Round the World with Ann and Katie

We arrived in Auckland and it is the most disappointing place we have been to. Katie wasn’t disappointed because she had been before and knew what to expect but all the tourist bumf makes it sound really wonderful and in fact it is a rather run down and grubby place. The shops aren’t very good and the hostel we stayed in wasn’t very nice. So it was a good thing we were only there for one night on our way to spend to Xmas at Paihia. We are however back there for 4 nights before we fly to Chile. The hostel advertised a free dinner but it turned out to be tuna and sweetcorn pasta (ugh!) so we went to a Japanese place and had a very good meal instead, which was quite reasonable. Amazingly, we discovered afterwards that it had been voted the best hostel in NZ. It is called Nomad’s Fat Camel and we had decided that it was definitely the worst hostel we had stayed at in NZ! It is very cheap but it is rather run down, and dirty, there are no decent cooking facilities, there is a shortage of toilets and showers and it is not in a very nice situation. I guess it is a question of what you are looking for really. If you want somewhere really cheap in pole position for consuming vast amounts of alcohol then it is probably heaven. But we thought it was nearer to purgatory.
We got the bus the next day to Paihia and it is a really nice place. Our hostel is very near to the beach and there are lovely views across the Bay of Islands. We found a Woolworth’s and stocked up on Christmas goodies (chocs, mince pies, cheese, salmon etc) the plan being to eat on the beach. There are all sorts of water based activities available here including kayaking, sailing and various other types of boating. Lots of boat trips on offer as well to various islands and to swim with dolphins.
On Christmas Eve we went to Waitangi which is only about 15 minutes walk from here. It is where the Maoris and the Brits signed the Treaty in 1840 which is supposed to be the founding of NZ. You can go round Treaty House where a Scottish guy called James Busby lived who played a major role in the drawing up and signing of the Treaty. He was also the first person to start a vineyard in NZ having grown grapes in Oz before coming here. The house has a wonderful position surrounded by lawns on a cliff top so we spent a bit of time there. We had intended to take a walk to some nearby waterfalls but the path was closed so we went back to the hostel and spent the afternoon on the beach. I think if I lived near a nice beach I could waste a huge amount of time sitting watching the boats etc. After dinner we went to a carol singing session on a green near the beach. I was determined to sing some carols at some point and finally got my wish. Unfortunately, there were other acts on the stage as well including a rapper called Isaac who did a bit of a Christmas message thing which was awful.
Christmas Day was nice and sunny initially and we sat on the beach and opened our stockings – a hiking sock each filled with odds and bobs. I gave Katie some new socks to replace some that are full of holes, a new T-shirt (ditto) and a Spanish-English dictionary (for when we get to Chile) and a badge that says “I love tomato sauce”. I had various useful things in mine including some mud soap from Rotorua, some blueberry jam, a 2008 diary and best of all a titanium spoon and fork! Then we decided to have a swim before it rained. Even got Katie into the water (she is a bit of a wimp!) and it was reasonably warm. We had a bit of a walk along the beach and then we had our Christmas lunch sitting on the sand. We had a bottle of wine, smoked salmon, brie, nuts, salad, chocs etc before it started to rain. Then it rained really hard for the rest of the day so we did the Xmas usual thing – had a game of Scrabble! Later in the evening it stopped raining and we walked along the beach to a bar where they had a huge aquarium with fish, lobsters and some very ugly eels.
It was good to escape from the hostel where everyone seemed intent on watching an 8 hour marathon of “Family Guy” (an American cartoon if you have mercifully escaped it so far). It is mildly amusing for a half an hour or so but 8 hours!
Boxing Day was bright and sunny with a good breeze, ideal for our day on the tall ship, R. Tucker Thompson. We caught the ferry across to Russell (about 20 mins) and boarded the ship at about 10am. We helped to put the sails up and we fairly whizzed along as the wind was so strong. We sailed past Waitangi and out into the bay before stopping at a sheltered bay on an island for lunch. We went ashore in an inflatable dinghy and the water was so beautiful and clear I had to have a swim. It was very refreshing! We stayed on shore for about an hour and the crew did a BBQ on board for us for when we got back to the ship. Once on board however people were swinging into the sea from a rope on the yard arm so we had to have a go. It was great, flying through the air and letting go and falling into the sea. But we got quite cold in the wind so had to get dressed. After lunch of chicken, salad, couscous and bread we sailed back to Russell. Katie and I put on harnesses and went right out to the front of the boat on the bowsprit which was quite exciting as we were going very fast. Back at Russell we had a nice of cup of tea (very English!) and got the ferry back to Paihia.
Today we are heading further north, to a place calld Kaitiai for a few days. It is close to 90 mile beach which we will be visiting tomorrow. Hope everyone had a good time at Christmas.

Katie had us up at 6.30am by mistake, bless her. We had planned to go to the buried village near Rotorua but couldn’t get any transport so we decided to go to a place called Hell’s Gate instead. Said buried village was buried by a volcanic eruption in 1886. The same eruption also destroyed the Pink and White Terraces which were said to be the 8th wonder of the world. Hell’s Gate is an extensive area of volcanic activity with lots of boiling pools and blobbing mud and fumaroles emitting steam etc etc. It got its name courtesy of George Bernard Shaw apparently. We also saw some Thermophilus bacteria which is also known as land coral and can survive very high temperatures. Katie revealed that she used to use an enzyme in her research work that was derived from the same type of bacteria and it was useful because you could heat it up and it would still work unlike other enzymes. At the same place we did some wood carving, Maori style, which was quite difficult. Then we decided to have a mud bath. We had to borrow some swimsuits and towels (they were very small swimsuits and a bit of a struggle to get into). We sat in the warm mud for about 20 minutes and then were obliged to have a cold shower before getting into some warm sulphur springs for another 20 mins or so. It was very relaxing and I thought afterwards that my neck was not nearly so stiff afterwards. In the afternoon we went to the museum in Rotorua which is housed in the old bath house. Some bright spark had the idea in the early part of the last century of making money by luring Europeans out to NZ to have mud baths etc for their health. The building is Elizabethan in style from the outside. The thing never really took off as it then took six weeks to get to NZ and not many people came. Also two world wars and a depression finished it off as well as the fact that the water was so corrosive it ruined all the fixtures and fittings in no time flat. Lesson: do your research before embarking on a major business undertaking! However, the exhibits in the museum were interesting including a good display about the volcanic eruption to which I referred earlier. In front of the museum were some very English gardens with roses and bowling greens etc.
We spent the following morning wandering round the park near the hostel which had lots of blobbing mud activity and lots of steam. After a coffee we caught the bus for Thames. This was another typically NZ bus experience. About 50 mins before we were due to arrive in Tauranga to change buses we only had about 30km to go so I said “We’ll be in early”. In the event, after a traffic jam and 2 detours we were in fact about 20 minutes late. Our hostel in Thames was a complete contrast to the one in Rotorua, which had been a modern, state of the art place. This one was a couple of houses converted into backpacker accommodation: very comfortable and friendly. Thames is on a river which Capt Cook (he got around, didn’t he?) thought looked like the Thames at home. It also has the distinction of having the longest straight main street in NZ. We had a walk up the coast after dinner – if you have been to Weston super Mare you will understand what the beach is like at Thames. We met a couple of lads looking for somewhere to swim!The next day we took a shuttle bus up into the hills and did a walk called The Pinnacles. They seem to exaggerate the difficulty of their walks here – the time they say the walk will take is usually far in excess of the time it actually takes as well. It was a good walk nonetheless and the clouds kept away for us to have a good view from the top. The last section involved ladders and via feratta-like metal rungs in the rock. We wandered down and were about an hour and a half too early for the shuttle bus. But we sat around by the river which was quite pleasant until it started to rain. After dinner we went to see the film “Atonement” based on the book by Ian McEwan. Neither Katie nor I was terribly impressed by the film but then I never really got on with the book either.
On Wednesday we borrowed some bikes from the hostel (ancient ones, mine was all rusty and there were springs sticking through the saddle) and cycled about 6km (no further!) to the “Butterfly Gardens”. This was a bit disappointing as they only seemed to have about 6 species of butterfly and they also import about 400 a month from Asia and we weren’t sure whether this was really the thing to do or not. After that we had an excellent walk. It had no made up paths, no steps or ladders – just a narrow, muddy trail all overgrown. On the way down the hill we spent most of the time in a stream – great fun! Then we got the bus to Whitianga – mercifully it was only about an hour and a half in the bus with no detours or stops. The hostel is right on the beach.
On Thursday we were going to go to Hotwater Beach where you dig in the sand and hot water fills your hole and then you sit in it but Katie said it was going to rain so we didn’t go. But what did she know- it turned into a lovely day so we took the ferry across the river and had a stroll to various beaches including Cook’s Bay (that man again). He pulled in there to chart the transit of Mercury across the sun in 1769. Dunno why he had to come half way round the world for this but it must have been important. The best beach was called Lonely Bay and we had a swim there before having lunch and heading back to Whitianga. We then spent the afternoon doing some bone carving. You use a dentist’s drill to fashion a design out of bone (from cows). We both did a fish hook design and then they are turned into necklaces. It took all afternoon but they look really nice when they are done. Afterwards we borrowed some surf boards from the hostel and threw ourselves about in the waves for a while.
Today we went to Hotwater Beach. It rained. We got soaked. It took over an hour to cycle there and then we had to put on our swim suits and do a major river crossing before getting to the beach. We dug a hole, which did fill up with hot water (so hot that it burned your hands in fact) but the sea was very rough and kept flooding our hole. So we gave up and cycled back to the hostel in the rain. It has now stopped raining. It is supposed to be summer here. I hadn’t expected it to rain like this. I have this idea that we will be sitting on the beach on Christmas Day in the sun. I am determined to sit on the beach even if I have to wear my waterproofs! There have been a few earthquakes near here in the past few days including one that was nearly 7 on the Richter scale.
Anyway, I may not be back on-line again before the big day so both Katie and I wish you all a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.

The following day saw us on the bus bound for a small village called National Park. Our intention was to do the Tongariro Northern Circuit, a 3 day walk through a volcanic area. The bus journey was the usual tortuous one but we finally arrived at the hostel after about 6 hours. We had a brilliant room which we accessed through the climbing wall at the hostel. After booking onto the shuttle bus to get us to the start of the walk we hired some harnesses and shoes and did a spot of climbing – until a huge group of boys (scouts, I think, arrived) and we decided to have dinner.
We were up at about 6.15 the following morning to get the shuttle bus, which was full of people doing the Tongariro Crossing. It is billed as the best day hike in NZ, with some justification we felt. The first day of our walk took in most of the Crossing and the trail was quite crowded. It was quite a cold, cloudy day but the walk was very enjoyable all the same and was in stark contrast to most of our other walks in NZ as there weren’t any trees.
The initial part of the walk is fairly easy and then it gets quite steep up to a saddle between two volcanoes, Mt Tongariro and Mt Ngau….hoe (sorry, will have to look up the spelling of this!). In the distance we could see the slopes of Mt Ruapeho which had seen some activity recently we were told. We then crossed a crater: the landscape was very similar to that which I had experienced in Iceland last year. Then up another steep ridge, by which time we were about half way. From there we decided to climb to the top of Mt Tongariro. The path went up a ridge into the clouds and by this time it was quite windy and had started to rain – home from home! We made it to the top but had no views at all. So we came back down again! Continuing on with the trail we went passed Red Crater and then steeply down to Emerald Lakes, a group of brilliant blue lakes looming out of the mist. There were lots of vents with steam issuing forth from them in the area. We had lunch there and then carried on in poor visibility across another crater until the path began to zig-zag down the hill to our first nights accommodation at Ketetahi Hut. At first we had it our ourselves but then a group of boys from Aukland doing their Duke of Edinburgh turned up – it’s so English here it’s just not true. We had a pleasant evening in the hut and the clouds even parted to give us views of Lake Taupo in the distance.
The next morning we waited until the boys had gone – I’m still not sure why all Kiwi’s feel obliged to get up at 5.30am when they are staying in huts. We made our way back to Emerald Lakes and the clouds were blowing in and out giving nice views along the way – more than we had seen yesterday anyway. There was nobody else at the lakes which was nice so we got some better photos. Then we branched off downhill to a lunar landscape of wierd rock formations. The weather had improved by then and we reached another hut in time for elevenses. They have a great snack here called One Square Meal which I haven’t seen at home. It is supposed to provide you with one third of everything you need each day so is good for lunch (but supplemented by other things, of course!). We continued on through undulating volcanic territory and then descended through beech woods to a river where we stopped for lunch. Then off again up and over one last ridge to the next hut (Waihohonu). Again we shared it with another D of E party who kept on rearranging the furniture and making a huge noise. But they finally gave up and went to bed.
It rained in the night and we set off on our last day through grass and scrub that was very wet indeed. In no time at all our trousers were soaked so I resorted to shorts while Katie took here trousers off and just wore her waterproof trousers. After about 3 hours there was another side trip to see some more lakes which took about an hour. Then the last lap took us another couple of hours and went past a nice waterfall before we ended up in a village called Whakappapa. I had been having the tea shop fantasy for a few hours so we had a pot a tea and a scone before catching the shuttle bus back to the hostel. It was, we both agreed, an excellent walk: it is one of the Great Walks in NZ.
The next day we travelled on Rotorua, after first having another go on the climbing wall. It would have taken about 2 hours by car but the bus took more like 5 hours. But it was a nice scenic trip and as we arrived so late we went out for a pub meal. No time left on computer – more later!

Sea kayaking at Abel Tasman

We travelled up to Franz Joseph through wonderful scenery. New Zealand coaches are rather odd in that they seem to try to be a tour bus as well. There are numerous stops and some of the drivers give a running commentary. We had one who talked non-stop for about 4 hours! Anyway after taking all day to do a journey that might have taken about 4 hours in a car (but who is in a hurry anyway?) we arrived in Franz Joseph. Its one claim to fame is the glacier and nearly everyone either has a helicopter flight over the glacier (at vast expense) or a guided glacier walk. Having just had our glacier experience on Mt Aspiring we opted for a walk up a hill called Alex Knob at the side of the glacier (thanks for tip, Anna). At about half way up we could see out over the glacier but then the clouds came down and it turned into quite a Scottish experience i.e. walking through clouds and drizzle. All the helicopter flights were cancelled. When we got back to the hostel one of our room mates had just landed on the glacier when she was whisked off it again due to the bad weather. We completed our walk which was quite pleasant even though it rained a bit and then went to see a film of the glacier filmed from a helicopter.
The next day we had a very long coach trip up to Nelson – almost 11 hours! During the morning I think the coach was stationary for longer than it was in motion. One place that was worth a stop though was Pancake Rocks – strange layered rock formations on the coast with blowholes. Again the scenery was magnificent but we were glad to arrive in Nelson. As we were so late arriving we treated ourselves to fish and chips or as they say here fush n’ chups. Very early the next morning we caught another bus out to the Abel Tasman National Park – we managed to get there without any “refreshment breaks” but then it only took about an hour!
We presented ourselves at the Sea Kayaking Company offices and were duly kitted out with buoyancy aids, spray decks, dry bags etc before setting off with our kayaks for the beach. Our guide, Brad, seemed to have kayaked everywhere in the world. We loaded the kayaks with tents, sleeping bags, food etc etc and then paddled off up the coast. My previous experience of sea kayaking had been in the North Sea in November so this was a real treat – blue sky, blue sea, sun – brilliant. The sea was very calm to start with and we paddled until lunchtime when we pulled up on a lovely beach. There are dozens of beautiful sandy beaches some of which you can only reach from the sea. The food on the trip was really nice, much better than your averaage camping food. And we had real coffee! After lunch we paddled up the Mad Mile where the sea was a bit rougher and there were quite a lot of rocks to avoid. The wind had got up by this stage so the waves were getting bigger all the time. We reached our first campsite at Anchorage and after putting up the tents we went for a walk. The Abel Tasman coastal track runs all along the coast we were paddling up so there were opportunities to explore a bit in the evenings. After a huge dinner which included a pavlova with fruit on top we haad a walk aalong the beach before turning in.
The following morning the wind was really strong aand there were big waves out to sea. The bay itself was quite calm but once we rounded the headland it got quite exciting riding the big waves. We made good time however and landed at a small beach for coffee and cakes. The plan had been to go to Bark Bay aand set up camp and then explore further north in the kayaks in the afternoon. But the waves were so big we walked up to Bark Bay to have a look and see if it would be possible to land there. Brad decided that it was just about on so we returned to the kayaks and paddled round to Bark Bay where we surfed in to the beach – really exciting. After lunch we went out for another paddle but the waves were so big Brad decided we should go back after about an hour.
The next day the wind had dropped a lot and we paddled all the way back down to where we had started from a couple of days previously. On the way we saw sea lions and dolphins. After lunch the water was dead calm again and it seemed a bit dull after the waves of yesterday.
Back ata base we were able to have a shower and change before catching the bus back to Nelson.

Hi Guys
It seems a long time since we were last on line in Queenstown. We climbed Ben Lomond on 23rd Nov. There is a gondola that goes part of the way up but we didn’t cheat! We walked all the way from the bottom. It took about 2 hours to get to the top: we had to cross a small patch of snow. There were great views of Queenstown, the Remarkables and the lake from the top. We went down to the upper gondola station where we had a coffee and a cake and then we had a shorter walk through woods alongside a river before going back to the hostel. Spotted a down jacket 40% off in an outdoor shop. It is fatal to go into these places – but I resisted.
Saturday 24th Nov. Bought said down jacket on the way to catch the bus for Wanaka! No moral fibre! But it really is a bargain. We arrived in Wanaka at about 11ish and immediately bumped into two guys whom we had met on the Milford Track. Small world. My camera was playing up – a poor battery connection I think but we have cobbled it up with gaffer tape. Hope it lasts a bit longer.
Sunday 25th. We took a shuttle bus about 6km out of town and climbed Roy’s Peak (1578m). It was quite a long walk as the path had huge zig zags and it was jolly windy. We walked back to Wanaka along the lake. The next day we thought we would have a lazy day in preparation for our expedition to Mount Aspiring the following day. So we went to Puzzle World where there is a maze in which you have to find 4 corner towers (the easy bit) and then the way out (not so easy). It was rather frustrating but good fun and we managed to get out in time for lunch. There are also rooms with various optical illusions and holograms and lots of puzzles laid out on tables in the cafe. So that took quite a long time before we walked back into Wanaka. We booked a 3 day sea kayaking trip in the Abel Tasman National Park.
At last we began the much anticipated Mount Aspiring Trip! We went to the Aspiring Guides office at 8.30am where we had a warm welcome and a coffee before meeting our guide, Murray, before going through all our gear. The girls in the office had warned us that he was quite eccentric but he just seemed like a normal climber to us – if there is such a thing. There were two other guys in the office who were also going to the mountain but they had different guides. We had arranged to hire all the technical gear from Aspiring Guides so we were duly provided with a pair of Koflachs each (uncomfortable plastic boots for the uninitiated), a harness, crampons, various items of climbing gear and ice axes. We did a bit of shopping and then met back at the office at about 12ish and drove to the farm where we were to catch the helicopter to fly us up to the Bonar Glacier. We had never been in a helicopter before and being of a nervous disposition I was a bit apprehensive. But it was fine although it didn’t seem to be going fast enough to stay airborne to me and it rattled and vibrated something shocking.We landed at Bevan Col and after a few “before” photos we set off across the glacier to the Colin Todd Hut about 1.5hours away. The snow was quite soft so we didn’t need crampons. Crossing the glacier you get good views of the mountain. It looked very high and steep – as we discovered the next day it actually was very high and steep! The hut is perched at the end of a ridge and on arrival it quickly became apparent that there were rather more people than there were bunks. Fortunately some people had brought tents so the problem was solved until two more people turned up just as it was getting dark. We had brought our thermarests just in case so we lent them those.
Summit day! It was reported to be minus 11 deg outside the hut at 3am when we got up so we put on all our layers including our new merino wool icebreaker long johns. After brekky we put on our boots and crampons and head torches and roped up and set off across the glacier to the start of the climb.It was just getting light (about 5.30ish) when we reached the start of the Ramp. This was fairly steep and icy so Murray led about 9 pitches up to the saddle where we had a rest and a drink and something to eat. By this time it was about 8am. Getting to the summit took another couple of hours and it was a lot steeper than it looked from the hut. There was ice and rock bands to negotiate. We moved together until very near the top when it became much steeper and was very icy so Murray led a final pitch to the summit (3033m) where we posed for the photos and admired the spectacular views and ate chocolate and dried bananas. The descent was quite hard as it was steep and icy – we went down the same way as we had come up. When we reached the saddle Murray lowered us down most of the pitches of the Ramp. When we reached the end of the rope Katie banged in a snow stake and I clove hitched us in. Then Murray came down to us and we repeated the process over and over again until we got to the glacier again. On the way down (at about 1.30pm) we passed the two guys who had arrived late at the hut the previous evening on their way up. Too late really because they were very slow and didn’t arrive back at the hut until about 3am the following morning! Once back on the glacier we were able to take off our crampons and walked back to the hut for a well earned cup of tea or three. We then watched people descending the Ramp. It becomes quite dangerous later in the afternoon when the sun gets on it as chunks of ice fall down on you. One guy’s helmet was shattered by one such lump and another was also hit on the head by ice. We took about 11 hours to do the whole climb which apparently is quite good going. We had brilliant weather for our ascent – clear, sunny, no wind – a perfect day.
The weather took a turn for the worse over night and we woke up to high winds and snow. So we decided to stay in the hut rather than starting the walk out. It was good to have a rest day after the climb and nobody complained too much. So we snuggled up in our sleeping bags and ate and drank tea ans swapped climbers’ and travellers’ tales. One of the guides did a demo of crevasse rescue inside the hut, suspended from a bolt in the ceiling. The snow and wind cleared in the evening and we had a beautiful sunset.
Friday dawned clear and we set off across the glacier for Bevan Col and the walk out. The descent was quite steep and the snow was fairly soft before we finally descended a rocky/icy gully to the horizontal world again. There was evidence of recent avalanches on the way. Walking out along the valley was quite rough along a rocky river bank and then through a forest. Awkward in Koflachs and I got a blister on the sole of each foot in the last couple of km along the flat.We arrived at Aspiring Hut in the late afternoon where we spent the night. Yesterday we completed the walk out in about 2 hours (abandoned the boots and wore sandals – would have been a good idea apart from the freezing stream crossings along the way!) and were back in Wanaka at about 11am. After lunch I adopted horizontal mode for an hour or so and then we met one of our fellow climbers for a pizza in the evening. Having a lazy day today, doing the washing, sitting by the lake, writing postcards etc. Tomorrow we are off to Franz Joseph on the bus where we will spend a couple of nights before going to Abel Tasman for our kayaking trip on Thursday.