Perhaps a campervan was the wrong choice for our longest vacation to date, our first real international trip with a 2-year old while I tried to drive on the wrong side of the road. I'm not saying we didn't have fun, but after 17 days together, everyone needs a little space...and a bathroom that doesn't smell like a porta-potty. Anyway, the smell was just one of a laundry list of complaints about the campervan that I'll try to minimize through this post so that you aren't annoyed by my whining. On to the good stuff.
Maddie was quite good on the flight and she slept quite a bit more than in recent travels. By the way, if given the opportunity to fly Air New Zealand, take it because their service and facilities were superior to all airlines I've flown. On arrival to Auckland after the overnight flight, customs went well and soon we were picking up our campervan. In Emily's defense, she thought this was a bad idea, but I talked her into it so I'll take the heat. Not only was our vehicle the largest I'd ever driven, I was now expected to drive on the left side of the road, from the right side of the vehicle with the manual shifter to my left, turn signal on my right, no idea where to go while I'd had 2 hours of sleep during the overnight flight. At least nobody died. We quickly found a mall parking lot and took a nap.
We awoke surrounded by campervans as we apparently started some sort of trend (or that was just the largest parking lot near the rental agency). We grabbed some groceries and breakfast, then prayed as we entered traffic again. Despite some minor difficulties with rules of the road we arrived in Rotorua in the late afternoon with just enough time to grab some food and sleep. Engulfed by the smell of rotten eggs, we slept fitfully in our new surroundings. Rotorua is one of the most volcanically active areas in New Zealand and well known for its unique aroma. We spent the next day exploring the area including the swings, boiling mud pits and Lake Rotorua followed by a hike up Rainbow Mountain that ended with sweeping 360 degree views.
The next morning, our goal was to visit Rainbow Springs nature park to satisfy Em and Maddie followed by a visit to the nearby mountain bike park to satisfy me. Maddie enjoyed all the animals until she made a misstep and landed face-first on the pavement. This put a damper on our plans, but we did get some nice "wildlife" shots. Those lion photos were taken with a 3x zoom lens if that gives you any idea how close we were.
Kea - the world's only alpine parrot
We departed the wildlife park a bit injured, but happy and drove to our next destination - Tongariro National Park, site of "the best one day walk in New Zealand", hence a necessary stop on our journey. Cold, wind and rain greeted us at Tongariro and Maddie had started with her requisite traveling cold, acquired on the plane, no doubt. By that night, she was a pretty sad sight with her swollen lip, runny nose and groggy appearance. She looked right at home in the trailer, I mean camper. The following morning, we figured there was no better way to nurse Maddie back to health than a 6 mile hike through a downpour to view Taranaki Falls. She may have disagreed, but didn't show it because she behaved well and her mood brightened a bit when she saw the waterfall. Fortunately, as Maddie and Em napped afterward, the sun came out and we relished a few hours outside in the sun's warmth.
View from campsite
Mt. Ruapehu (I think) in the background
Fine weather was forecasted for the next morning, but with Maddie still recovering from her cold, we booked only one spot on the shuttle for the Tongariro Alpine Crossing (the aforementioned best 1 day walk in NZ). I departed early the following morning in the fog which burned off after only a few minutes of walking. As I climbed, the views of Mt. Ngauruhoe partially ensconced in clouds were spectacular, but rivaled by many of the sweeping alpine views that day. I'll let the pictures do the talking and just confirm that this was one of the finest hikes I'd ever had the pleasure of experiencing. I was disappointed that Maddie and Em couldn't join me on the adventure, but after 13 miles (including the sidetrip to summit Mt. Tongariro) and about 4000 feet of elevation gain, my legs were happy that I wasn't carrying an extra 30 pounds.
Mt. Ngauruhoe
Mt. Tongariro
Views from Mt. Tongariro
Blue Lake from Tongariro
Looking into Red Crater
Emerald Lakes
Volcanic activity near Emerald Lakes
Lake Rotoaira on the descent toward Ketetahi Springs
Ketetahi Hot Springs
We spent the next day driving back to Auckland through moderate rain, but we were thrilled to return our campervan a night early and spend the night sleeping in a nice, sterile hotel with real walls separating the rooms. I ordered some killer Indian food taking advantage of the wide range of lamb entrees on the menu. All of us got a good night's sleep on real beds and awakened ready to depart for the South Island. It was rainy again, but a great day to sip a latte at the airport (or a whole milk).
Thankfully, the next campervan we received was a little more user-friendly and I'd become accustomed to driving on the wrong side of the road. We spent the afternoon in Queenstown eating lunch and getting groceries before driving north toward Mt. Cook. We'd hoped for nice weather and a view of the mountain, but got wind and clouds on arrival to the area. Keeping our fingers crossed, we went to bed planning on spending the next day around Mt. Cook. We awoke to clouds again, but by the time we got to Mt. Cook Village they were parting so we ventured out on the Hooker Valley Track to the terminal face of the Hooker Glacier and lake at the base of Mt. Cook. As we walked, the sky continued to clear and soon we had unobstructed views of Mt. Cook and the surrounding peaks. The walk through the valley was amazing and made better by the fact that Em and Maddie could enjoy it too. We had a satisfying day together despite everyone feeling a little under the weather.
Mt. Cook in the center
Mt. Cook, the terminal face and lake of Hooker Glacier
Family time at the base of Mt. Cook at Hooker Glacier terminal lake
Mt. Cook Buttercup (found only in this area) in front of the namesake mountain
Overlooking Lake Pukaki to the Southern Alps
Wild lupines
After departing from the Southern Alps, we headed halfway back to Queenstown to stay in Alexandra as a base camp for our excursion on the Central Otago Rail Trail. We rented a trailer for Maddie and started biking early the next morning. 35 slightly downhill miles on gravel - sounds easy, right? Well, typically it would be except that we had a fierce 30-40 mph wind in our faces the ENTIRE time. Em and Maddie were troopers and we soaked up the scenery between thigh-searing miles.
"Wow, aren't those mountains remarkable?" I would say at every opportunity to annoy Em. The mountains below are part of the Remarkables Range keeping watch over Queenstown. We passed through Queenstown on the way to Fiordland National Park in the southwestern-most part of the South Island. I'd venture to say that the Remarkables were some of the most picturesque mountains that I've encountered, probably equals to the Tetons in Wyoming. Very Remarkable.
Token campervan picture in idyllic setting (inside was less than idyllic)
Lake Wakatipu near Queenstown
Unfortunately, the rain was coming down in sheets upon arriving at Manapouri, our base camp for exploring Fiordland. This may have been a blessing in disguise since hikers in the area can be plagued by sandflies, little, slow, dumb biting insects that leave a welt like mosquitoes. Maddie spent a short while staring out at the swingset forlornly, but as you can see below we cheered her up pretty quickly.
Our tour of Fiordland National Park was booked on a weather forecast and luckily the weather cooperated, at least as much as it can in a place that receives about 250 inches of rain a year. We saw some blue skies, mist, light rain and a whole lot of beauty including verdant mountains and more waterfalls than I've seen in my life. The tour consisted of a boat ride across beautiful Lake Manapouri, a bus ride through essentially empty Fiordland forest, a boat tour around Doubtful Sound and the return trip. It was a big investment of time and money, but we'd gladly do it again. Maddie was an angel for the 9 hour tour and it was certainly a highlight of the trip.
Watching the scenery on Lake Manapouri
First view of Doubtful Sound
A small barrier island to the Tasman Sea (can you find the penguin? hint: enlarge and look dead center)
Sooooo many waterfalls!
After one more night in Manapouri, we drove north to Queenstown ahead of "schedule" (we didn't really have one) and decided to stay there for the next few days before departing for Hawaii. When we parked the campervan in Queenstown, we let out a collective sigh of relief because we knew that we wouldn't need to drive any further than a few miles from here. The trails and the town were within walking distance of the holiday park (campground) which made for a nice setup.
The next day, I rented a mountain bike and Em drove the campervan to drop me off near Moke Lake. I earned my downhill singletrack fun through the climb up the gravel road to the lake. Beautiful vistas and the serene environment invigorated me at the lake where I cruised the singletrack and gulped down the clean mountain air.
Moke Lake
View on the descent from Moke Lake towards Queenstown
After dropping me at Moke Lake, Maddie and Em returned to Queenstown where they boarded the TSS Earnslaw for a boat ride across Lake Wakatipu to visit Walter Peak Farm. There, they got to pet the animals and watch some shearing demonstrations, not to mention plying the incredibly beautiful waters of Lake Wakatipu on their roundtrip journey.
I returned from Moke Lake with more than a hearty appetite so we grabbed lunch and delicious Emerson's beer at the lakeside.
Maddie on the Kiwi's beak
Taking advantage of the gondola within walking distance of our holiday park, we got a quick, but scenic ride to the top and continued climbing toward the summit of Ben Lomond. We had a crystal-clear day and the scenery (as well as the hike) was breathtaking. Upon reaching the saddle below the summit, the view opened and we were treated to nearly 360-degree views of the surrounding peaks.
We treated ourselves to a tasty lamb/steak dinner and some wonderful Pinot Noir from the region before retreating to the campervan for our last night of sleep in a vehicle. The morning of our departure from the South Island, I rented a mountain bike again and rode to the mountain bike park to experience some more of NZ's legendary singletrack. Maddie and Em visited the Kiwi park which they felt was rather overpriced and disappointing. The good news was that we would sleep in real beds that night.
After a fairly short flight back to Auckland, we took a 45 minute 70 dollar taxi ride to the "airport hotel" that Em picked after I said "I don't care, pick one" shortly before we left Hawaii. The hotel was luxurious and reasonably priced with surprisingly good Indian food so it wasn't a total bust until the cab ride to the airport the following morning. The concierge had ensured us that we'd be getting the 35 dollar flat rate to the airport, only to have that contradicted by the cab driver when arriving at the airport. Another 70 dollars later, we were checked in and soon to be on our way back to Hawaii. I'm pretty sure that was Em's method of retaliation after I made us sleep in a campervan for 2 1/2 weeks.
The flight home was long, but buffered by the excellent and attentive service from Air New Zealand flight attendants. Customs in Honolulu was essentially painless and we easily made our inter-island flight despite having to claim and re-check our bags. We arrived in Lihue tired but ecstatic to be home...with just barely enough time to pack for our Cincinnati Christmas in 10 days.
