmost town on the West Coast) with the purpose of servicing a booming gold mining industry during the 1880's. While construction of the north end had been completed, and was now being used as a tramping track, historical records suggested that only a small portion of the road from the south have been built, and was left to overgrow after the mining industry collapsed towards the end of the 19th century. The map made it into the hands of an ambitious American ex-pat named Marion Boatwright, who seemed to have way to much free time (probably money too) on his hands. He took it upon himself to first, find the historic and overgrown road, find out how far it went into the bush, then gather volunteers, and subjugate them to the task of uncovering and completing the road.

    As told in Boatwright's book "Spirit to the Stone", they discovered that the original road climbed 17 km up through native beach forest to the Lyell Saddle, some 30 km from the existing Northern track at ending at Mokihinui River Forks. Long story short, they were awarded a massive grant, did a whole bunch of fundraising, scrapped the rest of road as surveyed done in the 1880's, as it would be prohibitively expensive follow the route, and spent 6 years building the trail and a series of huts along the trail. The track, in its entirety, was opened to the public in 2016. Interestingly, the grant they applied for and received (New Zealand Cycle Trail Grant) was for the construction of a purpose-built mountain bike track. Boatwright's initial plan was for a multipurpose trail, the acceptance of the grant kind of changed the plans to be geared towards mountain biking, although it could still be used by trampers, hunters, and trail runners.

    Ok, so our hot take on the old ghost road is it is the coolest bike trail on the planet! From further research (beyond the book) showed that the trail cost north of $6 million to complete, and is considered one of the New Zealand Cycle Trail Great Rides. While this alone would suggest that the trail is so well built that anyone and their grandparents could ride it, nothing could be further from the truth. This trail is intimidating and not for all bikers. Hell, there was a 4 km stretch that wasn’t even for Lisa and I, were still great to walk non-the-less.

    Our trail experience:

    Lisa and I were both excited and a bit nervous about biking the OGR, both from first hand accounts and from online trail descriptions and ratings. We trained for it…. Or atleast we used it as an excuse to put more km on our bikes, and we also decided to utilize the hut system, and stretch the trip over four days. We stayed in Seddonville (Northend of the Trail) the night before, left our vehicles at the trailend the morning of the ride, and jumped on a 2-hour shuttle to the trailhead in the ghost-town of Lyell.

    Our first day of riding was fairly easy, a steady climb of 900 m over 17 km through forest. We arrived at the Lyell hut shortly after 1 PM, which gave us almost too much time to chat with other cyclists and trampers, cook, watch a family of feral goats play, and read “Spirit to the Stone” (Background section).

    The second day started much like the first, with a low grade climb over 6 km up to and above the bushline. From their things got a whole bunch more interesting. The views from the tops, were splendid, and featured much of the Glasgow and Saint Arnaud Range, basically half the width of the South Island. The trail followed a soft ridgeline to cliffs encompassing a peak called Rocky Tor. The trail then side-skirted the very steep and rocky west face of the mountain for several kilometers and was easily the most frightening part of the second day. Parts of this section were no more than 60 cm wide, so any mistake would be pretty rough, and probably fatal. Lisa and I walked our bikes through lots of this section. The trail did eventually meet back up with the softer ridgeline, which then dropped back into the bush for a bit, until reaching a lake and an overlook, on which the Ghost Lake Hut sat; our home for the evening.

    Again, we had arrived in the early afternoon, so after a short nap, Lisa and I scrambled up to the top of a peak just behind the hut. We were treated with great views of the surrounding mountain ranges, and a sweet vantage point of the trail behind us and ahead of us. It seems that much of the New Zealand’s mountain ranges are nearly continuous, where smooth walk-able ridges tie the mountains together like webbed feet. To a hiker, this is enticing, as you can “bag” several peaks without loosing and regaining much elevation. Lisa and I decided to do just that, so we wandered a ridgeline for several kilometers. Looking back in the general direction of the hut, we decided that dropping into the valley and climbing back up a separate peak could be an interesting shortcut back. Sadly, it was not. We totally underestimated the longness of the really long grass, the uneven rocks from which it grew, and the steepness of the terrain. But we did eventually make it back to the hut, tired, thirsty, sneezing, and covered in prickly native grass seeds.

    Knowing we had a difficult and full day ahead of us, we woke up reasonably early and headed back onto the trail. The first 5 km of trail heading north out of the hut in infamously difficult. It was no joke, tight and steep switchbacks down a crumbing rock face, then up an equally steep but technical climb onto a knife edge ridge, followed by flowy turns through a bolder field atop the ridge. For us, this involved a great deal of walking our bikes, although the sections which could be ridden were maybe the best build of any trail Lisa or I had ever ridden. The ridgeline abruptly becomes steeper, and the smooth flowy trail was replaced by a staircase, consisting of over 300 steps (according to the book, F counting) which climbs down the tops back into native brush. The following 30 km, apart from a short climb up through a boulder field, was cruisy , winding down some 1000 meters through dense forest to the Mokihinui Hut, where we were set to stay. We were happy to find that 20 of those km did not require pedaling!

    Upon inspection of the hut, and based on our energy levels, Lisa and I decided to skip the stay, and the subsequent sand-fly bites, and head for the trail exit. After eating some food, taking a quick nap, and going for a swim in the Mokihinui, we jumped back on the bikes and headed for our van. We had expected the last 20 km to be an easy straightforward section, as it had once been used as a pack trail, servicing a now long gone forming community in the Mokihinui Valley, but were mistaken. The remainder of trail was somewhat of a rollercoster; constantly climbing into and out of the steep-walled gorge formed by the Mokihinui River, onroute to the Tasman Sea. While this section was beautiful, it was also difficult, and narrow in places. It also featured several skinny suspension bridges linking ridable breaks between cliffs through the gorge.

    We made it off the trail around 7:30 PM , tired but stoked about the day. We headed into Westport, grabbed some cheap and greasy takeaway and beer, and found a hotel room for the night. Thinking back, it was an interesting decision to keep going and finish in three days, instead of extending our trip over four days. But it was easily one of the best bike days either of us had had, and I think when that happens, you should probably drink beer and have the luxury of a shower.

    Keegan    Meer informatie

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  • Keegan and LisaAn NZ Odyssey by Lisa & KeeganReiziger

    Nelson

    7 januari 2019, Nieuw-Zeeland ⋅ ☀️ 25 °C

    Since getting to the South Island, we decided to try out something new. Friends introduced us to helpx which is basically a help exchange service - you work for 2-4 hrs a day and your host provides you with accommodations and food. This was appealing for a few reasons: 1 - easy way to stretch our money, 2 - could be a nice way to socialize and get to know people better, not just small talk all the time!, and 3 - (and probably the most important) we can't sleep in Betty any longer!
    Our first week of helpx was planned for Nelson. We stayed with an awesome couple, Brandy and Kyle who are actually originally from Colorado. We planned to stay for 1 week with them so we could check out Nelson area and before we started on bike packing trip on the west coast. For 3 hrs of work a day we had our own granny flat and had supper meals with them most days. Kyle was an amazing cook and so we ate REAL good! They also really enjoy to drink wine and gin, and seemed happy that we did too! Basically our job was to putz around and do garden work. There is something really relaxing about pulling weeds so I was happy to be back in the garden:) Other task included oiling the deck, and cutting up wood for the spa. We both really enjoyed our stay and feel like we may be back at some point! At least for a visit.

    Besides garden work and hanging out with Brandy and Kyle, we actually had a social life this week haha. While traveling through the North Island, we had met some sweet couples along the way who happen to be in Nelson at the same time as us. We met up with Abby and Nick (our TA walking friends) and went out for Indian food and beer 1 night. We also planned a few bike ride dates with Nolan and Jess (bike travelling friends) and went to the movies one night (saw Free solo - it as insane!). Kind of funny that all of our new friends ended up being from the States haha.

    The biking in Nelson is so great and we barely stretched the surface of the trails in the area. Definitely the most challenging riding to date with a lot of technical trails but a great way to build up our skills. I took quite a few tumbles during the week, mostly because I was having some brake issues (or lack thereof) but was cool to see how much our biking skills have improved! In the 4 months we have been in NZ, we have been out for at least 50+ rides and it shows:).

    All in all, our week in Nelson was wicked!    Meer informatie

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  • Keegan and LisaAn NZ Odyssey by Lisa & KeeganReiziger

    North of the South - Abel Tasman area

    4 januari 2019, Nieuw-Zeeland ⋅ ☀️ 17 °C

    So we have officially arrived in the South Island! We took the ferry over at night and woke up in Blenheim. We weren't exactly sure what we were going to do for the next few days but lots to explore. There is alot to do in Blenheim but our main activity here was getting some new tires on Betty🙄. Then we headed up towards Abel Tasman for some biking and hiking time!. We checked out the bike park in Kaiteriteri and did a bit of exploring and hiking in Abel Tasman National Park. Nice way to spend a long weekend and enjoy some great weather!Meer informatie

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  • Keegan and LisaAn NZ Odyssey by Lisa & KeeganReiziger

    Tongariro Crossing/NYE

    31 december 2018, Nieuw-Zeeland ⋅ ⛅ 17 °C

    I was pretty excited this year for New Years Eve. Keegan and I were heading back to National Park area to do the Tongariro Crossing. But mostly excited to bring in the new year with friends! Tanis is actually one of my oldest friends. We met back when I was 14 playing field hockey. We started out playing against each other in high school and eventually became great friends after many years of playing Provincial field hockey together. I don't get to see Tanis or her husband Josh very often because they live in Macau China. They are both elementary teachers and are going on six years away teaching, first in Korea and now for the past 4 years in Macau. This year they picked New Zealand to spend their xmas holidays which meant I also got to spend some quality time with them😊.
    We did the tongariro Crossing together and celebrated up at Whakapapa the New year. The hike basically passes between 2 volcanoes - Mt Ngaueuhue (aka mt. Doom) and tongariro, with Mt. Ruapehu in the background.
    We had incredible weather and the views were stunning! Hands down the busiest hike I have ever done but that was somewhat expected. Still so awesome and such a special day visiting and catching up with great friends:) It was the best!    Meer informatie

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  • Keegan and LisaAn NZ Odyssey by Lisa & KeeganReiziger

    Wellington

    28 december 2018, Nieuw-Zeeland ⋅ ☀️ 17 °C

    We were sad to leave the farm but felt it was time, mostly because we still had alot to see and do before we catch the ferry to the south island. We headed down towards Wellington. It was our first time back in a bigger city since Auckland. Of course, there are a bunch of mountain bike parks in and around the city we wanted to check out and apparently a really cool museum too. Since the sun finally came out we decided to stop on the way down to Wellington at the Putangirua Pinnacles by Cape Palliser for a little hike. Another LOR filming spots Haha. It reminded me a bit like the hoodoos we have at home.

    We spent 4 days around Wellington, which was broken up by a 2 night detour back up to Tongagriro area for a visit with old friends and some more hiking for New Years Eve. While we were in Wellington we checked out a few biking areas: Matara Peak, Mt.Victoria and lower Hutt area. All were pretty great, with Matara peak being my favourite. We did our touristy duties and checked out the Te Papa museum and went for a walk around the waterfront as well. The museum had some cool parts - mostly these amazing life-like gigantic statues of world war I soldier but besides that it was just a crazy tourist zoo! We also went exploring to find a friend we met back in Taupo who was a coffee roaster and made the best chocolate cake ever! But unfortunately he was still on xmas holidays. So we found a brewery instead. Both Keegan and I really enjoyed Wellington. For me, its the perfect size city and has a really beautifully set up. They call it windy Wellington for a reason and the only crappy part is the crazy winds and often really rainy weather. But on a good day, it definitely made me want to stay.    Meer informatie

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  • Keegan and LisaAn NZ Odyssey by Lisa & KeeganReiziger

    Sanders Farm - Part Two

    20 december 2018, Nieuw-Zeeland

    Part 1 of the Sanders farm hopefully did its job of describing the Sanders family, how absolutely awesome they are, and how much christmasey Christmas was while away from our own respective families. Part 2 is all the other fun stuff Lisa and I did while we were staying with the Sanders.

    The Sanders Live on farm 30 minutes drive South East of Masterton on the North Island. Their land is beautiful; green rolling hills manicured by their herd grazing sheep , overgrown access roads winding their way up said hills, planted pine blocks, a river lined with native brush, and a stream with a giant waterfall. You could film a video promoting tourism for the North island here. This was great news for Lisa and I as we could happily hike, and even mountain bike for hours without leaving the farm.

    The planted pine blocks also offered entertainment on the rainy days, errr at-least that’s what I called it much to the chagrin of the Sanders. I found out that planted pine blocks are perfect for building mountain bike trails on as the loamy soil under the pines are free of underbrush, and can easily be moved with a rack. Over two days of pushing dirt and pine needles, and digging out some banked switch-backs I built a mile long section of trail that wondered along a rocky ridge through the pine block. We were able to ride the trail, which Lisa described as “raw”, “narrow” , and “could be better with a few more days of building”. I agreed with here assessment.

    We also made a day trip out to the coastal village of Castle Point. The day was sunny and the town was super scenic. I was also able to surf for a couple hours on a beach break which I had all to myself. I think Lisa read, I don’t know… I was in the zone.

    Keegan    Meer informatie

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  • Keegan and LisaAn NZ Odyssey by Lisa & KeeganReiziger

    Part 1 - Christmas with the Saunders

    19 december 2018, Nieuw-Zeeland ⋅ ⛅ 17 °C

    Both Keegan and I really enjoy the Christmas holidays. I love the decorating, baking, silly movies, social get togethers, the family time and the winter wonderland back drop we often have on Christmas day. For as long as I can remember, all of my Calgary family would get together for Christmas. As all of us cousins get older, we don’t see each other that often so Christmas was always a great time to catch up. For both Keegan and I, this is our first Christmas away from home. It's also my first Christmas in summer! Although we are missing our own families this year, we are both feeling very grateful for an invitation out to the Saunder's (Luke’s family) sheep farm for some xmas celebrations.

    Now to give you a bit of back story since both Keegan and I have our own weird connection to the Saunder’s family. Mine is pretty straight forward – I use to live with Lana and then eventually with Luke when he moved in. Luke and Lana are now married with a baby and we had an opportunity to meet the Family in Canada when they were out for the wedding and to meet baby Mataya. Keegan’s story is a bit more random, but it turns out that Keegan’s mom’s best bud Cecilia from Vulcan AB has cousins in NZ and Luke’s mom, Gwenda is good friends with these cousins and Cecilia! Its kind of funny to think if Keegan and I hadn’t met before, we both still may have ended up at the Saunder’s farm in NZ one day. Small world!

    On the farm, there are 2 houses: Gwenda and Sam’s (parents place) and Benny’s (sister’s place). We stayed over with Benny but had alot of visiting between both houses. Besides thousands of sheep all around, they have a few pets too: Frank, the goat, Roger and Dodger the Alpaca’s and Luigi and Diego, the pet sheep. I got into the Christmas spirit once we arrived and did some Christmas baking, made some eggnog (they don’t have eggnog in NZ), put up xmas lights, cut down and decorated a tree with Benny. We even had a few xmas presents under the tree for us:). Traditions here are very similar to back home and we even had a bit of turkey on Christmas day! We celebrated Christmas with Gwenda’s extended family out on the east coast. Unfortunately it poured rain the whole day so it wasn’t exactly the beach Christmas we were hoping for but it was still great to visit with the new NZ fam. We both really enjoyed farm life and I'd say we are basically sheep farmers now...    Meer informatie

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