Ah, it’s been awhile!  Let me catch y’all up..  I left Wellington December 9 and today is December 30.  Oofta.  Three weeks that I’ve been on the South Island and almost two months that I’ve been away from home.

Recap: I left Wellington Friday morning, took a three hour ferry (but I call it a cruise) to Picton (tip of the South Island), then got on a bus in Picton and drove to Nelson which took about two more hours, I slept at an Airbnb in Nelson, woke up the next morning and took a bus from Nelson to Marahau.  Phew.

Marahau: December 10-December 12

I learned yet another lesson while traveling.  Ask your bus driver questions if you don’t know what you’re doing.  There were three stops in Marahau (TINY town) which were all on the same street.  I was either too lazy or just living life on edge (leben am limit) when I decided to get off at the last stop.  I asked the bus driver if he could point me in the right direction… I should have gotten off at the first stop.  He seemed a bit annoyed with me.  OH WELL… The last stop was the beginning to the Abel Tasman Great Walk and was conveniently located by a cute cafe, the Park Cafe.  I sat and enjoyed a latte and yogurt with muesli while I got my bearings straight with the help of wifi- Google Maps said it was a ten minute walk to my Airbnb… Okay, so it’s not that short when you have a huge backpack and a huge rolling suitcase that isn’t suited for a gravel road (thats right… GRAVEL) in a backpacker neighborhood.  I felt a little embarrassed to have so much stuff but I embraced my traveling style and looked forward… I also prayed that my wheel wouldn’t break which it didn’t.

I arrived at my hostel/Airbnb location and the host, Greg, showed me around.  We also went over some activities that I could partake in.  I decided I wanted to go horseback riding and kayaking.  I booked the horseback riding for Saturday night (same day as my arrival) and decided to kayak on Monday.  I love a lot of things, maybe I love too much, but one the many things I love is the freedom I feel when deciding a fun itinerary for myself.  Jenny, what do YOU want to do?  And this is why solo travel is so special… You only have to be considerate of one person, yourself.  Let me rephrase that, you should always be considerate of others, but when making decisions regarding YOUR time during solo travel,  you only need to be concerned with yourself which is an empowering feeling.

Horseback riding on the beach was fabulous.  I met some more Germans, two of which I met for drinks at the Park Cafe after horseback riding.

Saturday was pretty low-key, I went with Greg to Motoeuka to do some grocery shopping and went to the beach afterwards.  The beach was peaceful as it wasn’t very busy.  I even took a refreshing dip in the freezing water.  Around 4pm, I met Greg and another hostel guest for happy hour at  Hooked cafe.  I turned in early and was in bed by 8:50p.

Marie arrived Sunday morning.  I was so excited to meet up with her so I met her at the bus stop (same one I got off at- Park Cafe).  Being that I don’t have my close friends here with me who make me laugh every other sentence, I’ve missed laughing at the dumb/odd/awkward/simple things said and done.  Marie temporarily filled that void and I am thankful for that.

After coffee with Marie, we split for a few hours so I could go on my kayaking adventure.  I got paired up with a sweet, nice, young Canadian boy.  I can’t remember his name, but he was a sweetheart.  He was 22 or 23 and he shared how he couldn’t wait to find love.   Of course I told him he would find someone… Although I don’t particularly like it when people tell me that after I share tidbits about my single life, but I guess it’s just the right thing to say sometimes.  If anyone deserves to find true love, it’s that guy!

Kayaking was a fun experience.  I look forward to doing it again, hopefully in caves.

I met with Marie for dinner then we split up again and met up the following morning so we could start our very first GREAT WALK!!!! AH!

Great Walk Numero Uno: December 12- December 16

I know I’m going to go into way too much detail if I talk about each day so I’m going to give it to you straight.  Go to New Zealand and walk the Abel Tasman Great Walk.  Beautfiul sights, a rewarding finish, and you meet unique, respectable individuals.  Honestly, you see a lot of the same scenery since the track is along the coast, but each day presents a new challenge or special feeling.  But who doesn’t love looking at the coast?

First day- December 12:  Hiked to Watering Cove campsite.  Fairly easy day.  Met New York City Kristin who we shared the site with.  Awesome beach to ourselves.  Marie and I pretended to be models.  Short walk to the (classy) Anchorage hut and campsite where we met Tri who is from Washington DC.

Second day- December 13: Hiked to Bark Bay campsite.  Least favorite site, but enjoyed being on a little peninsula so we could easily note when the water was at low tide or high tide.  Tides are neato.

At Bark Bay

Looked like a dragonfly in the tall grass so I had to take a photo.  Obvi.

Funny Story: To start the day off right, Marie gave us something to chuckle about. We were able to take the low tide track, but in order to do so we needed to take off our hiking boots to prevent our socks from soaking in the large, scattered residual water pockets.  Kristin and I had strappy sandals on so they stayed on our feet as we navigated across the semi-wet sand.  Marie had flip flops on <start inserting my laughter now>, since the sand was somewhat wet it caused Marie’s flip flops to suction to the ground.  Normally this situation could have been better averted, but when you’re carrying a huge backpack and holding one hiking shoe in each hand, it makes it rather difficult.  <Insert continuous laughter> I hear a German accent “oh no!” and look back, Marie is on all fours <I can’t stop laughing>, hiking boots smushed in the sand, and her head pointed downwards.  Both Kristin and I walk to her and she tells us to fix her hair… Both Kristin and I brush her bangs out of of the way not knowing what she wanted us to fix with her hair. I mean… there were more important things she needed help with, but whatever she wants.  She goes “No… There’s something caught.”  I don’t know how this happened, but when she fell, a hook got caught on the top part of her hair disallowing her to look up.  It was ridiculous and it added so much to the situation.  <Oh boy, my sides hurt> So picture this:  tall Marie, all fours, big backpack, hands directly on top of her boots in wet sand, and a tiny hook pinned to her hair.  I thought I got myself into goofy, awkward situations, but after discussing some stories with Marie, I think she’s got me beat.

Third day- December 14: Hiked to Awaora campsite: BOO!!! Going up hill then downhill… Uphill then downhill. So much up and downs.  Beach time was rewarding. For. Sure.

Funny story: Marie and I were sitting on a bench after hiking up a hill behind us when a couple came from the direction we were heading.  We were sweating and exhausted.  We asked the couple how far the campsite was and they replied “Ohh just twenty minutes”.  Both Marie and I were happily surprised.  The couple went on to say “And it’s great too!  They have a place that you can sit down and have pizza.  They serve beer and wine.”  Marie and I looked at each other and never got up so fast to start walking… like borderline rude with how fast we exited the conversation.  “Thanks!!!  Enjoy your walk- you have two hours left!  We gotta get going to our campsite! Byyyyyyye.”  As we were power-walking, Marie asked if we could still consider ourselves backpackers if we enjoyed some pizza and wine.   I told her that we should just leave that piece out when sharing our adventure with others.  Welp, ten minutes later we came to a T in the road.  Head left to Awroa Campsites: approximately two hours or head right to the Awaroa Lodge: approximately twenty minutes.  “Smh” seems appropriate for this situation.  OF COURSE THEY DON’T SERVE PIZZA AND BEER AT A BACKPACK SITE.  Delirium 1  Marie and Jenny 0.  We weren’t exactly prepared for that letdown,  but being the tough cookies we were (and are), we made it… eventually.  It was brutal, but laying on the beach made it all worthwhile.

Fourth Day:  Met Hannah.  Had to wait for low tide so we could cross the bay, so Tri, Marie, Hannah, and I chatted until 12:30p.  I drank my favorite cup of coffee.  Hiked to Mutton Cove campsite, stopped at Totaranui campsites.  Not terrible, but still difficult.  Switchbacks.

Ouch!  Crossing the Awaroa Bay at low tide. 

Awaroa Bay at high tide

Awarora Bay at low tide

Fifth Day: Got up early and headed back towards the Totarnui campsites to complete the Abel Tasman Great Walk*.  Went up the steepest hill of the whole trek.  I couldn’t believe they didn’t make that walk up the hill into switchbacks, but per usual, it was mentally and physically rewarding once we reached the top.  Made it back it to the Totarnui campsites and waited for our water taxi.

*Totarnui is the last site where water taxis pick up so we actually walked past the pickup location the day before, slept at Mutton Cove, then looped back around on the Gibbs Hill Track (steep hill) and returned to Totarnui.  It was nice that we were able to loop around to get a different type of scenery.

Made it!!!!!  I’d say we completed about 60-70 kilometers (37-43 miles) in five days.  Not a ton, but it felt like it.  Once we got on the water taxi, I told Marie it felt like we had just been rescued. The feeling of smiling on the water taxi was unforgettable…. Knowing that I would shortly be visiting a shower, enjoying a glass of wine paired with some delicious pizza were wonderful thoughts at the time (well, all the time really).  It was also sweet to see all the ground we covered.  It’s pretty amazing what your body is capable of.

The water taxi dropped us off.  Marie and I picked up our luggage from the hostel I stayed at.  We quickly walked to the bus and made it just in time to head back to Nelson.  That evening we met up with backpackers we met along the Great Walk as well as some individuals Marie was staying with in her hostel room.  One of them was even from Minnesota, Luke was his name!  Needless to say, it was an awesome end to a kickass adventure.

Nelson to Franz Josef: Sunday: December 17

The next morning, my Airbnb host dropped me off at the bus station… Nice woman.  The bus ride was about nine hours.  We stopped at a few locations along the way then arrived in Franz Josef.

I didn’t have to time to hike so I took myself out on a date to Alice May instead.  The ambiance was perfect.  The background music (Bon Iver- yes!), the sounds of soft chatter, raindrops on glass patio windows, in a low-lit area were lovely additions to my date night.  I finished my veggie pasta rather fast so I sipped on my glass of wine slowly.  The wine was soothing, but I decided to drink a latte to make an already perfect evening more perfect.  A lady and her friend at a nearby table insisted they drive me back to the hostel since it was raining…. I like the rain though.  Not to mention my hostel was like five feet away BUT the offer was generous so I obliged.  I got out of the car, took a few steps, then a couple more, and that’s when I realized I needed a walk.  Doesn’t matter where you are, you can always find somewhere to walk.  I walked aimlessly and found a thirty minute hike brought to you by New Zealand’s Department of Conservation.  Thank you for that treat NZ DOC.

That was my night in Franz Josef and it was marvelous.  Can’t wait to go back.

Franz Josef to Queenstown: Monday: December 18

Another early morning.  I got on the bus and headed towards Queenstown.  The bus ride took about nine hours.  Again, we stopped at a few locations before arriving in Queenstown.

This city is happening!  After I got settled in the hostel, I quickly started to walk around this buzzing city.  I made my way towards the beach, then spontaneously decided to take the gondola up Queenstown Hill to get a fabulous view of the city.  I looooove gondola rides.  My favorite gondola ride is in Breckenridge, Colorado though.  This Queenstown one is really short and costs money. Boo.  After the ride back down, I needed some grub so I googled Pho restaurants (typical).  After I ate, it was back to my hostel for some rest.

Queenstown to Te Anau: Tuesday: December 19

I arrived in Te Anau at 9:30a.  This will be final destination (Yikes!  Hopefully I wont have any freak accidents like the movies)…. at least my final destination for four months as I work for Fiordland Lodge as a housekeeper.

More to come on the days that I have off.  So far, so, so, so good!