Type 2 fun - Week 2-ish in NZ
Me again! I know this is multiple updates in a row, but I am also a little behind and trying to make up for it.
After two peaceful nights in Kaikōura, I drove further north - a whole 6 hours, which didn’t feel like a lot but everyone else I talked to thought I was crazy for driving so far… living in the US has really desensitized me to long drives it would appear - to Abel Tasman National Park, which has one of NZ’s Great Walks. I stayed at a campground directly in the middle of the Great Walk route, and so I was able to do two long day hikes in either direction that covered most of the trail.
Abel Tasman has lush green tropic forests and beautiful blue water with golden beaches. It was hot, enough for me to take some dips in the ocean mid and post hikes, and it was QUITE buggy in the mornings and evenings; My ankles are actually still, two weeks later, suffering the effects of not wearing bug spray the first night.
During one of my mid-hike dips I looked out toward the horizon and saw dozens of fins poking out of the water 300 feet offshore or so. My heart skipped a beat, wondering what the pod of finned creatures could be. This was whale territory after all! Soon enough, with a little leap out of the water, the rest of the animal emerged- a dolphin! I watched in excitement and awe as the pod of 50+ dolphins made their way south and out of sight, and then finished my dip.
I woke up each morning for sunrise, peak sand fly time, because the campground was a 2 minute walk from the view below. It was so peaceful compared to the day time, when the beach is full of backpackers relaxing between long hiking days or families with children squealing and splashing about.
On one of the days, I came back from a hike to find a lettuce plant on my folding table outside my car. It made me chuckle, and has become a fun travel companion and a nice fresh food source. It rides in my sink during drive time, and when I stop, I take it out and set it on top of my car so the wildlife doesn’t get it. I’ve had many a stranger comment on it up there or strike up a conversation with me about it. People seem to get a kick out of it as much as I do.
After two nights in Abel Tasman, it was back on the road for me! I drove out of the park, exploring Rawhiti Cave, Te Waikoropupu Springs, and Labyrinth Rocks on my way out of the area.
Rawhiti cave had the most amazing stalactites and stalagmites, which curved upwards. This, I learned, is called phytokarst- over time the plant growth on the cave formations mixed with the calcium carbonate draws them toward the sunlight and causes them to curve.
The springs are a sacred Māori site, and are the largest freshwater and cold water springs in New Zealand. They are a remarkable blue, and it is easy to understand why the Māori considered it the purest form of water and used it for healing and for ceremonies.
After my day of little adventures, I left the area and headed toward Nelson Lakes National Park because the next day I had my first hut hike booked! Hut hikes are very common in New Zealand; you backpack up into the mountains or out into the woods or jungle and stay in a hut with simple bunks and usually a toilet and non-treated water.
This hut hike was Angelus hut, an alpine lake hut that Pierre had recommended. Unfortunately, when I showed up to the parking lot to start the hike, the weather was less than ideal, rainy and overcast and mildly windy. I spent some time packing my bag, hoping it would change, and it did! I chatted with some women in the parking lot who had just come off the mountain, and they suggested I choose to do the ridgeline trail instead of the lower forested one, as the lower one had many river crossings and was longer and the ridgeline would be fine now that it was clear.
However, when I got to the peak right before the ridgeline, just 2.5 miles into the 7.5 mile hike, the wind had picked up quite a bit. There were signs everywhere saying that if it was windy and cold now that it would just get windier and colder the further you went up the ridge, and that this next part of the hike was more strenuous than the first bit. I had just suffered through 2,800’ of elevation gain over 2.5 miles, and was unsure as to how it possibly could have been more strenuous than that.
Though I consider myself a strong hiker, because I was by myself, the signs and wind made me nervous to continue and so I decided to sit in the “Relaxation” shelter hut and wait for the wind to improve. I read my book and ate some snacks and enjoyed my refuge from the wind.
The wind did not improve, so I trudged up the hill a bit to get some service. I messaged Pierre and he told me there was a hut with beds just up the hill. I checked the map in the shelter and it confirmed that information, and so I shoved all my things back in my backpack and off I raced, with just an hour until sunset. Unfortunately, during this excursion the bad weather came back full force. The huts existed all right, but they were abandoned, padlocked, and beyond creepy. Frustrated, cold, and now kind of wet, I had to battle my way back through the storm, and through some “I’m scared and very cold” tears, all the way to Relaxation hut where I spent the night on the plywood floor with 75km/hr wind roaring outside.
In the beautifully calm and clear morning, sleep deprived and bruised from being a side sleeper, I chose to make my way down the mountain instead of doing the rest of the hike. I’d had enough.
I, for some reason, then thought it would be a fine idea to drive 6 hours back toward Christchurch. I had said I’d meet up with Will and Blake to do some adventuring right outside the city and then I was going to start road tripping with Will toward Queenstown. I figured I’d drive, get to Banks Peninsula outside Christchurch, see some penguins, sleep near the ocean, and my bad night would be a thing of the past.
After driving all day, I made it to Akaroa, on the Banks Peninsula, but every single free camp spot was gone. To add insult to injury, the road to the bay where the penguins live was a hilly 4WD only gravel road, and as much as I believe in my new mini van, I didn’t want to try our luck. Dejected beyond belief, I headed out to drive another hour to the next closest free camp spot. Not 10 minutes out of town, I found a spot not listed on the camping apps that had 3 other vans and settled in with a beautiful ocean view, a nice cup of tea, and the knowledge that tomorrow was going to be a new day, full of adventure with my Christchurch friends.
