Queenstown to Te Anau

Monday's drive from Queenstown to Te Anau—200 or so km—took us from one huge mountain lake to another, further west and south, but across ever changing ground. The departing views of Queenstown, across the lake, were great. After an hour or so along the west side of the lake, including Kingston and its working steam engine, the land became very dry and open, similar to the American West. Many scenes could have been Montana's high plains, ringed by mountains, but dry and rolling, the sage brush replaced by some low-growing, drought-loving Gondwanalandian shrub. A 40km detour over unsealed road (but no ford) took us to the Mavora Lakes, two beautiful trout-laden high lakes back in mountainous country. The last leg saw us in more rolling agricultural country, approaching Te Anau, the largest of these huge lakes, and the mountains of Fiordland.

Agricultural country. Indeed: all of New Zealand. Everything grows here, everything thrives here, on one island or the other and in the seas about. We ate at a restaurant Sunday night in Queenstown whose menu noted that all its dishes and ingredients were locally produced.

Queenstown from the Other Side of the Lake

The Kingston Flyer

A Real Kiwi Campervan

“They have such beautiful eyes,” (to paraphrase a Gene Wilder line from a favorite Woody Allen flick). According to tourist publications on driving in the back country, one should drive right straight into a flock like this at 5-10kmph and not hesitate nor waiver; the sheep will make way. If you stop, they will stop. That's exactly how it works, too.

January 19, 2009--Queenstown

We are just packing up to head to the Morevia Lakes and Te Anua region. There we will visit Fanghorn Forest ,another Ring site, but also begin the Milford Sound Trek which National Geographic proclaimed as the Best Hike in the World. Ever since the 80s it has been highly regulated. (We booked on July 15) Only 40 people can begin the 4 day hike each day. There is no camping allowed, everyone must stay in the huts and everyone hikes it in the same direction. The first day will only be about 2 hrs of walking as you have to take a 30 min bus ride from Te Anua to the start, then a boat to the actual start. I am most worried about days 3 and 4. Day 3 is 10 miles with a 1500 ft elevation gain and a 3000 ft descent over the pass. That is a lot for my knees even with the braces on. I have not done that much on this trip while carrying a pack. The 4th and last day is long for me at 12 miles but after day 3 I'm sure my legs will be talking to me. Unfortunately, the last boat that takes you to the lodge at the end of the road leaves at 3:15. There is no trail, so if we miss it, we spend the night without a tent at a wonderful place called Sandfly Point. We have been getting ready--and I think I can do it--I just hate having a deadline to worry about. We will spend two nights at Milford Sound at the backpackers lodge and kayak part of the sound after a rest day. Then we catch a bus back the 60 miles to Te Anua. One nice thing is that we can send a pack ahead on the bus to the lodge so that we can have a change of clothes and other amenities that we wouldn't be able to carry in on our backs. Mark and I have learned to backpack very light. It is great for the diet. If you have no food, you can't get fat!

I think Mark is doing a pretty good job in describing everything. Of course, he doesn't have the proper respect for the Ring sites we are visiting. But in reality he is really enjoying them as he is a big fan of the movies. Trying to find some of them has been difficult as we don't have a GPS and some of Brodie's directions are none too clear. Also some things have changed in the 8 years since the movies were made and 5 years since the location book was written. The hunt has taken us to many places we would have missed otherwise. It has reminded us of our trip to Europe in 1989. When we were in England and France we did a lot of hunting for menhirs and other paleolithic sites for Mark and then many fairytale and children's sites for the girls based on a book called Heidi's Alp. It really adds another dimension to a trip when you can drink from the spring that Heidi did (unfortunately, so did her sheep.)