We’ve successfully completed our first leg of our roadtrip across the South Island of New Zealand to small town on the outskirts of Christchurch called West Melton. We’re staying at a lovely AirBnb, hosted by a German woman who has lived in New Zealand for 24 years, her husband, and sheep.
Speaking of sheep, they are EVERYWHERE in New Zealand. On mountainsides, farmland, even residential yards. Turns out New Zealand has absolutely no mammal predators, meaning zero coyotes, foxes, animals of that sort. So sheep pretty much rule the country. Wool is a top export and they’re nature’s lawn mowers.
Sheep are also pretty dumb. So dumb that they decide to walk out in the middle of the road in an alpine pass in front of a certain rental car driven by a 30-year-old American woman going about 45 mph. The woman swerved, missed the sheep, her husband about had a heart attack, but no sheep (or cars or humans) were injured. (That woman was me, FYI.)
Besides the sheep, the driving on the left hand side of the road is getting a bit more comfortable after a few days in. Thankfully, there is no speed limit in the entire country that exceeds 100km per hour, roughly 62 mph. We drove from Queenstown to a small village called Twizel (pronounced Twai-zel), which is situated near Mt. Cook National Park and within the Aorangi Mackenzie Dark Sky Reserve – meaning the area is dedicated to reducing light pollution to protect the dark skies, allowing the Milky Way, stars, and plants to light up.
Wow – they really did.
Our AirBnb had an outdoor tub which we filled and sat in for about an hour just stargazing. Being in the southern hemisphere, we still saw the same constellations like Orion and Leo, but they were upside down. We also were able to spot the Southern Cross, which is a constellation you can only see in the southern hemisphere. There were so many stars, more would just continue to appear the longer you looked. Truly, a magical experience.
Unfortunately, we’ve hit a spell of bad weather starting with our stay outside of Twizel. A hope of ours was to do a several hour hike with a view of Mt. Cook within the park. This turned into a 45-minute walk in some rain and wind to a lookout point of a glacial lake and cloud covered view of Mt. Cook. While a bit defeating, it was quite fun and adventurous to brave the elements, even for a short while. Nothing felt better than the hot shower that awaited us when we returned home.
Mueller Glacier lake and cloudy views
We remained relaxed in the AirBnb for the remainder of the day, reading, watching 3 Body Problem on Netflix, and resting. Also, I cannot overstate the beauty and views of this AirBnb. It was wide open sky, a beautiful sunrise greeted us each morning, mountains surrounded us in the far off distance.
We said goodbye to the neighboring horse, and yes, another sheep, packed up, and set out on a 4 hour drive to Christchurch, making way for a short stop in a town called Timaru for lunch and some coastal sites.
Timaru is a small holiday town on the coast. We stopped to see a site called Dashing Rocks and eat some lunch. The water in many of the areas has been such a striking light blue, whether it’s on the coast or in a lake. The water appears much clearer and a lighter blue-gray than what we’re used to seeing in the States.
Dashing Rocks in Timaru, along the ocean’s coast
We’re settled into West Milton / Christchurch area for the next couple of days. We spent our first day on a guided rock climbing trip to some local crags (rock or cliff faces, primarily used for climbing). Asa was the quite the pro, I was the reason for the need of a guided trip. It was a fun day. Getting outside, feeling and climbing different types of rock, and seeing some great views of the city.
We learned that Christchurch was formerly swampland primarily and sits on the outside of an extinct volcanic crater rim. The rock we were climbing on was basalt, a type of volcanic rock. Much different than what Asa has climbed in Tennesse, which has traditionally been sandstone.
This was my first outdoor sport climbing experience,I climbed up four different routes. Asa accomplished about 7 or 8 routes, including the hardest climb at the crag, a first for our instructor. It was a real fun day, ending with dinner at a local restaurant called Two Fat Possums… no possums are on the menu.
We’ve just hit the halfway point of our trip, with just under two weeks remaining. It’s the cliche feeling of so much has happened, but it’s all happened so fast. We’re doing our best to try and do all the things, but also find time to rest during this amazing adventure.
The weather recently has been allowing us more time to rest, as it’s been overcast, some rain, and wind. We’re taking the day today to explore more of Christchurch and maybe visit a local winery. Hoping for some sunshine in the coming days!
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