Back to the Road

After a week of WWOOFing I am just about itching to be back on the road again.

But I have learned a lot. I explored the two main (and only) attractions of the area:

The first was a one hour hike up slippery steps to a million-year-old cave system, the Rawhiti Caves. Pretty impressive.

Also pretty scary, standing right underneath them and having "WARNING: DO NOT LINGER AT CAVE ENTRANCE" signs nearby.

The second was the Grove.
This particular part right here should have Stairway to Heaven playing in the background.

 Odd stone formations made for an interesting hike.














Some beach bike rides to pass the time...

All in all, glad to be headed down for the glacier, but also a little nostalgic about this little piece of paradise in the middle of nowhere. Goodbye Pohara.

WWOOF

...as I have mentioned before is a volunteering program where Willed Workers can work on Organic Farms. Depending on your host, you can have anything between an intense working experience while living in a shed, or a bed-and-breakfast luxury stay.

I was incredibly lucky with my first WWOOFing experience.

Up in the Golden Bay, near the edge of the Abel Tasman Park, my hosts have built a Mediterranean guest-house and restaurant which they run with their two daughters and a few helpers.

I am staying for a week in my own cabin, have my own kitchen and can pick my own apples and avocados. The work is incredibly simple, just maintaining the Inn and serving the guests, occasional gardening and dish-washing, no sweat.



The beach is just two minutes from the orchard. There are caves to explore, little shops and cafés nearby...

Unfortunately we also have heavy, heavy rain that won't be clearing up for two days, so I'll be catching up on my reading and enjoying the pleasant change in privacy.

At least the rain clouds look cool running over the hills.

Here's an impression of my stay:

My little home

Their oldest daughter sleeps in this campervan (and I get the cute little cabin?)

Kept spotless by the best WWOOFer ever

The hosts have their own house on the property

Aaaand my crib from outside

Easter Kayaking

Abel Tasman National Park stretches along the north-western coast of the South Island. Crystal clear water and tropical beaches are only a walk/paddle/water-taxi away.

A Stray bus friend and I rented a two-man kayak and after a short safety briefing and a few instructions, we were already pushing our boat into the water. Other than a short comment on how far we could go and when we should be back, we had no limits.

We paddled out to a remote little beach tucked into the bay. I've had lunch in worse places.







After soaking up the view we cruised out to where our water proof map said there should be seals, hoping to catch a glimpse...












...and there they were. All dozing on the rocks, sun-basking...














One of the smaller seals hopped into the water and did some good-natured jumps next to the Kayak (which scared the hell out of us, almost dropped my camera) before disappearing in the clear blue below.












With sore shoulders and arms we returned and had a pleasant Easter campfire dinner with the rest of the Stray group.

The Windy City

...is what Wellington is known as.





Except when we arrived it was 25°C and not a cloud in the sky. I immediately fell in love with the capital of New Zealand; everything is within walking distance, lots to do and see and beaches only a ten minute walk from the city center.

One of those beaches is Oriental Bay, perfectly clean water at swimming temperature and a stunning view - right there near super markets and highways.

To see the sunset we climbed Mount Victoria, a mountain often used by by bikers for its steepness. It was a tough hike but totally worth the view.

I was catching my breath, feeling quite proud of myself, when ten army guys jogged past us, dropped to the ground, and did 35 push-ups.









Welly at night though? Amazing.

The next day we took a cable car to the botanical gardens. Winding walks lead us down into a mixture of native bush and foreign plants. Needless to say, the view from up there was stunning too.

The day was sweetened by an unexpected call from a WWOOFing host I had written to, telling me I could come work for his family for a week. They own an Inn near Abel Tasman National Park as well as farmland, and for four hours of work a day I get free food and accommodation.

I'm telling you, the day seemed twice as sunny after that.


My Wellington experience was nicely rounded up with a crazy beer pong tournament.








I only played one round, since I was taking the night ferry to the South Island at 2 AM...

...and I'd tell you all about it but since I hadn't slept the night before I was so sleep-deprived at some point, half of it didn't even register in my brain.

It's safe to say I am on the South Island now, have caught up on my sleep and am psyched to start "work" on Monday.

Waterfall No 12394

I hopped on a very different kind of Stray bus to get to the Tongariro Crossing (a very beautiful 19km walk up and across Mount Doom.) The group was pretty big with so many mixed nationalities, and everyone got along so well, it resulted in a couple of interesting evenings.





The drive to 'Blue Duck Station', our next hostel, was amazing: there's an active volcano smoking away right on the horizon.














Blue Duck Station is about as far inland as you can get. Tucked between the mountains and a river, you can do kayaking, hunting, horse trekking and other activities.

I went for a nice one-hour walk to the nearby falls with a few others. Despite the humidity and heat of the afternoon, it began to rain, but the dripping leaves and rocks made the waterfall even more beautiful.

And of course, one has to go to the bottom and the top of any sort of falls here.

I even made some friends on the way back. They kept running away and then stopping and waiting for me at the next corner...

They weren't very talkative though.

As the day of the Crossing approached. heavy fog and monsoon-like rains hit the Station and the hike was, surprisingly, cancelled. (And I mean that, they rarely cancel an activity this popular.)

So instead we stayed in this alpine lodge, soaked in the hot tub and did the typical New Zealand pasttime activity: visiting yet another waterfall.

The first was Gollum's Pool.

The second was Taranaki Falls, which required a two hour walk through the volcanic tundra.

All in all, a fun and hike-heavy couple of days.

And then a five hour drive away from the WiFi-less lands into...

Wellington!

More to come... :)

Danger Zone

When our bus driver put on Danger Zone and started talking about the Lake Taupo skydive, a very spontaneous, crazy thought took hold.

12.000 feet, a 20 minute scenic flight, with no video included but a clear view of the North Island above the great Lake Taupo?

Why not?

When they give you your jumpsuit and strap on your harness, that's when the nerves kick in.
And during the flight up, that's when your stomach starts to protest.

And when they push the person in front of you towards the front of the plane, when you see your friends just... fall out sideways and plummet down, and when the instructor strapped to your back proceeds to push you to the plane door...

Let's just say every cell in your body is screaming "what the hell are you doing".

Then your legs dangle at airplane-height with nothing holding you except for the instructor hanging on to the plane...

...and then he lets go.

You free-fall thousands of feet per second and the wind is in your hair and the great wide lake and New Zealand is spread out below you and it's exhilarating. I screamed and screamed and felt the adrenaline pump through my veins...

And then they blow up the parachute and suddenly it's dead quiet. And you're laughing and crying and the instructor swings you around and the only sound is the wind flapping above. I was allowed brief control of the parachute, and let me tell you there's nothing quite as satisfying as swinging through the air, hundreds of feet from the ground, with all the control in your palms.

I still can't get the smile from my face. I would have paid for the video, if it wasn't almost as much as the dive itself.


Here's our faces before:

And here's our faces after:

From Narnia to the Shire

So in the last few days I have seen so many surreal places.

The archway to Narnia (from the sequel), leading up to the white sandy beach, with the sun sparkling on the clear ocean water... Yep, that place is real.

Cathedral Cove is a popular tourist attraction and a wonderfully scenic half hour walk. Exceeeept it's a bit longer if you don't have a hostel and decide to do the hike with 15 kilos worth of luggage strapped to your back.












Worth it though!

After that we dropped by Hot Water Beach, where ancient magma lies under the sand, heating up a spring of water. So boiling water bubbles up underneath the sand, and a huge crowd of people storms onto the beach at low tide to dig like mad until, yes, you have your own natural Jacuzzi.








We met a nice family that let us use their shovel, and even drove us a bit of the way back.












That's when we met even more nice Kiwis, that led us down to their boats where we could crash for the night. No internet, no shower, but a clear star-speckled sky and the sun rising at breakfast.

The next day we traveled to Rotorua, city of geothermal activity and the famous rotten egg smell. I didn't do much there, because it was finally time to catch the (very early) bus to HOBBITON.

One of these really costly tourist attractions that have you wondering if it's really worth the money until you finally just do it and yes, yes it - is. (Notice Bilbo's oak tree at the top, with artificial leaves for that extra green shine.)

The set is beautifully decorated and even though there are quite a lot of tours, they are informative and well-organised so that there are never too many people in one place.

In the Green Dragon I was served a complimentary cider (which, under the New Zealand sun, gave me a very unexpected but no less pleasant afternoon buzz).

The night was spent at Lake Aniwhenua, where the Stray company organised another cultural night with the Maori. I was taught how to weave bracelets out of flax, given the traditional Hangi meal cooked int he ground, tried smoked eel aaaaand took part in a very satisfying experience: Visiting the local school to give our leftovers to the Maori first graders.

One of the kids stole my camera and I now have 100 random photos of EVERYTHING in their classroom.

The kids were so sweet and thankful.