Back to Queenstown

It has now been 20 days since we arrived in Auckland to start this trip. A lot has happened during that time, including the added challenge of having to deal with Maggie's serious illness. There were times that she really felt the trip would have to be abandoned and we would have to return to Australia earlier than planned.

I am relieved to say that Maggie is now making steady progress. Although she is still feeling very fatigued at the end of every, her appetite is improving and she has finally been able to make some good memories.

So now we are nearing the conclusion of our travels. This morning we left Te Anau for the 170 km drive to Queenstown. Since this is where our cycling began, it was like a case of deja vu as we again drove through several locations that we had ridden through a couple of weeks earlier.

We arrived in Queenstown around lunchtime and most of us went to get lunch at the food caravans near the hotel. While we were eating we could see the daredevils hang gliding from the top of the nearby mountain. Although it was impossible to tell from such a distance, two of those thrill seekers were Sue and Andrea, who had both decided that they would confront their fears and take the leap of faith.

The rest of the afternoon was spent relaxing and wandering around the edge of the lake, Tomorrow will be the last full day of our adventure, but at this stage we had no definite plans on how we would spend it.Read more