The Finale Road Trip – Part one: falling from heights

The latter half of the week before last was a whirlwind of logistics. On Friday, for example, we packed a MoveCube to be shipped back to the UK (8am), welcomed a cleaning army into our flat (10am) and handed over the keys to the new occupier (2pm). In between this, I had my final day at SenateSHJ, which concluded with drinks and a great lamb roast at The Bresolin. 

Matt and Phoebe kindly put us up for the night, and by chance were also flying out of Wellington Airport on Saturday morning. While they went North for some musical fun in Auckland, we scooted South, to tick off some final ‘must dos’ before we depart Aotearoa (New Zealand). 

We landed in the adventure capital of Queenstown, quite an adventure in itself as we descended below the tops of the Southern Alps.  After a supply stop at Pak’nSave we popped to the DOC office to purchase some hut passes, receiving a parking ticket for the pleasure.

The drive up Lake Wakatipu quickly dispelled our annoyance, with great views of azure waters below white-topped peaks. We blinked, so missed Glenorchy, and quickly reached the start of the Routeburn Track, which Greg and Becky completed last summer.

Time was getting on, so we donned our tramping gear and pressed onwards and upwards, depositing our heavier bag at Routeburn Falls Hut and reaching Harris Saddle. It was quite snowy, but the weather held out long enough for us to taste the famous views. We marched back to the Hut for some dubious dehydrated dinner, and slept well.

Sunrise from the Hut

The next morning we walked out, swimming in the river to wash away the exertions of the previous day. We established there was little to see in Glenorchy, so went to the locally-famous Kinloch Lodge, where they kindly upgraded us because of my winning smile (I think). 








Bikes were hired and we set off towards the Greenstone River, fording a couple of streams and enjoying the downhills much more than the ups. 

Our post-cycle recuperation took place in a hot tub. The views were stunning, enough to entertain me for about five minutes before I got bored of sitting in warm water. Even more recuperation took place over a dinner of venison stew and fish & chips, before a guided sunset kayak completed a pretty activity-packed day. 

After a Monday morning breakfast of homemade beans and homelaid eggs we drove to Queenstown, where I had convinced Dora we should spend a day downhill mountain bike riding. We overcame the parking challenges presented by a tourist honeypot that need a bigger pot, grabbed some serious-looking helmets and gondola-ed our way up the hill. 

It turns out downhill mountain biking is quite terrifying. The brakes are rather sharp, leading Dora to fly over the handlebars at the first corner. However, over the next four hours our confidence built, such that we zoomed down ‘Thunder Goat’ with only a fleeting consideration of our mortality (it’s much steeper than the intermediate tracks in our local mountain bike park). 

We nursed our bruises at a lovely Airbnb in Arrowtown, where our host provided a warm bedroom, a washing machine and some marinated chicken legs. All were much appreciated. 

Weeeeeee

On Tuesday I went for a pre-breakfast bungy jump, kindly purchased by my work colleagues. Although we’d throw ourselves off bikes the previous day, throwing myself down a canyon was rather a step up. However, all went well, despite me forgetting to tuck my shirt in.

We decompressed at a nearby cheesery, before seeing what wineries Gibbston Valley had to offer. At Peregrine we were impressed by scale of the slanted roof building, as were the architects who gave the structure an award upon its completion. Rosa Wines provided an entertainingly abrupt Czech hostess. 

Back in Arrowtown, we hired bikes and circumnavigated Lake Hayes, pausing at the Amisfield Bistro to enjoy a charcuterie board at Amisfield Bistro. Highlights included the Chinese settlement in Arrowtown (they came to mine gold in the 19^th century), some weird Truman Show-style housing in the Millbrook Golf Resort and the long downhill rise to Lake Hayes (much more fun than the equivalent uphill on the return trip).  Come evening, we were ready for a hearty meal, but unfortunately opted for some Mediterranean tapas where they forgot to cook the fish, although Dora insists it was “meant to be like that”.