Update, 27 January. Wanaka, New Zealand
Hello, everyone!
I've been keeping myself quite busy during the last two weeks. I spent a couple of days in Dunedin, trying to get my plans together, and enjoyed the Otago Museum and the botanical gardens. From there, I boarded a bus headed through the Catlins (on the southern coast of the south island) and stopped several times along the way. Wildlife galore--I watched a colony of sea lions in Surat Bay, a group of rare and small Hector's dolphins occupied the aptly named Porpoise Bay, and a colony of yellow-eyed penguins made themselves at home at Curio Bay. My campsite was fantastically located on a small finger of land separating Porpoise and Curio bays, where I relaxed by watching the waves crash repeatedly on the rock cliffs.
I went straight through to Queenstown, an attractive (although too bustling) town on the shore of Lake Wakatipu. After only a few hours there, I managed to get myself locked in the bookstore. As a child, I have imagined being locked in a department store overnight but never thought anything like that could happen. The shop closed at 7pm, which is still very sunny down here, and the store was quiet to begin with, so I didn't notice a sudden lack of people. Apparently, the clerk didn't notice me either. The lights went out, and I raced to the front door just in time to hear the closing of the back door. I ran to it, shouting, and pounded on the door. No response. My movement towards the front door triggered the very LOUD alarm. I thought at least then someone would show up and hoped not to be hasseled too much. Ten minutes later, my fingers still in my ears, I decided to write a 'please help, etc.' message and hold it to the glass door. A couple passed by, laughed hysterically, and then called the manager, who arrived 15 minutes later. I still had to pay for the book (no discount, even).
The remainder of my time there was much less eventful. I enjoyed a couple of nice day walks, including a 900m climb to a point overlooking the town with views of the Remarkables.
It was time to get back on the trail, and I set out for the Greenstone Track, a 3 day/36km walk. The weather was superb, and other than the very large cow who was annoyed by my presence, it was pretty easy tramping.
Heading back to Te Anau, the rains moved in. I hesitated to begin the Kepler Track because of the forecast but realized I could be waiting days for clear weather in Fjiordland National Park. The walk was nonetheless fantastic, partly due to the experience of the strong winds while crossing the alpine section of the track. The gusts were in excess of 80km/hr, and at times I had to sit down to avoid being blown over. I finally found a use for all of the bad-weather gear I have been hauling around in my pack.
Wanaka has been a great place to spend the past three days. I went on a canyoning trip for the whole of yesterday and had an absolute blast. Abseiling down waterfalls, jumping into swimming holes, sliding down rock chutes, and ending it off with a flying fox. What fun! I think I am a bit less afraid of heights now.
Well, I am off to Fox Glacier tomorrow and am hoping for somewhat clear weather. I'm not sure when I'll be able to upload the next batch of photos--DSL connections are few and far between here--but I will at least keep you updated on my whereabouts. Feel free to email me as you wish...
Jill
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