Day 361: Hobbits in Isengard

Today was our last full day in the South Island. Mary planned a full day of LotR site seeing, so we packed away our leftover pizza and set. Our intended destination was a valley of the of Dart River, which was used for Isengard. Along the road, we picked up a hitchhiker named Tee. He was hiking the south island portion of the Te Araroa (The Long Pathway). The full hike is a 4 month, 3000km path that takes you from the northernmost point on the north island to the southernmost point on the south island. He was about 40 days in with 10 more to go. We took a quick detour to drop him off in Kinloch and stopped at an Isengard Lookout spot to enjoy the scenery.

Next we drove up the Road of Paradise where they filmed Gandalf entering Isengard and the Wizards Veil and the hobbits reaching Lothlórien. We had to drive over fords with our 4WD rental vehicle; we stopped at one river because it was wayyy too deep and walked the remainder of the way. We grabbed a hitchhiker on the way back to Queenstown; a young British doctor who is working in New Zealand with her husband.

We got back to Cath’s and John’s in time for an afternoon swim in the cold cold lake and kayaking. While Kieran had the kayak, a family of 5 ducks swam up to Mary and pleaded for food. After the swim, used Cath and John’s sauna and outdoor shower, which John designed and built himself. It was amazing and now we want an outdoor wooden shower!

We made Cath and John dinner to thank them and enjoyed hot tea on their porch before crashing. We thank them again for their amazing hospitality. It was so much fun to discuss deep issues in the world while also reflecting on how privileged we are to enjoy it.

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Dart River Valley
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