After a damp, 4 day Milford Track walk, we needed a place to dry out our hiking boots and sip quality coffee….hello Queenstown!
It’s hard not to get an amazing view in Queenstown. We love this place; it’s been a long time between visits but the vibe is exactly the same. In fact, it’s youthful exuberance has bubbled over and it is positively overflowing with arty cafes, VW wine dispensers, Antipodean trading stores, cool buskers, a food scene to die for, serious traffic and, of course, buses filled with snap-happy, Asian tourists… 
The Luge…. with a view…
We stopped at Mt Cook on the drive from Queenstown to Christchurch; this scenery just never gets boring…
Above and below; Lake Takapo
Above middle; the view from our alpine hut near the base of Mount Cook
Surrounded by the Southern Alps on all sides, Aoraki/Mt Cook soars skyward to 3,754m.
In Christchurch we picked up our 6 berth campervan and spent a night at my sister-in-laws place in Lyttleton; her house was warm and friendly, full of teenagers, dogs, laughter and great food! Thanks Peta!
The campervan was a monster. Russel’s driver’s license had, somehow, sometime (while we were bobbing around in the Pacific) expired and so I was the driver of the beast! It was fun to pilot but we gained a new appreciation of Tika- and her 1350 watts of solar, wind generators and electro-san sewerage treatment system. Mr Maui needed to be plugged in for power, the toilet cassette was ridiculously small and needed emptying every day or 2, the shower was like a stand up coffin and most ‘free’ campsites were so full of campervans, it felt like we were living in a car park with the word ‘tourist’ tattooed to our foreheads. Still, a road trip is a road trip. We love road trips and the kids loved Mr Maui. We did find a number of blissful, secluded parks and slowly made our way all the way back to Auckland….
White Bay (north-east coast of the south island)
State Highway 1 north to Kaikouri had only just re-opened after the 7.8 magnitude earthquake on November 14th 2016 (the same night we arrived in New Zealand) and the extent of the damage was still quite visible and frightening. Straight, solid highway crash barriers disappeared at intervals in chaotic squiggles of crushed and twisted metal and trails of ‘ploughed’ land showed the wake of massive boulders and scree land slips that now rested below…
Below- the Interislander Cook Strait ferry from Picton (on the North coast of the South island) to Wellington (in the North island) takes 3 hours. The first hour had us cruise passed the beautiful Marlborough Sounds…After the sounds we settled into the ferry lounge and made good use of the free wifi.
Above right; The Marlborough Sounds- we look forward to bringing Tika here!
In the lake Taupo area we soaked in hot springs, swam in the lake and hung out with peacocks…
On our way to Hobbiton we found somewhere that sounded much more excellent- Greerton!
Middle Earth did call to us to the town of Matamata and Peter Jackson’s ‘Lord of the Rings’ trilogy and ‘The Hobbit’ film series movie set.
The Alexander family farm was first viewed by Peter Jackson on an aerial search and what he saw he described as “ like a slice of ancient England” that fit perfectly with J.R.R Tolkien’s depiction of the shire. Now the site is riddled with 44 oh-so-cute Hobbit holes…..
Above; The only fake tree in Bag-End. 26 tonnes! And apparently it has 200,000 leaves that were individually spray painted by hand. Both sides!
The Hobbiton tour experience was super-expensive but, honestly, delightful. Everyone we came in contact with from the bus driver to the tour guide and even the bloke that served us cider at the Green Dragon were open, friendly, homely and with hearty laughs and sparkling eyes…a bit hobbit-ish really. Every-one was (it seemed) authentically invested in the story and had personal involvement and knowledge of the movies, the set and the community that has evolved around the film(s) Our guide, a medical student, told us funny stories including one about how her father, a local GP, once treated one of the actors who had been injured by a goat during filming. Due to the secrecy that surrounded the set, his hobbit costume had to be hidden from most of the hospital staff and mystery, small-town gossip and a million theories about the strange goings on at Alexander farm ensued.
After experiencing Hobbiton, we were inspired to re-watch all of the movies. They were that much more enjoyable having witnessed the detail and perfection of the set and with a better understanding of the director and his horror movie background.
The Green Dragon…a place of mead, beer, cider, warmth and character…
Our road trip ended back at Tika, who was quietly awaiting us nestled in the Keri Keri river…We arrived back at 9pm on Sunday night and dropped our lines in the wee hours of the following morning. It was Waitangi Day and we headed to the treaty grounds to be part of the celebrations…it was a slightly nostalgic, dawn trip down river as we headed out for the last time…
Goodbye Keri Keri; you’ve been a delightful host and soul nourishing haven!
On February 6th 1840 a treaty was signed between representatives of the British government and some 40 Maori chiefs at this site in Waitangi in the Bay of Islands. The signing of this document secured British sovereignty over the islands of New Zealand and the day is now a national public holiday. To some, the day is a celebration of Maori culture, to others it is a day to protest and reflect on the controversy surrounding the treaty and the impact on New Zealand’s indigenous people. For many, it is a welcome day off in the height of New Zealand’s summer…
We arrived early and anchored just off of the treaty grounds. There were several stages, many market-style stalls, crowds and crowds of people, quality, cultural performances all day and a festival atmosphere. The highlight for us was seeing the waka (war canoes) out on the water. Ngatokimatawhaorua, the mother of all canoes is one of the largest Maori ceremonial waka . We had previously admired Ngatokimatawhaorua at the treaty grounds where she sits on high ground all year long. At 30m long she is impressive and seeing her on her annual dip in the waters off Waitangi was incredible. Made from the massive trunks of New Zealand’s giant Kauri trees, she weighs 6 tonne when dry and must first be carried and blessed to the water by the 80 plus paddlers….
Traditional Maori culture = pure energy both on the water and off. We feel honoured to have witnessed a snippet of the pride and deeply rich culture of the Maori peoples.
Above; Tika Taka 2 sits nestled between the waka fleet.
Next post; A haul out, a kiwi and a stint in the Whangerei town basin marina….
This entry was posted in The Sail.
I must have missed this part of your trip! I’m so glad you got to see inland NZ too. You’ve been to all my favourite places. Now, when are you moving here?!