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New Zealand

December 2017 - April 2018
A 123-day adventure by Mates on tour Read more
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  • TravelerNew Zealand
    Day 26

    Mt Cook

    January 3, 2018 in New Zealand ⋅ ☀️ 16 °C

    With an overnight stay at a huge camp spot near a lake we continued our journey. We needed to take a little detour of about 150km because we missed visiting Mt Cook on the way from Christchurch to Timaru. Mt Cook is a must-see as it is the biggest mountain in New Zealand and offers some of the most beautiful views.
    We arrived there later in the afternoon and made a short hike of about two hours through the Hooker Valley to get a first glimpse at the mountain. For the next day we had planned to go up to Mueller Hut, a 8 hour hike with 1500m climb. It was a pretty tough way leading first over almost 2000 stairs, then through boulder fields and in the end through snow. But the views were magnificent down to the valley, over to Mi Cook and to Mueller Glacier. You were all the time accompanied by the cracking of ice in the glacier...
    The next day we spent driving to Lake Tekapo which was a bit disappointing as there is basically nothing at all to do. So we came back to Lake Pukaki and spent the night there relaxing, enjoying a glass of wine and later stargazing.    Read more

  • TravelerNew Zealand
    Day 27

    Wanaka

    January 4, 2018 in New Zealand ⋅ 🌬 20 °C

    Wanaka is also called the "cool little brother of Queenstown" because of the similar location to a lake and the mountains surrounding. Additionally there's quite a big backpacker scene and heaps to do. Before heading into town we stopped at a brewery and sampled some local beers. They weren't that good after all with some too intense the others just tasted like water.
    After checking in to the Visitor Center we rented a SUP to get a different view and for fun of course ;) It was much harder than it looked like but after some time we came along pretty well.
    The town is also famous for its Wanaka tree, a lone tree in the lake and - apparently - the most photographed tree in the world. When we came there in the evening there were no tourists and the light was perfect.

    For the next day we planned to go to a hike up to Rob Roy. Unfortunately the track was closed until further notice because of a wildfire right next to it. We were able to see the wildfire and the helicopters. We decided to move on as we didn't know when the track would reopen again. So we ended up in the Puzzling World Museum. A museum dedicated to trick your eyes.    Read more

  • TravelerNew Zealand
    Day 29

    Copland Track

    January 6, 2018 in New Zealand ⋅ 🌬 20 °C

    At the Department of Conservation in Haast we made a stop because there was also a free museum. An info board showed several huts and tracks in the area, one of them the Copland Track. It looked quite interesting with Hot Pools and a pretty flat profile.
    Unfortunately the hut there was fully booked for the next days but we wanted to go anyways. So we decided to hike there, half way back to another hut with campsites for the night and back in the morning.

    Overall it took us about 5 hours to get to the Hot pools which were surprisingly totally natural. Just some shallow holes in the ground but really warm to hot. The night was pretty uncomfortable in the tent being surrounded by heaps of mosquitos and sand flies. So I didn't sleep well, maybe its just because I didn't hike all day as I used to ;)    Read more

  • TravelerNew Zealand
    Day 31

    Glacier Country

    January 8, 2018 in New Zealand ⋅ 🌬 20 °C

    After hiking for two days and because the weather was pretty bad with rainfalls all day we decided not to go on a bigger hike at Fox Glacier. The trip to the viewpoint was about an hour but you couldn't see too much of the glacier, just the tip.
    The same was for Franz Josef Glacier (named after the Austrian-Hungarian emperor) but there you could see a bit more. Also the steel blue inner ice. Unfortunately both of them are dying at an immense fast pace and will be gone by 2035... The extent they had just 100 years ago compared to now is incredible and looking at this rest is sad.

    In Franz Josef village we got a spot in a well-equipped and cheap motor home park. Afterwards we bought a 2l box of ice cream as this was cheaper than two ice creams :D And because ice cream! In the evening we were visited by possums which weren't shy at all and crawled around the van searching for food.

    We considered doing a longer day hike at Franz Josef but due to heavy rainfalls the track was impassable, so we also just sticked to the viewpoint.    Read more

  • TravelerNew Zealand
    Day 35

    West Coast - Untamed wilderness

    January 12, 2018 in New Zealand ⋅ ☀️ 19 °C

    The West Coast gave itself the subtitle "Untamed Wilderness". And it really suits because there's no cellphone service almost the whole way and endless walks, hikes and tramping tracks into the backcountry. For our trip further north we rented a kayak for a great price at Lake Mahinapua. The scenery looked amazing on the pictures but unfortunately it started raining heavily just after a couple of minutes on the water. So that's why it was so cheap ;) But we paid for it, so we kept going for two hours with a short brake on a recreation area. We were completely trenched by the time we got back to the dock. It was great fun even though we couldn't see very far.
    After a short stop in Hokitika we continued further North to Greymouth, the largest town along the West Coast. There we had our first proper resupply since leaving Queenstown, charged our devices. Besides that there wasn't much to do... Some smaller walks in the town and that's it basically.

    The highlight on the West Coast are the Pancake rocks and blowholes in Punakaiki. A lovely situated series of cliffs along a short stretch of walks. Besides that there was a short walk to a hidden beach and a cave tour. We even got to see some glowworms in the cave. You really get a full program here with easy effort...

    Overall we loved the scenery on the West Coast with the rough winds and sea, diverse landscapes and nature's wonders.    Read more

  • TravelerNew Zealand
    Day 39

    Abel Tasman Great Walk

    January 16, 2018 in New Zealand ⋅ ☀️ 22 °C

    If you're in the Golden Bay, the Abel Tasman National Park is a must-see! Serene beaches with stunning views that can be experienced best as part of a multi day hike along the Great Walk.
    In our case we decided to go for a single night camping because of several reasons, the first was the weather forecast which predicted rain for the second day. Besides the most beautiful spots are in the first 2/3 of the hike. So the first leg took us 20 kilometers to a quiet beach and Campsite. The length of the track differs depending on the low tide when you can shorten it by crossing shallow bays. By planning the next day we realised that we could either go late in the afternoon of early in the morning. We decided to head out at 4 in the morning so we could make it across a section that can only be passed at low tide!!
    That's the Appalachian Trail all over again :D But we managed to cross safely and arrived at 10 at the end of our trip. Because of the weather there we almost no cars so we switched from hitchhiking to get a taxi boat back.    Read more

  • TravelerNew Zealand
    Day 48

    Marlborough

    January 25, 2018 in New Zealand ⋅ ☀️ 26 °C

    We came to Marlborough/Blenheim with the intention of me getting a job... But after about a week we decided to move on.
    There were promises from a local "Seasonal worker coordinator" that I would get jobs within two days but in the end I never heard back from her. So it was logical that we continued our travels until the end, to Christchurch with just having left out some spots for our way up to the North Island.
    But we had a pretty good time in the area with nice hikes and beautiful camp spots.    Read more

  • TravelerNew Zealand
    Day 77

    Canterbury Plains

    February 23, 2018 in New Zealand ⋅ ⛅ 14 °C

    We've stayed for a few weeks at a farm in the middle of the Canterbury plains aka the WhoopWhoops. It was an amazing experience and we enjoyed the company of the Scarlett family and their animals a lot! But we didn't do too much exploring in the time :)
    The only remarkable trip we made was up to Mt Hutt and the nearby Rakaia Gorge.    Read more

  • TravelerNew Zealand
    Day 83

    Arthur's Pass

    March 1, 2018 in New Zealand ⋅ ☀️ 25 °C

    After my mum arrived, Arthur's Pass was our first stop. We are happy to be back on the road. And Arthur's Pass was an amazing spot!
    The scenery stretches over to the West Coast with heaps of possibilities to stop and have a break/hike. First we explored Castle Hill, gentle slopes covered with rocks. We spent about an hour walking and climbing over them.
    The next stop was at Cave River Stream. It was a tip from some friends in Christchurch and turned out to be a memorable experience. After a short walk to the cave entrance it turns pitch dark within 25 metres and we were up to our hips in ice cold water. As you make your way up through the cave the current intensifies and and some point we had trouble going up the rocks. It's an intense one hour walk and I'd recommend it to anyone.    Read more

  • TravelerNew Zealand
    Day 88

    Wellington

    March 6, 2018 in New Zealand ⋅ ☁️ 19 °C

    After a detour to Motueka visiting friends of my mum we headed North. Finally crossing the Cook Straight to the North Island.
    We had beautiful weather in the Picton but it turned worse on the other shore with a temperature drop down to 13 degrees. After arriving in Wellington we first explored the city center with the parliament and took the tram up to the Botanic Gardens. From there we walked down to the city again.
    Before finding a spot for the night we went to the Weta Workshop. A series of buildings that became successful as the studio responsible for the costumes and CGI for the Lord of the Rings movies. Since then they have made a lot more movies, like Avatar and iRobot.
    For the second day in Wellington we went to the National Museum. The entry is for free and we enjoyed all the exhibitions about New Zealand and the Maori culture. After an empty battery of the van we fled the city.    Read more

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