Middle Earth - the South Island of New Zealand - has been a dream of ours for a while and we were excited to explore it. We decided the best way to travel was by car. We started our journey in Christchurch and after travelling around the island returned it there.
Christchurch
We arrived in Christchurch on the New Year’s Eve. It was exciting to be one of the first countries in the world to usher in the new decade.
Enjoying live music, tasting delicious foods, and socializing with the locals, we counted down the hours and minutes. With the jet lag kicking in, we were happy to have made it to 10 pm before calling it a night early. Happy New Year!
Nelson/Golden Bay
2020 started for us with a relaxing drive up the east coast of New Zealand towards Nelson. Along the coast was the small town of Kaikoura where we stopped for an afternoon on the peninsula, watching dolphins and seals.
In Nelson we were met by our Aunt Eileen’s good friend Francis, her husband Henry, and their son David. They graciously hosted us for a few days and showed us the Kiwi ways. The town of Nelson is home to the jeweler who minted the rings used in the production of the Lord of the Rings.
Additionally, they treated us to a weekend trip to Golden Bay. We hiked, walked, had lunch on the beach, and watched Henry fly fish. One of the highlights was a windy hike to Wharaiki Beach known for its sand dunes.
Another sight to behold was the Te Waikoropupu Springs with the world’s clearest water reservoir. The colors and fauna within the springs were amazing.
It was a part of the South Island that we would have missed had it not been for Frances’ family’s guidance!
Franz Josef/Fox Glacier
After saying goodbye to our friends, we continued down the west coast of the island towards the glaciers. The drive was long but the scenery continued to change. We left the sandy almost tropical beaches of the Golden Bay and entered a more temperate forest with the rising mountain peaks of the “Southern Alps.”
The first day at Fox Glacier was gloomy, but we decided to sign up for the helicopter ride for the following morning in hopes that the weather would turn. In the meantime, we hiked some of the local trails at the Franz Josef Glacier National Park and around Lake Matheson. As we got closer to the lake, the weather started to turn for the better as the clouds parted. We enjoyed the lake with the mountain backdrops (as common occurrence for the rest of the trip), but more importantly we went to sleep with high hopes for our helicopter tour!
The next morning we got up early and headed to the helicopter office for the weather update and to our excitement the weather was good to go. So we signed our waivers and headed off to the helipad. After a brief instruction, we hopped into our assigned seats and off we went!
The whole process from boarding to flying was under 5 minutes. The next 30 minutes took our breath away! We continued to ascend up and up. As we climbed further away from the ground, we could see more and more snow. Our captain did a great job of explaining everything we were seeing as we headed into the glaciers.
After we landed on the glacier, the captain let us out. We were standing on top of the world viewing the sunlit peaks of the mountains covered with snow. The view was spectacular as we could see clear as day in every direction. With the best view being to the southeast as we could see the peak of Mount Cook - the tallest mountain in New Zealand. After awhile, we boarded the heli again for part two of the journey. We were heading along the alpine ridges towards Mount Cook for a close up. It was amazing seeing the glacier fields as we circumnavigated the peak.
As a final hurrah we descended down the Fox Glacier valley taking it all in one final time before landing. The flight was one to never forget and well worth the price tag as a once and a lifetime experience!
Lake Wanaka & Hawea
With the excitement of the good weather and great heli experience, we set off south to the twin lakes district. Along the way, we enjoyed a coastal drive towards Haast with spectacular views of the beaches and rocky shores. We went right into the mountain passes. Before getting to our destination about halfway from Haast to Lake Hawea was a great stop in the Blue Pools. A short hike off the road and you arrive at the Makarora River. Upon crossing the river via a swing bridge, we arrived at the clear blue pools coming down from the glaciers above.
We stayed in the quaint town of Hawea (10 minutes from Wanaka). It was a slower pace town unlike rather touristy Wanaka. We still enjoyed Wanaka though as we explored the more tourist friendly town by evening, enjoying some local food, their lavender farm, and walks along the lake.
It was time to see both lakes at once though. So early one morning I set off on the Isthmus Trail. A 16-km ascend over 1,100 meters above the lakes. The hike was steep. The landscape kept changing from forest to farm, to river bed, to grass fields, to rocky formations as I climbed up. The higher I went, the colder it got. This was not a big deal for one guy I saw climbing who had just shorts on with no shirt.
As you climb up, the views of Lake Hawea get better and better but there's still no view of Lake Wanaka for most of the hike. It’s not until you reach the top some 2.5 hours later that your finally get a 360-view of both lakes and the Southern Alps in the background. The journey was worth it as I sat on the mountain top taking in the views in peace and quiet while eating my pb&j.
Te Anau & Milford Sounds
Heading further down to the town of Te Anau put us at the most southern point Julia and I have ever been in the world. We started with some knowledge of the region at the Fjord National Park Center before heading to the most famous inlet - the Milford Sound.
The Milford Sound drive alone was worth the trip as we wound down mountain valleys, lakes, and even a couple of mountains. While sitting at the entrance to one tunnel, we even had the chance to catch a New Zealand parrot, or Kaka, having a meal right near our window.
Upon arriving at the Sound, we were met with giant triangular mountain formations jutting right out of the sea along the bay. We hopped on the Jucy ferry ($30 pp) and traversed the fjords all the way out to the ocean. Similar to other parts of the island yet different from the perspective of the water, we witnessed some amazing scenery.
We spent the rest of our time in Te Anau chasing most colorful and vivid rainbows we have ever seen and visiting the many Lord of the Rings filming sights.
Queenstown
Heading back north landed us in the city of Queenstown. Similarly to Wanaka, the town sits on a gorgeous lake and although a bit of touristy it still has some unique charm.
We enjoyed walking the beaches and streets of the town from the botanical gardens to the entertainers on the boardwalks. We also visited the Kawaru Bungee Center to witness people more brave than ourselves bungee jump off a bridge that was built in the 1800’s.
One day we decided to drive around Lake Wakatipu to the town of Glenorchy. And let me tell you, it was well worth the drive. Along the way, we pulled over almost every kilometer to take pictures. We saw a few of the Lord of the Rings filming sites including Isengard. A sweeping valley and river lay at the edge of the lake nestled between the peaks of the Southern Alps. We enjoyed walking the river shores, through the fields, lagoons, and forests here and just taking in the nature.
In town, we spent the rest of our time enjoying hikes in the neighborhood we were staying in along the water while watching skydivers routinely jump into the clear skies above us. Queenstown truly is an adventurer's town.
Lake Tekapo/Mt Cook
We had now visited most of the large lakes on the island but a few still remained near Christchurch.The first was Lake Pukaki which caught us by surprise as we neared the water. The color of the lake was the most gorgeous milky blue from the silt of the mountain glaciers. But even more spectacular was a picture-perfect clear view of Mount Cook sitting on the far edge of the lake.
We later met a person living on the South Island who rarely ever saw the tip of Mount Cook as it is usually covered with clouds, so we truly felt blessed that day.
We continued to the next and last of the “great lakes” of the South Island - Lake Tekapo. The town is quaint with the same milky blue waters as lake Pukaki. But we were here for another reason. This region is the largest dark sky reserve in the world. This means the area has laws and agreements in place to reduce light pollution and turn our night skies back into darkness instead of flooding them with white lights. We were here of course for stargazing. It was a thrilling experience in the middle of the night. We met at the Dark Sky Project headquarters in town, threw on our Antarctic expedition winter coats, climbed into a bus that only produces red light (less impact on the light pollution) and ascended mount John to the observatories.
We exited the bus, stepped out into complete darkness and looked up at the night sky. We can both say it was the darkest yet most luminous sky we have ever seen. We actually could see the Milky Way in great detail. We had the chance to look at different parts of the deep space through three different telescopes. We could see the surface of the moon, see the two stars of the Alpha Centauri constellation, the birth of a star, and much more. Among our favorite was the witnessing of the moonrise - a sight we will not forget soon. We also liked staring up into the sky with our guide Lucas as he directed us around with a green laser pointer to different formations, stars, and galaxies while filling us with outstanding knowledge of what we were looking at.
Our days and nights in this area were spent on a farm with a local family. We had a chance to meet them, their dogs, and sheep. It was a magical stay where Julia had the chance to live out her childhood dream of becoming a New Zealand shepherd if only for a few days, but the peace and humble living was well worth it.
Christchurch
Our final stop was back in Christchurch where our adventure began. Our loop of the south island was almost complete, but not without some final exploration of our origin and destination city.
Christchurch, also the largest city on the South Island, has had a lot of earthquake damage over the years and none bigger than in 2011 when a 7-degree earthquake claimed lives of 185 people and laid in ruins 8 percent of the town. We had a chance to pay them respects at the Memorial Wall and Bridge of Remembrance.
The town has been rebuilt since then. We saw some places where the city has revitalized and built itself up anew especially the Christchurch Cathedral. The original building over 150 years old was cracked and partially destroyed in the earthquake and they are actively trying to rebuild it. But, in the meantime the city and people built a temporary cathedral that impressed me as a civil engineer. They built a full church out of completely recycled materials with the main component being cardboard. It was a sight to behold.
While in the city we also enjoyed our time at Brighton Beach Pier and the botanical gardens, along with strolling the city blocks. It was a lovely place and an amazing way to end our Middle Earth adventure. We parted ways with Aunt Eileen and headed west to the land down under.
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