Christchurch

It took quite a while to get to Christchurch. Early that morning, Verena drove the hour to Nelson and dropped me off at the bus station. We said our goodbyes and parted ways. It was really great spending a week road tripping with my new friend and I wish her the best in her travels. 

Farewell.

I boarded the bus and made it to our next stop, Picton, in good time. And the layover was long enough to grab a glass of sauvignon blanc from one of the local wineries we passed in the Marlborough region. If i wasn't going to visit a winery, I may as well as enjoy a glass outside while I wait for my next bus.

Marlborough wine.

I headed back to the bus station with plenty of time, and of course the bus was late. By an hour. Wonderful. I could have had a second glass. We were finally on our way, and I made sure to be on the left hand side of the bus. The ride down to Christchurch was supposed to be beautiful. And it was. We made a few stops, and at one, we had a chance to take a 30 minute break to walk around. Naturally I went straight to the beach and stuck my feet in the water. There are some similarities with the West Coast of New Zealand, but not with the other side of the Pacific Ocean in California. The coast was complete rocks. Actually a little rough and not good footing. But like I said, I had to get my feet wet.

East Coast.

After some delays, we finally made it to Christchurch, more than 2 hours after our estimated time of arrival. Unfortunately this meant I had even less time to explore the city since I only had one night. I decided to walk to the hostel to at least see some of the city. It was pretty quiet, which wouldn't be too different from other smaller cities.  But the 2011 earthquake is still affecting the city, and the sight of the ruins and construction, you realize that this isn't normal. I guess it's the new normal, but hopefully with time, the city can return to what it was formally.

City art.

I grabbed some dinner and called it an early night. I had a few things planned for the next day, and wanted to get some sleep. I started off with a drizzly run through Hagley Park and the Botanic Gardens. I made a lot of stops for photos and couldn't help but smell the roses.

Beautiful roses.

After packing up and checking out, I grabbed a bus to Hanmer Springs. For my last day in New Zealand, I booked a bungy jump. But even before I did that, I had some time to kill, and enjoyed the Thermal Baths. I relaxed in a number of baths, including one that was 41 celcius (105 farenheit) and with sulphur. And yes, it smelled like sulphur. Since the day wasn't super warm and it was still a bit drizzly, it was actually pretty nice to hang out in the baths. 

Hanmer Springs baths.

Since I was jumping at 12:30, I had to leave and get myself to bungy location. Fortunately I was able to get a pick-up. Of course the guy was trying to scare me, and was messing with me. I was trying to not really think about what I was about to do. I knew I was doing it, but was avoiding the thought of the actual action. And before I knew it, I was strapped in and standing at the ledge. There was no one else jumping. Which may have been good or bad, depending on how you look at it. I was waving at the people driving across the bridge as they took photos. I also had an audience back at the building.

Standing at the ledge.

So there I was, on the ledge of the bridge. I was imagining myself jumping, but not the free falling portion. The 2 guys counted down for me. And I didn't move. I may have jumped if there were others waiting. But I think I made a conscious decision to not jump at the first countdown. I requested another countdown and I jumped. Or fell. At least that's what it felt like. I was going to dive down, but somehow ended up going feet first. Which is actually how I jump into water, so I guess that makes sense. Even though it's not really recommended. I started screaming and had my eyes closed for a couple of seconds. And then I told myself to stop screaming and open my eyes so I could see what was around me. And it was cool. But still a little scary. I bounced a few times and was dangling, with the river below me. The blood was definitely rushing to my head as I hung upside down.

Hanging around.

The boat came and retrieved me and I made my way back up the hill on wobbly legs. My audience cheered me on as I approached. I did it. I jumped off a bridge. Yeah, it wasn't the tallest jump in New Zealand. And may have been the shortest actually. But you were still free-falling 35 meters. A little nuts. But I can now cross it off my list.

I did it.

I lingered for a few minutes after my jump, but then had to get to Christchurch. Since the bus I took up wasn't leaving until later, and I had a plane to catch, I decided to hitchhike. I know. I know. Some of you may not like to hear this. I had no other way to get back to Christchurch, and since Verena and I had picked up a few hitchhikers and New Zealand is known for helping out hitchhikers, I figure it would be ok. And it was. I got to meet some locals and chat about my trip. The rides went by very quick and I got back to town with a little bit of time to explore before heading to the airport.

It was still pretty quiet like the day before, but I did see a few people out and about. The weather wasn't actually helping since it had rained on and off all day. I passed by the Christchurch Cathedral and even though I knew it was destroyed, it was still hard to fathom that nothing has been done to fix it in the last few years.

Christchurch Cathedral.

It was nice to see the graffiti art throughout the city. I love seeing artwork like this in different cities.

Graffiti art.

On New Regent Street, I had a pint of local brew, before heading back to the hostel and then onto the airport. It was time to escape the rain. 

New Regent Street.

Thorpe

After departing Greymouth, Verena and I started our 5 hour journey to the Abel Tasman National Park and Nelson area. We had an Airbnb booked for somewhere in between the two, but before we got there, we headed straight for Abel Tasman. Like I mentioned before, I was hoping to meet a friend and running teammate from NYC.

Our ride up the West Coast was pretty uneventful. There was one point where I wanted to check out the longest swing bridge in New Zealand, but there was a cost associated with it. Forget about it. We didn't want to linger too long and didn't want to pay for it. So we continued on our way, and had a picnic nearby along the Buller River, one of New Zealand's longest rivers. But no swing bridges were in sight. Throughout our drive, we marveled at the changing landscape. So many times I felt like we were in different places, like Colorado, California, and even at home in New York. Further evidence as to why New Zealand is a top destination. 

The Buller River.

We made a couple of more rest stops, but got to Abel Tasman, right around the time we expected. After inquiring whether my friend was at his accommodation, we started our hike, with the hopes of finding him. A lot of people hike along the Coastal Track for a couple of days and camp along the way. It was something I was going to look into, but didn't pursue it. We were at one end of the park, and started walking from Marahau and headed towards Apple Bay. It was really nice out, the first time I actually wore shorts while not running. The landscape was also very different from what we had seen before. Definitely closer to what I've seen in Australia and Southeast Asia.

Abel Tasman National Park.

I kept my eyes peeled for Ilan and we eventually came across him! I was thinking we'd miss him and since he's on a tour, his timing is pretty set in stone. This was really the only chance we had to catch him. And we were successful. He turned around and joined us as we continued our hike to Apple Bay, which wasn't too much further. We caught up on running, NYC happenings, and our travels. It was a very quick visit, but really glad I got to see him. He was continuing on his trip south, where we had come from, and would eventually head back home.

I found Ilan.

After our hike, Verena and I drove to the middle of nowhere to our accommodation. And I mean the middle of nowhere. We were where we were supposed to be, but couldn't find the house. After turning around a couple of times and saying hi to some cows, we found our place. Well I should say, she found us. Our host had seen us drive around and flagged us down. She welcomed us into her home and showed us around. 

Looking for our Airbnb.

We were looking forward to our stay since it meant we weren't going to be in a hostel dorm room. But we also weren't in a room in a house. We were actually staying in a yurt. I had never heard of this before, but it seemed like a step up from camping. A yurt is a portable, circular structure with a bed and other furniture, and electricity.

A yurt.

And space. So much space to spread out.

No bunks in sight.

Oh, but not a flushable toilet. We were using a compost toilet down at the house. It actually wasn't that bad. There was a smell, but not a gross smell. Just something different. Compost-y. Verena and I went with the flow. 

Follow the instructions.

We both needed a bit of downtime, so this was the perfect place. Verena was looking for a job and I needed to do my normal catchup. We slept in and got fed by our hostess. She was so nice and provided breakfast for us each day. After our catch-up, and a run for me, we decided to go hit up a nearby winery. We stopped at Neudorf Winery and tried a few different local wines. Since it was getting on the late side and figured we wouldn't get to another winery in time, we decided to get a bottle and have a glass outside. The rest of the bottle was for later. It was such a nice day and a beautiful setting. 

Neudorf Winery.

Afterwards, we drove to Mapua, at the suggestion of our host, to walk around a bit. We scoped out the pier, but it didn't take long to explore the small town. Although it was entertaining watching the kids jump in with no fear. 

Visiting Mapua.

Since it took about 10 minutes to walk around, we decided to try a local beer at the Golden Bear Brewery. It was a local spot, with live music. It would have been nice to chill there for a bit, but we had a bit of a drive back to the yurt. 

Checking out the local brewery.

We had one last full day in Thorpe, and decided we should check out Nelson, one of the larger cities in the northern part of the South Island. This is where Verena was looking for a job, and I wanted to check it out as well before heading to Christchurch.

We started off with hiking up to the Center of New Zealand. The hike was pretty short, but we sat at the center of New Zealand for a while to check out the view and eat our lunch. To be clear, the true geographical center of New Zealand is actually 55 kilometers southwest, but Botanical Hill had the first trig station and surveying started at this point. Hence the center of New Zealand.

Center of New Zealand.

We made our way back down the hill and walked around the Queen's Gardens and checked out Nelson. We didn't notice a lot of people around and was definitely quieter than Queenstown. But still a nice place to visit. 

Beautiful gardens.

As we were walking around town, there was a store that looked interesting and we had paused outside for a second. A woman came out and encouraged us to go inside and we found a cute store with little doors in life-sized trees, unique toys for children, and other cute local New Zealand products. It felt like we were in a tree house or in the shire. We went to the back and found a cafe. Even better. So we ordered a pot and relaxed a bit. 

Hobbit-like cafe.

To round out our visit to Nelson, we visited Tahunanui Beach and watched the kite surfers for a bit. It was a little late in the day at this point, so didn't go swimming. Though a part of me wishes I had gone anyway. Next time. 

Kite surfers.

I really did enjoy relaxing in Thorpe and visiting the surrounding area. I think another day or two would have been nice to relax and check out some more wineries and other things (too much), especially as our host was really nice. We enjoyed getting to know a Kiwi and talking about our local countries. I would totally go back and stay there again. 

Our last morning.

Greymouth

Greymouth didn't get a lot of our attention. It essentially was a stopover on our way north. However, we did get a chance to enjoy it a little bit. We arrived in town after visiting Franz Josef Glacier earlier on. We thought about making some other stopovers, but decided to get to Greymouth, hit up the grocery store, and visit Monteith's Brewery. And that is exactly what we did.

Monteith's Brewery.

We arrived at the brewery shortly before the 6pm tour. The cost of the tour included 3 tastes of beer, so we went ahead and got our first one before the tour started. But even before we did that, we had to put our safety gear on. Which included a bright orange florescent vest and rainboots (aka gumboots).

Safety first.

We did the tour, which is pretty similar to most other brewery tours. It went by relatively quick, and was just about standard. The brewery is about mid-size and only does the specialty craft beers at that location. The main beers are produced elsewhere in New Zealand. After the tour, we got to try their American Pale Ale, in addition to the 3 tastes we were able to choose from the bar.

American Pale Ale.

After the tour, we continued to drink the rest of our tastes and then hung out for a while since they had reliable wifi. It's possible we got a little tipsy. I'm not sure how that happened, but maybe it was all that hiking and not enough snacking. That was a sign to get something to eat, not get another drink. So we headed back to the hostel to make dinner, drink some wine, and play a version of Heads Up with some other folks. Definitely entertaining when you have 2 Germans, an English guy, and an American in the mix. Surprisingly TV shows was a good category to play.

Before leaving Greymouth the following morning, I went for a short run around town and to see the Tasman Sea. There were a couple of reasons we weren't staying long in Greymouth. It was pretty much just a town to stay in on the way to the northern part of the South Island and we didn't really hear much about it. During my run, it validated only one night. There really isn't too much going on, even though I think they are trying to revamp the old mining town. This part of New Zealand was also known for the gold rush, and has a deserted feeling to it. But I did take my run to the sea, and it was nice, even in it's bleakness. Quite beautiful actually. Maybe not good for swimming, but cool to look at. 

The Tasman Sea.

I got back and we did our normal routine, and got on the road. We were trying to meet a friend of mine in Abel Tasman Park, and I was hoping that timing would work out. Although we had a bit of a drive ahead of us. 

Fox Glacier

After our long drive from Mount Cook, we finally arrived in Fox Glacier. We got our key, and then hit up a local bar for a quick drink. It was quick. We were thirsty and since we still needed to eat dinner, we got through our pints pretty fast. And since nothing was open in the very small town we found ourselves in, it was instant noodle time. Either that or dry muesli.

The following morning, I headed out for a run. I saw there was a trail nearby and decided to hit that up. A guy saw me running that way and told me where to go, and gave me the lowdown on the trail, which was great. I spent a few miles going slightly uphill through the rainforest, yes rainforest, until I made it to a swing bridge. I do really like the swing bridges. They are kind of fun to go across, especially while running, and they give some great views. I went further up the trail and eventually decided I needed to get back to eat breakfast and meet Verena, so we could check out Fox Glacier. Even though I may have already gotten a sneak peak.

After eating and sorting out our accommodations in Greymouth, we followed the path that I had taken earlier that morning. We walked through the rainforest, and it was just as quiet as it was when I had gone running.

The rainforest.

Instead of going across the swing bridge (yet), like I did earlier, we followed the path to Fox Glacier. We passed by some waterfalls, a pool of very clear water, and another glacial river.

Waterfalls.

We continued on our way and arrived at the start of the trail up to Fox Glacier. The weather wasn't great, but since it wasn't raining, we were happy. We moved quickly up the trail. I really enjoyed hiking with Verena since she also likes to move quickly. I was the one actually bringing up the rear since I would stop often to take pictures. We made it up to the glacier and had some very nice views. Although I was hoping to be a bit closer. I've seen a couple of glaciers in Alaska, and got way closer then. But since Fox Glacier is up in a very uneven, rock-filled valley, it's not safe to get any closer. Apparently 2 people were killed up there a few years ago since they went over the rope and got too close to the glacier. There was a bit of cloud cover and mist, but we got a pretty decent view.

Fox Glacier.

We headed back the way we came after a short lunch break. On our way to the swing bridge, a couple of guys actually stopped and gave us a short ride to the trail. Which was nice. We didn't go far, but it was a nice return on the hitchhikers we picked up. Even though we weren't looking for a ride. We headed to the swing bridge and had another photoshoot.

Hanging (swinging) around.

We hiked through some more rainforest, made our way through an empty river bed, and up some stairs, where we got another view of the glacier. At first I couldn't tell the difference between the glacier and the mist. But I put my glasses on and changed the setting on my camera. We eventually turned around and made our way back to the hostel.

More of Fox Glacier, but further away.

We spent about 4 hours hiking around and covered around 12 kilometers. Maybe more. My fitbit said I did 16 miles for the day, which included my run of course. After a short rest at the hostel and some tea, we drove to Lake Matheson to do a very short hike to a great viewpoint with a reflection of the mountains in the lake. The weather still wasn't great, but we were able to see a nice reflection under the conditions. I can only imagine what it's like when the lake is very still and the sun is out with all the mountains on display.

Lake Matheson.

The following morning, we packed up out things, ate breakfast, made our lunch, and drove the 30 minutes to Franz Josef. It was time to see another glacier. It was pretty similar to Fox Glacier. Same same, but different. We headed into the rainforest, and got another nice reflection, but this time at Peter's Pool. It was a short walk, and since the sun was shining, we wanted to take advantage in case the weather changed. It was the best we were going to get. Which was still pretty nice. 

Peters Pool. 

We then made our way along the path to Franz Josef Glacier. It was definitely more crowded as it's the more popular of the 2 glaciers to visit. And eventually we saw why. It was much larger than Fox Glacier and it seemed we were closer, but that wasn't really true. We got as close as we could and then climbed up some rocks to get a better view. Don't worry, we didn't go beyond the rope. We were lucky we had some blue sky to distinguish between clouds and the glacier. Unlike with Fox Glacier. 

Franz Josef Glacier.

We enjoyed our lunch, and headed back to the car. It was time to get on the road to Greymouth. As we were leaving town, we picked up another hitchhiker. There was actually a 2nd hitchhiker, but we didn't have room for him. I'm sure he got a ride, but I felt a little bad we were leaving him behind. The guy we picked up was German and didn't mind that we played Adele over and over. We dropped him off a couple of hours later, and shortly after, we arrived at our next destination.

I'm glad I was able to see both glaciers, and would have loved to gotten closer or even gone on it. But helicopter rides and hiking on the glaciers are just too pricey. The glaciers were still impressive to see, but at the same time, it was a bit sad. They are evidence of global warming, no matter what people say. Someday they will be completely be gone, and much sooner than they should be. I'm glad I was able to see them in their stark beauty before that day comes.

Mount Cook

We didn't actually spend the night in Mount Cook Village, but since we covered so much ground on our road trip from Wanaka to Fox Glacier (via Mount Cook Village), it warrants its own post. We traveled about 360 miles (probably more than that) in one day, and the funny thing is Fox Glacier is right on the other side of the mountains from Mount Cook. If we had a private helicopter, we may have just flown over. But we did not, we were relying on Jabba to get us to the other side. Even with a broken window, possibly an oil leak, and who knows what else. 

In Wanaka, we got up super early, packed up our stuff, ate breakfast in the parking lot (the kitchen wasn't open that early) and loaded up Jabba. We were officially starting our road trip. We had our essentials, including Lonely Planet New Zealand and Adele's 25 album. Since Verena was driving, I was the navigator and the DJ. After a slight detour in the beginning, we had a pretty good day of traveling through the beautiful New Zealand countryside. 

Road trip essentials.

A little ways outside of Wanaka, we made our way through Lindis Pass and made our first stop. We couldn't get over the views and had to stop and take some pictures and use Verena's GoPro. We carried on to Mount Cook.

Lindis Pass

Our next stop was to pick up 2 hitchhikers. That is the other thing you do when road tripping in New Zealand. I thought about hitchhiking if I needed to. Even though I was a solo female. Anyway, we picked up these 2 girls who were actually trying to get to Christchurch since their camper van broke down. Which wasn't a good story at all, but we did end up stopping at Lake Pukaki, and they got to see a view of Mount Cook they hadn't seen yet. I don't think they were totally into it, but I hope they were able to sort everything out and continue with their travels.

Mount Cook and Lake Pukaki was so amazing. So beautiful. I know I keep saying this about everything. But I can't help it. The lake was so turquoise. And the sun was shining so we could see the snow-covered mountain in the distance. Amazing.

Lake Pukaki and Mount Cook.

We continued along Lake Pukaki to Mount Cook Village, with another stop, of course, at a viewpoint. After making our lunch, we started the Hooker Valley hike. The sun continued to shine and we joined a bunch of other people to tramp, yes tramp, to the Hooker Glacier. The Kiwis call hiking or trekking, tramping. And now I'm done using it. I'll continue to use hike. So we started the hike, and made our way across our first swing bridge.

Swing bridge with a view.

And our view was this.

Mueller Lake in the distance.

The water color and river was just as unreal as the turquoise color of Lake Pukaki. The scenery was just so stunning. I really need to use some other adjectives, but oh well. Verena and I kept up the hike for little over an hour, went over 2 more swing bridges and made it to Hooker Lake. I was expecting a glacier, and it was there, but not much of it. But I did see some ice in the lake.

Hooker Lake.

We ate our lunch, took some photos, and started the return trip back. I couldn't stop taking photos. Just so beautiful. On the trip back, I saw a 2008 NYC Marathon shirt. The man wearing it didn't really want to chat, but his wife responded enthusiastically. I'm halfway around the world and I see a shirt for a race I ran. Yes, it's the NYC Marathon and over 45,000 runners participated from all over the world. But it was still cool.

Hooker Valley.

We made good time getting back, even with a quick photoshoot on one of the swing bridges. 

Mountains!

After our hike, we got on the road back towards Wanaka, but before we left the Mount Cook area, we had to stop once more on Lake Pukaki. The sun had moved, and the lake was just that much brighter. So amazing. It totally looks fake. 

The turquoise water.

We went back the same way we had come earlier that morning and a couple of hours later, we were back in Wanaka. But no stopping. We followed Lake Wanaka a bit, to get to the West Coast. We saw waterfalls, wound through curvy roads, and passed a few wineries. However, we were on a mission to get to Fox Glacier by 9pm. We also saw a rainbow, which was exciting, but the picture could never do it justice. 

Spotted a rainbow.

It was a successful 1st leg of our road trip. We saw some amazing sights and had great weather. We probably listened to Adele's album about 8 times, which may not be generous enough, due to lack of radio and her album being amazing. And we made it to the West Coast to begin our trip north. 

Wanaka

I made it to my next destination and even before I arrived, I decided to stay a bit longer, if possible, pending accommodation. And I did. Four nights actually.  I booked 2 nights originally, but then had to be prepared to leave if they didn't have accommodation for the 3rd night. And the 4th night just kind of happened.

I kicked off the Wanaka part of New Zealand with a road trip with 2 new friends, Verena, from Germany, and Johnny, from England. After a little bit of coordinating in Queenstown, we hit the road in Verena's new car, Jabba. And by new, I mean new to her. The year of the car is 1996 I believe.

We drove through some beautiful scenery and headed to Mount Iron for a hike. Before setting out, we hit up the toilets at Puzzle World, where we got distracted a bit. We wanted to solve some of the puzzles laying around, but since Verena and Johnny were headed back to Queenstown, we had to get on with the hike. It wasn't too difficult of a hike and didn't take too long. It offered some amazing views of Lake Wanaka and the surrounding area. Of course, after any sort of hike, a beer is usually a must. So before I got dropped off, and they got on the road, we hit up a cafe on the lake for a Monteith's ale.

Hiking with new friends.

I didn't do too much more around town the rest of the day. I wandered around a bit, went to the grocery store, and had dinner. Later that evening, I noticed the sunset was looking pretty good, so made my way back down to the lake. It was pretty amazing. It was a little different from the night before in Queenstown due to the sun's position, but still spectacular. I had a lot of great sunsets in Thailand, but only had one truly spectacular one, and now New Zealand has surpassed it. I'll just need to go back to Thailand.

Sunset on Lake Wanaka.

I tried to get some sleep that first night, which was slightly difficult (and continued to be so) in bunk beds that creak at every movement. I eventually got up to go out for a run to explore. I ran along the lake, and it was beautiful. It would have been cool to keep running, but the lake is pretty big and covers way more miles than what I was doing. As I ran along, I was also on the lookout for Rippon Winery. I didn't see anything on the run out, but when I turned around and came back, I found it. When I come back later to do a tasting, I would know exactly where I'm going. And later that afternoon, that is exactly what I did. I headed along the path of the lake again, and captured some more photos of the Wanaka Willow, a tree that grew out of a fence and is now in the water. I took a lot of photos of this tree while I was in Wanaka, but here's one of my favorites.

The Wanaka Willow.

I continued on my way, found the sign pointing me to the winery and made my way up a hill. I had to work for that wine. But the higher I went, the better the view.

View from Rippon Vineyard.

I finally made it to the winery and tried a few different wines, as I heard the history of the vineyard. Rippon was the first winery in the region and went through a trial and error process until they landed on the grapes that grew best. They included some reds and whites, like pinot noir and gewürztraminer. The girl telling me all about it was actually from Cleveland, which was pretty cool. I also met a mom and daughter from New Zealand after the tasting. I took my bottle outside to have a glass (or 2), and joined them to soak up the view.  We ended up chatting about the US, politics, and building codes in NZ. Sounds boring, but it wasn't. 

Wine tastings.

I really didn't do too much more in Wanaka during my stay. It rained a lot one day and after my run, I hibernated inside for a while. It was good since I needed to get caught up on my finances. I was pleased with the outcome. I have a range in my head of what I'd like to be spending, and I'm on the higher end of it, but was relieved I wasn't over it. For now. I then of course booked a paragliding ride. But it actually got cancelled, so I got a refund. I do need to plan some sort of extreme adventure while I'm in New Zealand and my time is running out. Whenever I pictured visiting New Zealand, I pictured bungy jumping. And why not since it started here. I didn't get a chance to jump off the highest spot in New Zealand, which is located outside of Queenstown. I actually have a jump scheduled, so we will see how it goes!

I did do a little shopping though. I finally bought new pair of sunglasses. Mine broke ages ago and I have been squinting for far too long. I also bought a cute, wool, bomber, zip-up jacket. I rationalized the purchase since it's a local product, I didn't buy a marathon jacket like I usually do, and it will keep me warm on my travels. I think my time with the heat and humidity is fading. I also visited a sports store and it was the first place that I've seen Nuun, Clif bars, and Gu gels in one place. I of course I had to buy a few things. Even though my marathon training is over. But you never know.

Running nutrition.

After our hike a few days prior, Verena and I really talked about doing a road trip together. We mentioned it before, but it would require Verena changing her plan a bit since I had a hard deadline. But we had a plan before she went back to Queenstown and she was picking me up in a few days. I of course was nervous she may bail and I would be on my own, which wouldn't be a huge deal. But I was looking forward to having some company and doing a road trip. She arrived on my 4th day in Wanaka, just as planned. We did some research and actually decided to stay in Wanaka that night before heading out to explore Mount Cook and the West Coast. We had an exciting night of making dinner and doing laundry. But we were saving money and had to get some clean clothes. We also had an early start the next morning.

A real dinner.

I liked Wanaka and definitely would have stayed longer to maybe reschedule the paragliding, visit another winery and/or the brewery, do some more hiking or swimming, and who knows what else. But there's never enough time to do everything. I needed a few days to chill out before going on a road trip and glad I had them. Time to explore some more of the South Island.