North to South

Mangaweka

We camped along the Rangikei River for two nights. The first day we went on a rafting trip, followed by lounging in the sun, studying, etc. Some people found a bungee jump option available and did that. I almost said yes, but having already done it (in Whistler), if I do it again it’ll be in Queenstown, the second highest in the world! Cody, Tommy and I made an awesome fajita dinner and afterwards, along with others, led by David, went and hanged out with other campers (a couple girls from NZ, a German and Canadian guy).We were invited to a party in Wellington so we’ll see if we make it! I went on a 25minute run and finally did some core, and a few others went bridge jumping. We also went into town and had fish and chips with the Expedition group and hit up the bar afterwards.

Wellington

I had already been to Wellington, so this stop was quite anti-climatic, although it was a really nice to spend more time here during the daytime. It was a great time to hit the city, do some laundry, and just hang out. We also “started” classes, which consisted of meeting for five hours over two days. We hit up the Te Papa Museum and meandered around the city. We had a group dinner at Monsoon Poon, an Indian restaurant that had “Love You Long Time,” on the steps leading up to it that we all found quite humorous. In the evening we went up Mt. Victoria for a nighttime view of the city. We also, of course, hit up the bars and had a great time! It was really funny when a couple people decided to do a “reverse bungy” every night, although I declined… We had an early morning to catch the inter-island ferry to take us to the South Island. It was a three and a half hour ferry ride on a boat that had ten decks. There were reclining lounges, a children’s play area, theater, café, bar, sun decks, etc. Quit awesome! It was even better that as we traveled South, the weather just got better. The views reminded me very much of the West. I knew I was going to love this place.

Nelson

Nelson is the sunniest city in the country and it was beautiful when we arrived at our hostel. The first activity planned for Nelson was a skydive from 16,500feet where we were given oxygen on the way up. UNDESCRIBABLE. I spent more than I ever had on a video and photos, although it is absolutely worth it. I loved it and am thoroughly considering getting certified. Some other people also flew a plane where they got to do a bunch of tricks, rolls, etc. The following day Dash, Coby, and I decided to walk towards town and swim to this rock and island. We stopped at a café on the water where they agreed to hold our stuff and we told them we would come back for lunch. We swam and then had salads. Perfectly fulfilling after that little jaunt; especially since coming back we were swimming against the tide. Coby headed back to the hostel and Dash and I walked nearly to the next town before heading back to Tahunanui Beach. Fortunately on our walk back to the hostel, Bree and Doug (our trip leaders) drove by and offered us a ride! We figured we walked about 9 miles… Everyone went grocery shopping for camping and I rediscovered Maggi raman noodles that I literally have not seen since I was in India. It decided it would be my dinner for the next couple of days!

Abel Tasman

First of all, it is important to note the beauty of this national park. It was incredible too because we got to kayak in to a spot called “Anchorage,” about three hours. The introduction to kayak, however, took forever! Granted I haven’t kayaked in a while, the instructor was a bit excessive and took over an hour to explain strokes, turning, flipping, etc. I was in a boat with Cody and we easily packed our gear for the next couple of days in our boat. The water was rather pleasant, and only got windy for the last forty-five minutes. When we arrived, we tossed around a rugby ball, I tried to climb on the crumbly rocks, and then went scrambling along the beach rocks to find another beach and a crazy inter-tidal zone where we found out the following day that has a 7ft change in water levels. Dash and I were in our swimsuits without shoes, but still decided to hike to “Cleopatra’s Pool.” We tramped (hiked) for about seven miles to come back to everyone already eaten but a fire going. The following day the group was going to the pool, so again, Dash and I decided to take another track (trail) that would take us to a part of the park we hadn’t gone to. We ended up wading through the intertidal area where I had to swim in parts. We climbed up to meet on the track to Torrent Bay and took the turn to the River Track. It was the unmaintained trail I’ve been on so far in NZ and it was great! Reminiscent of climbing trails- although without a pack; so great! We get back to camp and figure that we hiked about nine miles. We spent our last night with a bit of group bonding, fire time, and then got an early start in the morning to hike out, about seven miles.

Kaikoura

A four hour drive takes us down the coast to another hostel where we had a low key night because we needed to get up early to go SWIM WITH DOLPHINS! I was in the van with the radio that mysteriously stopped working a few days ago but we had a nice singing session. We stopped for a seal viewing and then made it to our hostel (that sits across the road from the beach). For dinner, we had fish and chips and then watched the childhood classic movie with Ben Stiller, “Heavyweights.” An early morning (5am) brought us into the Pacific Ocean for a gorgeous sunrise and a viewing of around 600 dusky dolphins. We stopped three times and were able to jump in and scuba around with them. It was incredible! I am so happy to have an underwater digital camera too! A first grade dream come true :) For the rest of the day we had a class and roamed around the waterfront streets of Kaikoura, saw a few seals, and checked out the nightlife.

Christchurch

Started off with finding a bar immediately to watch the Superbowl!!!