I feel pretty behind in keeping this travel blog up to date! There is quite a bit to tell, as I haven't done a good update in almost a month.

After the adventure race was over, I left Dunedin and headed west to check out fruit picking opportunities in the Alexandra area. Myself and the seasonal employment woman decided I would be better off heading back to that area around mid December, so it looks like I might be heading to Alexandra later on to begin an exciting career as a cherry picker! Cherries are lighter than apples, so perhaps the work here won't be as hard. It can't be too bad, and in any case, it will be a good way to get outside, earn a little bit of money, and perhaps get my arms in a little bit better shape.

After I left Alexandra, I made a few brief stops in Queenstown and Wanaka to visit a few friends, and then made my way to the West Coast. The West Coast is known for its beautiful scenery, and also, for all the rain it gets. I definitely lucked out here, as I got plenty of awesome scenery, but no rain! I did a really nice tramp to some hot springs in the Copland Valley after I crossed Haast pass. I spent a night camping at the trail head the night before in order to get an early start, where I was fairly isolated - except for hundreds and hundreds of sand flies. I thought I had been introduced to the sandflies earlier in my trip, but apparently, I had not really been introduced, as I soon learned. There were so many, all around my tent, that it sounded like it was raining all night. Once I got started on my tramp though, they didn't bother me, and I had a really good day tramping through some great scenery. It is always nice to tramp as well knowing that there are hot springs waiting for you somewhere!

I then made my way further up the west coast, stopping to see the glaciers and more really nice scenery. I am now in the Nelson area, where I will be for the next few weeks. I've entered a trail race here on December 13th, so I will need to be around until then at least. This area is known for its great beaches, beautiful national parks, and sunny weather, so I'm pretty excited about spending a few weeks here.

I spent the last few days walking on the Abel Tasman track. With flush toilets, lodges, public phones, and quite a few people on the track, I wouldn't quite call it a wilderness experience. However, there was really beautiful scenery and I had great weather the whole time. I can see why this track is so popular, as you get great views with a minimal amount of work. I even went swimming in the ocean a few times, which was very nice! I don't think I've ever been in the ocean in December before. It is hard to believe the holiday season is just around the corner. I was in a store the other day, wearing shorts and a t-shirt, and I heard christmas music on the radio. Kind of weird.

I'm now heading off to start my next wwoofing stint. Less than 10 days before my race, so I'll be getting ready for that as well. Until next tim...