New Zealand

I’m back in Sydney after three weeks of backpacking around New Zealand. I travelled New Zealand very differently to any other place I’ve been. I went with the Kiwi Experience, a company that operates a fleet of bright green busses that travel a circuit around both islands. You can hop on and hop off as much as you want, meaning a trip can last as little as a few weeks to as much as a year. I took three weeks to travel both islands, which honestly was on the short side, as compared to some other people on my bus.

After catching my flight from Sydney to Auckland, I found a shuttle to take me to my hostel. Even though it was only 30 mins long, it was quite entertaining. First there was the older kiwi couple that had parked their car near the airport when they went on holiday. Now that they had returned, they couldn’t remember which hotel they had parked their car at. We drove in circles for a bit while they argued in the back; each stating the other didn’t know what they were talking about. We finally found the car, and proceeded on into town.

I stayed in Auckland for one night before heading off on the Kiwi bus. It was rather uneventful, save for the lack of hot water in the hostel. Monday morning, I was outside ready to be picked up by the bus. The bus itself was filled with people in their early to mid 20’s. I was definitely on the older side, but not uncomfortably so. There was a core group of people who I travelled the north island with and few who crossed the ditch with me as well.

Our first day’s journey took us north to the Bay of Islands, or Paihia in Maori. It’s a large area with 144 different islands. Paihia, along Whitianga are the main cities, although there are countless other towns along the way. From Paihia, it’s a day trip up to Cape Reinga, where the Pacific Ocean and Tasman Sea meet. The lifestyle in Paihia is very ocean-oriented, and the place had a really nice, relaxed atmosphere to it. During my day in Paihia, I took a cruise out to the hole in the rock, which is a seamount/island just outside of Paihia. It has historical significance for the Maori, and has an archway large boats can pass through, weather permitting. I enjoyed the hostel in Paihia much more than the one in Auckland, and we had a nice dinner prepared by the hostel.

After walking around the next morning, we caught the bus back down to Auckland for one more night before heading south. There’s not much to say about Auckland. It’s not a bad city, but there’s nothing special about it either. Aucklanders are known by other Kiwis as JAFA’s (for Just Another F-ing Aucklander). The next morning, I jumped on the bus headed south, driven by none other than the man simply called Bods. Bods was a mine of information about all things Kiwi, and could drive a bus down a windy country road as though it was a small sports car. In addition, he was a really cool guy, who would be my bus driver all the way to Queenstown.

From Auckland we headed on to Mercury Bay, which required us to drive all the way around a large bay. Mercury bay reminded me a bit of Paihia, but much quieter. Along the way we stopped at Cathedral Cove, a beautiful beach that required a 30-minute walk to get to. The incredible thing about New Zealand, as opposed to California, is that there are huge numbers of freshwater rivers and stream that empty into the ocean. Some of them end up as small waterfalls that come down the cliffs. There were quite a few of these at Cathedral Cove.

From Mercury Bay we headed to the heart of the North Island, and the towns of Rotorua, Waitomo and Taupo. In Rotorua, some of the bus decided to jump out of a perfectly good plane. Given the amount of time I spend on planes, I like to keep the number of times I takeoff and land the same. That night for dinner, we went to a traditional Hangi, a Maori feast. Before the meal, we saw how the Maori would greet arriving guests. The Maori are a warring people, formerly cannibalistic, who were weary of visitors. They subjected visitors to an intimidating series of combative dances. Only after they had discerned the intentions of the guest would they throw leaves to the ground in front of them as a peaceful invitation.

Waitomo is home to a large subterranean river system that you can ride an inner tube through, however there’s not much else there. From Waitomo we headed on to Taupo. The Primary feature of Taupo is the lake, which is larger than Singapore. I also, completed the Tongariro crossing, which is an 18km, or roughly 11-mile hike with massive changes in elevation. I climbed and descended well over a mile vertically that day. Attached to the crossing is Mt. Ngarahue, which played the role of Mt. Doom in the Lord of the Rings trilogy. Nearby is Mt. Ruapehu, a popular mountaineering and ski spot.

From Taupo, we headed south to River Valley, a stunningly beautiful and isolated river rafting camp. Then it was on to Wellington, before crossing “The Ditch”, which is the Cook Straight between the North and South Islands. From there we began moving towards the west coast. Our first night on the South Island was spent in Nelson, the geologic center of New Zealand, and a lovely little town. It was also our introduction to the mountainous South. We visited the Nelson lakes, which are snow fed, beautiful and very very cold. Some people on the bus decided to jump in, in a dramatic fashion. I stayed dry and took the pictures. We continued down the coast, taking in scenery the whole way. Much of it reminded me of California, and other times Cape Town. It was much colder than either though.

Our next big stop was Franz Josef, home to the glacier. One of the more spectacular sights I’ve ever seen. Unfortunately I did not hike onto the glacier. The thought of an 8-hour hike on ice, in the rain was not particularly appealing to me. It’s something I want to do if I ever get back to New Zealand. I took the opportunity to move ahead a day early, so I would have more time in Queenstown. The next stop on the way down was Lake Wannaka, which is a big mountain lake. It is very easy to get accustomed to the scenery, and you forget how breathtaking it is.

While the rest of New Zealand was nothing to sniff at, Queenstown was, by far, my favorite place. The town is situated among massive mountains, formed by glacier movement over millions of years. Queenstown is busy year round. In winter it’s a ski town, and in summer it’s the adventure capital of the south. Arriving in Queenstown in the afternoon, I enjoyed the Fergburger, quite famous as the best hamburger in New Zealand, and one of the better I’ve had anywhere. The following morning, I woke up early and picked up a mountain bike. Throughout high school, I mountain biked a lot, even making a trip to Mammoth one summer to ride. It all ended abruptly when my bike was stolen. The bike I rented was far more advanced than my old one, with both front and rear suspension and disc brakes. I rode about 30 mins through town towards the Seven Mile Track, a biking and hiking area set up by the New Zealand department of conservation. I spent about 3 hours riding the tracks, which were much steeper and more technical than the ones I used to ride. I was a reintroduction by fire, but I really enjoyed it. It also made me realize how out of shape I was. After an exhilarating morning, I spent the rest of the day hanging out. I had another Fergburger. I napped. Did I mention I was out of shape?

The following morning, I got on a bus for what was the highlight of my trip to New Zealand. We drove the long way around to get to Milford Sounds. According to Bods, they’re not really sounds, but rather fjords because they were formed by glaciers. He’s the driver I guess he’s right. Milford Sounds is a bay surrounded by steep mountains, filled with waterfalls draining the water from the snowy peaks. It is truly stunning. Although we spent only a couple hours on the Sounds, the roads in and out were no less spectacular, with tall, snow capped mountains, big old evergreen trees, lakes, waterfalls and mountain streams you can drink straight out of. Douglas Adams, author of “Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy”, wrote a non-fiction book called “Last Chance To See” which I read when I was 14. In it he described New Zealand as having the type of scenery that makes you want to break into spontaneous applause. That’s an understatement.