Oamuru Penguins

Somewhere we went last year, but I had forgot to write about it on my blog, is Oamuru, and we thought we would go back. They have a Victorian precinct with old world markets, and is the headquarters of 'Steam Punk' in New Zealand. But what we went for are the little blue penguins. They have nesting boxes there, and at night the penguins return from their day of fishing out a sea in small groups. You can view them coming ashore and making their way up the rocks to the nesting boxes. They are so so small. You could fit them in your hands. We weren't allowed to take photos, so I've sourced some from the internet to give you an idea.

It was pretty dark and cold watching them, but they are just so cute, we had to see them again. 

Queenstown

Back in Queenstown. We loved it first time round, and same the second. We took a trip up on the Gondola again to see the views, and we were so lucky with the weather, we could see for miles.

And a Queenstown must is the Fergburger. What a great little place, the burgers are just as tasty as I remember from the last time round.

Skippers Canyon

One thing that you consistently see as you travel New Zealand, is adverts for Jet Boating. Since we are on the final leg of the trip, we thought we would give in, and finally book up for one. We chose to go out to the Skippers Canyon, a famous Gold Mining site with a nice narrow, steep gorge. They picked us up in a 4 wheel drive mini-bus, and to get into the gorge, we went down an old horse track road, hand built by the gold miners over a hundred years ago......and never been updated since! It was so narrow, and pretty scary, Stuart told me to take my seatbelt off so we could jump if necessary! He has a good way with making you feel calm lol The road is one of only two in New Zealand that are off-limits to hire vehicles, and not covered by insurance, but the views were great.

We also came across some newly weds having their wedding photos taken. She must have been freezing.

When filming Lord of the Rings, they used the Skippers Canyon for the gates of Mordor (and a few other scenes that he told me about but I can't remember). They used Queenstown residents as extras in the movie, our guide had been dressed as an Orc a few times, and some other crazy characters, which sounded cool.

On arrival in the canyon we finally got in the jet boat. When you see the depth of the shallow water you think, no way, we can't be going up in that, but we did. It was so much fun. It's like being in a roller coaster mixed with a log flume. The driver gets so close to the sides of the canyon, squeezing through the tiniest spaces, weaving in and out of rocks, and we even did some 360o spins. Didn't think it was possible in such a tight space....but it is, accompanied by some screams!!

I'm glad we finally went jet boating, it is a really good laugh, and a lot warmer than the alternative.....white water rafting!

Glenorchy

Last year we didn't quite make it up to Glenorchy, and we have since been told by others that we missed out. So this time round it was a definite, and boy it didn't disappoint.

You can see why it's named Glenorchy, you could totally believe you are in Scotland by a loch, and it even had sand flies, New Zealand's Midge, which added to the whole effect. Stuart lit a fire by the lake to try and keep them off, but unlike Scotland, sand flies are only out by day, so the fire was more for warmth. And you can't have a campfire without a nice big mug of hot chocolate!

A beautiful DOC camp, have really enjoyed the peace and quiet up here, and am so glad we took the time to see it.

Wanaka

Wanaka is just a lovely place to be. It has a real alpine village feel, and I love its quirky shops and cute bars along the lake front. We have spent three days out here, just because it feels so nice!

One thing we skipped last time was Puzzling World, I know, it's a Shona dream, can't believe we missed it last time. It has a 5km maze with four corner towers. The challenge is to reach all four in a specific colour order. We did complete the challenge, but it took us over an hour, it was fun! :-)

They also have a walkthrough of visual illusions and wonky rooms, which are a bit of a laugh.

And I found a red telephone box!!!! It's not quite a Kirkintilloch Lion Foundry, but I'll take it lol

Day three we have spent just chilling in the campsite, sitting in big comfy chairs by the log fire, drinking tea, and enjoying the mountain view out the big glass wrap around windows.

Mount Cook

Last time we went to Mount Cook, we were snowed in and had to camp in the visitor centre car park. So we thought we would revisit and see it in a different light.
On the way, we had a quick lunch stop at Lake Tekapo with its beautiful turquoise waters. It was blowing a hoolie, but we still saw some crazy young tourists take a dip in the water. We could hear them scream from our side of the inlet!!

 Once at Mount Cook the weather was much clearer than last time. Before, we drove in in a snow storm, and didn't get to see anything until we woke up the next morning deep in snow.

This time though, we got to see Mount Cook village, but only the base of Mount Cook itself. It was hidden up in the clouds somewhere, but we spent a cold night at the bottom of it anyway.

We hoped to maybe do the walk into Tasman Glacier the next morning, but unfortunately it was raining, and the visibility very low, so that idea was soon abandoned. It was still nice to have another look though at Mount Cook, and it's a pretty awesome drive in....worth it!

Hanmer Springs

We just had to back to Hanmer Springs. It's such a beautiful village, and the spa pools are so relaxing. We couldn't resist another chance for a dip.

Feeling in the indulgent mood, we thought we would treat ourselves to a meal out in Ashburton. Stuart went for the pig out option with his MASSIVE mixed grill :-) What a cheeser on his face!!