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Part 2 Previous | Next |
| 12/07 | New Zealand, Manapouri to Wanaka
Up early this morning for the long day we had planned. At Joy's encouragement we decided to drive out to the village of Milford Sound. (She said the scenery along the road was special.) After breakfast we paid for our stay in cash. (Joy preferred cash. She gave a $10 discount to encourage such payment.) Then we headed for Milford Sound. We stopped in Te Anau to replenish our cash situation. While we were there I bought a nice fleece jacket that I had coveted the last time we were there. It was about 120 km from Te Anau out to Milford Sound. The last half was in the Fjordland National Park. The drive was as scenic (Lisa would say "more") as driving into Yosemite Valley. On the way we crossed the 45th parallel South. (We crossed it yesterday, also, when we were on one of the ships.) Yesterday we were the farthest South, i.e. the closest to the South Pole, that we have ever been, and as we will be this year. We were surrounded by snowcapped mountains with many fresh waterfalls coming down the face from the previous night's rain. Every turn of the road brought another inspiring view of a beautiful valley or a grand mountain range. The final mountain barrier to the fjord now called Milford Sound is broached by "Homer's Tunnel," named after the man who discovered the pass to the fjord. Homer's Tunnel is a long, small bore (about 20 feet in diameter), steeply sloped, unlined and unlit tunnel through solid rock. The walls are rough and dark and don't reflect any light. The roadway is narrow and wet and gravelly. It was a real thrill just to drive through it -- especially when we had to pass one of the many tour busses coming the other direction. We quickly discovered that the protocol is for one vehicle to pull over very close to one rock wall as the other sneaked by in the remaining space. (It probably wasn't as close as it seemed, but, in the dark . . . .) Coming out of the tunnel, the narrow road continued very steeply, with lots of switchbacks, down to the village. We couldn't believe that this is shown in the Biking New Zealand book as a recommended bike ride -- and we even considered DOING it! (We realize, though, that we've ridden many roads that, from a car, seemed almost impossible to ride. We would have done all right.) The Milford Sound is truly magnificent and beautiful. The tree-lined mountainsides plunged very steeply into the still, deep blue waters of the fjord. Each mountain was capped either by snow, a white, puffy cloud, or both. The many colored, many sized and many shaped tour boats in the harbor lent a festive air to the scene. It looked like a picture right out of a coffee table book on the fjords. After soaking up the view for awhile, we walked out to a magnificent waterfall that was flowing extraordinarily full due to last nights rain. It was truly beautiful as it splashed down the rocks and sprayed over the pathway. We caught a park shuttlebus back to the park cafe and had some tea before heading back toward Te Anau. We stopped in Te Anau at the Olive Tree cafe for lunch. Then we gassed up and headed for Wanaka. On the way, we stopped in Queenstown to buy a beautiful fleece jacket that Lisa had spotted last time we were there. We stopped in Arrowtown and asked a bus driver for the best route to Wanaka. He sent us on a shortcut over the mountains between Arrowtown and Wanaka. He said it was just newly sealed (paved) and suitable for driving. Wanaka is a small village on a large lake by the same name. It supports a population of some 2,500. It's a quiet, laid back community. It claims to be the "quiet sister" to Queenstown, with the same natural amenities for tourists (lake sports and skiing). Our B&B was located on a hillside overlooking the lake. A beautiful location. When we checked in, we found that word of our ride preceded us. The hosts had other guests who had run into the main group a few days ago up the West coast, so they had already heard of the Odyssey. They were thrilled to have us join them and tell our stories. The other guests turned out to be Richard and Barbara on holiday from England. We had dinner with them in town and learned a lot about them. As I mentioned, the B&B, (actually a Homestay) was located in a beautiful site overlooking the lake. Well the house itself is really a showcase. Most of the walls overlooking the lake are glass to take full advantage of the lake view. And the inside is finished and decorated like a model home. Quite a place. Ken and Noleen are our hosts. They are both very friendly and outgoing. And they love to talk. Almost immediately we were invited to have a drink with them. We all six sat and talked for an hour or so before Richard, Barbara, Lisa and I went to dinner. Then we all talked some more when we got back. As expected, our bedroom-bathroom suite was brand new looking and richly decorated. Very nice! Love to all, |
| 12/08 | Manaka, New Zealand
We got dressed this morning for a long run down around the lake. Then, after breakfast, we went outside, on the patio, overlooking the lake, in the sun, . . . and David lost his initiative, desire, and motivation! Instead of a morning run, David sat in the sun and read while Lisa laid in the sun on the bed and snoozed. At lunch time, we decided we really should DO something. After some discussion, we decided to go for a bike ride up the far side of the lake. I adjusted the disc brake so it wouldn't drag, oiled the chains and aired the tires. We were ready! The first thing we hit is the VERY STEEP downhill to main street. That reminded us that we really shouldn't use the disc brake until we get it fixed. Anyway, we stopped in town for a quick lunch before we left. On the way out we saw a nice looking bike shop. We went in to see if they had any New Zealand bike jerseys. They did. As we were paying for them, Lisa happened to ask if he was familiar with the Formula Disc Brake. HE WAS! (This was a major coup because the brake has been giving us problems, and we haven't been able to find a mechanic anywhere in the world -- even in Italy where this brake system is made--who knew anything about our system.) And he was willing to check ours out. I asked if he could also check out our deraileur and give me his opinion -- could it be adjusted or was it, in fact, "just worn out?" Yes, he would do that to. So, we brought the bike in, told him what the symptoms were and what I thought the problem might be on both the brake and the deraileurs. He gave me an estimated price that sounded reasonable so we said, "Do it!" We went back to our B&B to get the brake manual (so he could read it) and the deraileur cables (he thought he may need them to fix the deraileur.) When we got back, he had already found a leak in the brake hydraulic system, AND he had called the local expert to see what was needed to fix it. I gave him the go-ahead to have the parts delivered overnight so he could do the repairs tomorrow. Since our bicycling plans were off now, we decided to hike to the top of Iron Mountain, a reported hour and a half trek. We did. The air was clear and the view from the top was fantastic. In addition to the farm lands on the plains and in the valleys, we could see four significant mountain peaks, three lakes and a river. After our hike, we returned to the bike shop. That's when we knew just how incompetent and incomplete the Odyssey bike mechanics were. Doug, the bike shop owner, was checking the deraileur problem and generally checking the bike out. He found that the rear deraileur was mis-aligned (work done by the Odyssey mechanics), the front wheel was dished when it should have been symmetrical (more work done by the Odyssey mechanics), the rear wheel was out of true (still more work done by the Odyssey mechanics) and the front hub was improperly lubed (yes, also done by the Odyssey mechanics). If Doug is as good as he seems, the bike will probably work better than it has all year. (Maybe our constantly recurring problems were not a case of the bike being a "lemon." Maybe they were due to general mechanic incompetence. OR, maybe everything IS "just wearing out" as the Odyssey mechanics claimed. We'll see tomorrow.) We returned to our B&B, showered, changed and went out to dinner. We went to Ripples, another fine restaurant in town. (There seem to be more than a few in Wanaka.) Then we returned to our B&B. We sat and talked to Noleen for awhile while Ken went to take care of a tenant-problem in an apartment complex that he manages. We found out that Ken and Noleen have been married for 49 years. We heard about their wedding and some of their anniversary celebrations, about their kids, and lots of other things. They are really a warm, friendly and interesting couple! Love to all, |
| 12/09 | New Zealand, Wanaka to Cronwell
This morning we had a fine breakfast with Ken and Noleen and Richard and Barbara. We heard that R&B had a wonderful flight to, and cruise in, Doubtful Sound yesterday. Today they are going to fly to the top of a mountain, trek a track down to a river, then take a jet boat down the river. We also found out that they're DOING all these adventurous things to celebrate their 25th wedding anniversary. Our bike wasn't going to be ready until after 11 so we decided to go to the Stuart Landsborough's Puzzling World before picking up the bike. This place is a kick!!! One of the features is a building full of puzzling things -- like 3D holograms that change as you move around, a room full of faces that are always looking at you no matter where you go, and a house that is built on a 15 degree slope so that water appears to run uphill, balls appear to roll up hill, a sled appears to run uphill, and you can stand on a ladder that is attached flat against a wall and look (and feel) like you are about to fall flat on your face. Lots of fun!! Of course, they sold things. They had a room full of trick-puzzles, a large assortment of very difficult flat puzzles, and a wall full of books of brainteasers, hard questions, tricks and other types of puzzles. The other big draw was a large maze made with board fences. It included several bridges so the maze hallways could cross over each other without connecting. The maze had towers in it's four corners. Each tower had a different color roof. The simplest object was to find your way to each tower, then find your way back out. The average time taken to do this was between 45 and 60 minutes. We did it. It only took us 20 minutes to find all four towers. But then it took us almost 40 more minutes to find our way out! The harder object was to find each corner in a predetermined order, i.e., Yellow, then Red, then Blue then Green. The average time for solving this puzzle was between 1 and 1 1/2 hours. We didn't have the time, the patience or the confidence to try that task. We headed back to pick up our bike. BAD NEWS! The part sent overnight-with-Saturday-delivery didn't make it. The best bet now would be a Monday morning delivery. Of course we had reservations up at Franz Joseph Glacier for tonight and tomorrow night. And, delaying everything until Monday would REALLY foul up our schedule. What to do??? Well, we brainstormed and came up with a pretty good formula for lemonade with the lemons we were just dealt. We decided to find a Farmstay close by and stay there tonight and tomorrow night. That way we would experience a Farmstay earlier rather than later, we could get our brake fixed by the only mechanic we've found anywhere in the world (outside of the Florence, Italy, factory where they are made) that understood and could work on the brakes, and we would still be within a day of being on schedule for leaving South Island! Then we hit another wrinkle. We decided to ride the bike up and down the lake for a few hours this afternoon before we headed for the farmstay in Cronwell. But, the bike shop was closing in less than half an hour. Bummer! Well, some more flexibility led us to the decision to go for a run instead. The shop owner, Doug, showed us two running route alternatives on his map. We chose to run a track (what we would call a "trail" -- they're "tracks" here) that went about 1K along a lake, then about 2.5K along a river, then loop back along some dirt roads. It was a beautiful, scenic run! Very delightful running through trees and shrubs on a track cut into the bluff along the river. The only negative was when Lisa tripped and fell into a small, muddy stream (the only mud on the whole run, but probably a fortuitous choice -- it provided a softer landing than the hard dirt of most of the track.) After two hours of that cross-country running/walking (we had underestimated the distance of the return loop road) we drove to the Farmstay outside of Cronwell. The farm is a way in off the highway, but once we got there, the house looked like any other simple middle-class farmhouse. Our room is small, clean and basic. And Jack and Clair Davis are really friendly, delightful people. We met Jack's mom, who is staying with them for a week, and Matthew, a 17 year old nephew who is staying with them and working for the summer. Jack spent hours telling us about sheep and deer farming. After dinner -- which included venison from their farm, vegetables and mashed potatoes -- Jack took us out to the shearing barn. We had a show-and-tell on sheep shearing, merino wool Vs regular wool, and how they sorted the wool to get the best value for it. Tomorrow we'll drive around the farm and see how the sheep dogs work. Love to all, |
| 12/10 | Cromwell, New Zealand
Well, our farmstay is everything we had hoped for. The family is really nice. When we got up for breakfast, Jack and Matt were already out cutting, raking and baling the lucern (alfalfa to us). Jack had gone out to start at 3 a.m., but the lucern was still too dry. He had to wait for the dew to fall and add some moisture, otherwise the stalks would break up when they were handled and too much would be lost. After breakfast, Claire took Lisa and I out to the lucern paddock (alfalfa field) to see what was going on. Jack and Matt were still working so Lisa and I pitched in and helped stack the bales. Then we watched as Clair set one of the time clock controlled weirs to control the water flowing from their reservoir and irrigate another of the paddocks. We rode back to the house with Jack. On the way we spotted a hare (American jackrabbit). Since hares are devastating to forage land, farmers try to keep them in check. So, we stopped as Jack pulled out his shot gun and eliminated one more hare from his farm. Upon returning, we washed and hung our laundry, then drove into town. Cronwell is a new town that consists of a small, newish mall. So why does this old town have such a new mall? Well, old Cronwell was at the junction of two wild rivers. When the Clyde Dam was built, the new Lake Dunstan inundated the old town, thus requiring the construction of a new downtown. We had lunch at a small pizza and sandwich place. They had THREE types of veggie burgers and some really unusual and delicious pizza toppings. We had both a lentil veggie burger AND an apricot/brie-topped pizza. We sat outside at the mall and planned the rest of our time on south Island. Then we called and reserved lodging at the choicest locations at each stop. We got back to the farm about three. The weather was so warm and dry, our laundry was dry already, so we took it down, folded it and packed it all away. We met Matt, a WOOFer staying with the Davis's. (A WOOFer is a Willing worker On Organic Farms. They volunteer to work on the farm in exchange for room and board, and to practice their English.) Matt is from Homberg, Germany. He told us all about Homberg, and was very interested in our odyssey. We sat and talked and visited and read for the rest of the afternoon. For dinner we had a WONDERFUL barbecue dinner featuring Merino lamb sausage and Merino sheep patties. Simply delicious!!! Then we went out with Jack to herd some sheep. He picked out three dogs -- one Huntaway, (Ned), and two herders (Nel and Glen) and we went to get a flock of sheep. The Huntaway (a registered breed that is unique to New Zealand) would bark and chase the sheep in whatever direction Jack told him to. The herders, all Border Collies, run along the sides of the flock and keep the sheep together and going the right direction. The Border Collies don't bark. As Jack says, "They just stare 'em down." Jack controls all of the dogs with voice commands and whistles -- and those three dogs, seemingly running all over, control all 360 of the sheep. We watched Jack and the dogs herd the sheep through three paddocks (fenced fields), up an open road, through two more paddocks into a final one for keeping overnight. It was fascinating to watch. This exercise was not just for fun. Tomorrow Jack and Matt are going to "tip" the sheep (turn them on their back) and manicure their hoofs (clip them and clean out any fungus). This has to be done because when the sheep sleep, they curl their hoofs under, against their wool, and the fungus spreads and damages the wool. After the herding we all sat and talked and had dessert. A fun family time! Love to all, |
| 12/11 | New Zealand, Cromwell to Franz Joseph Glacier
After breakfast and saying good-bye to the Davis family, we headed for Tarras, the location of the Merino Wool outlet, where we shopped (of course). Then we headed for Wanaka to pick up our bike. We arrived about 11:30. Doug said he was almost done, but not quite. I helped him discover some problems, then Lisa and I went to pick up a few things we need. We returned in an hour and found he was still working. I helped him to understand the workings and problem with the master cylinder. Then we went to have lunch. Lunch was, as usual, very good. We keep finding places that have, well, basically healthy and good-tasting food. This was no exception. We went back to the bike shop. Doug was still working, but he was making headway. He was trying to bleed the system, but he was not doing it correctly. He pointed out one place in the (preliminary) manual that told him to do it the way he was doing it. I pointed him to the section inside that told how to do it in a way that works better. We worked together on it and, finally, everything worked. YEAH!!! It was after 2:30 when we finally left Wanaka. We hit the road to Franz Joseph. The drive was, again, quite beautiful. It meandered back through the giant national park that covers a very large part of the Southwest part of the South Island -- including the fjordsland. This driving on the left side of the road still has us guessing. We still often turn right into the wrong lane. And, with the turn signal lever on the right side, we still activate the windshield wiper sometimes when we want to signal a turn. Another peculiar thing about driving in New Zealand is the bridges. We've gone over many, many one lane bridges. The way they work is, traffic in one direction has the "official" right-of-way. Traffic going the other way is directed to yield. That works fine when both sides can clearly see approaching traffic on the other side -- that occurs about half the time -- and when the bridges are fairly short -- that also occurs about half the time. So what do you do on the other half? Generally, drive very slowly. So far, it works. We arrived at our B&B about 7:30. It's a pretty new building. We read that the owner built the place himself, just completed in 1998. Our room is on the ground floor. Our window and patio faces the mountains and the glacier -- although we can't see the glacier from the room. It's hidden by the mountains. We ate in town at The Beech's. There we met part of the Phil and Shirley group. They were just finishing dinner. Also, we noticed an Odyssey poster on the wall, so we know that's where the group ate when they were here last week. Priscilla told us she did a "heli-hike" (that's when a helicopter drops you off on the glacier and a guide takes you on a two-hour hike through ice caves and crevices) and really enjoyed it. We immediately booked a trip for tomorrow morning. We went back to our B&B and met and talked with the hosts, Rusty and Jackie. As I said, Rusty built the home in 1998. It turns out also that Rusty is a helicopter pilot with the company we're doing the heli-hike with tomorrow. He's not going to be flying tomorrow, though. Love to all, |
| 12/12 | Franz Joseph Glacier, New Zealand
Today was our day for adventure. After breakfast we headed up to catch our helicopter for our "heli-hike" trip on the glacier. We checked in at 9 o'clock. First thing was to get fitted with mountain hiking socks and boots. Then we were given a fanny-pack containing "Ice Talonz" for "superior glacier grip." Then we all (20 of us) gathered for a safety talk. Basically, they said, in several different ways, to avoid the helicopter blade and the tail rotor. Then we walked to the helipad to load. We loaded six to a helicopter -- two in front with the pilot and four in back. Because of Lisa's propensity to get air sick, she was given the front, window seat. We lifted off, then soared high above the glacier. We turned at the top and followed the glacier surface profile down. Incredibly beautiful! After a few corkscrew sweeps, we landed on the glacier. Everyone out and away from the copter! Then we were taught how to put on the Ice Talonz and given an ice-ax. After a quick lesson on how to walk up and down slopes on the glacier with our ice-Talons (keep our toes pointed straight ahead -- let the Talonz do their thing), and how to do the "Franz Shuffle" on steps that the guide occasionally cut (side step, swinging one foot first in front, then the other foot behind, as you placed each foot in alternating steps in the ice) we headed out over the ice. It was a beautiful, clear, sunny day today. (Yesterday it rained here.) The ice was white, except where the light shown through. There it glowed blue. Eerily quiet! The guide said he had spotted a cave in the ice the other day. He wanted to take us up above the cave, then we would climb down a chimney into the cave, then up and out. Everyone said okay. So, what do we know??? We started hiking over the snow, climbing up the faces and ridges. At one place, the guide cut steps in the top of a steep ridge that also sloped steeply down on the sides. No room for a misstep there. Lisa led the way up without hesitation. I started up, considered the steep fall in back and on either side of me and thought, "What the hell am I doing here?! But I made it to the top only a little shaky. The next challenge was up a very steep crevice. We waited as the guide cut steps for us and then secured a rope for us to hold as we attempted the difficult climb. Again, Lisa led the way, having mastered the Franz Shuffle. She set the pace for everyone to follow. We all made it to the top. Then Jock, our guide, pointed to this odd-shaped hole in the ice that glowed blue. He said, "We're going through there." We waited and watched as he cut steps in the vertical wall and set ropes. It was about 20 feet down through the "chimney" into the cave. Another hiker volunteered to lead the way this time to "try out the steps" as Jock put it. He made it down into the cave, then took a step onto what looked like wet ice and slush, and went up to his waist in ice water. Lisa followed. With some hints from the guide, she managed all the steps all right. Then she stepped onto the wet ice and slush "floor" of the cave and went in up to her knee before she caught herself. I was next. I watched Lisa closely, learned well, managed all the steps, and avoided the "false floor". I turned around and helped several of the other hikers find the steps. Finally we were all "in" the cave. Then we had to climb out. We followed a steep -- but not vertical -- wall out so it was easier. We caught a quick bite to eat, then headed over to try to catch the view from Lake Matherson. We heard that, when it's clear and still, unsurpassed reflective views of Mounts Cook and Tasman can be seen in the lake. We drove over (it's near the Fox Glacier) and hiked in. We were disappointed! It was neither clear nor still. We decided, since we were there, to hike to the leading edge of the Fox Glacier. It is reported to be an hour "return" hike. ("Return" meaning round-trip.) We hiked the track on the glacieral morraine riverbed. We passed the "official" view point and the end of the track in about 20 minutes. We continued along a bit rougher trail to a second point-of-no-return where the trail came to the glacieral river. We took a picture, then continued on along the much rougher "for guided walks only" trail. Finally, after crossing two or three small streams that fed the river, we came to the final, roped off area. This time the signs said not to go any farther. Since we were almost right under any rock or ice fall area from the glacier, we figured they really meant it here. So, after a few pictures and a short rest, we headed back. Then we decided to "hang out" in Fox for awhile until dinnertime. Lisa checked out the General Store and took a nap. I worked on this journal for awhile, then took a nap too. We ate at Cafe Neve in Fox. Had ANOTHER delicious New Zealand meal. They sure do have good food here! (Good thing we did some hefty hiking today! :-) Love to all, |
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