Five ladies from North Carolina, South Carolina & Florida made up the Liz Clark party and they were blessed with incredible summer weather for their two and a half week Road Trip of New Zealand.
They spent their first day getting over the jetlag by exploring Auckland at their leisure. This included an e-bike cycle ride around Waiheke Island’s wineries for 3 of them and a city food tour & museum visit for the remaining 2.
Constance their guide joined them on day two and they headed out to the beautiful Waitakere Ranges for a bush walk to view some ancient Kauri trees before a delicious lunch at Soljans Winery in Kumeu. This was followed by a drive to the west coast to view the Gannet Colony and a paddle of the feet in the Tasman Sea at Muriwai Beach. The day was not complete without their first taste of a fresh fruit Strawberry ice cream.
The following day saw the group head out of the city to Rotorua. En-route they took a walk at the Auckland Botanic Gardens and stopped at a bakery in Matamata (Hobbiton) to try a fresh cream donut.
In Rotorua the ladies had a date at the Kiwi Hatchery to learn all about our National Bird, went on an incredible eco zip-line (and faced a few fears), visited Te Puia Geothermal Park, experienced a Maori Cultural show @ Te Pa Tu and took a soaked at the luxurious Wai Ariki Thermal Spa.
On their return to Auckland, before an afternoon flight to Christchurch they swung by the Gardens in Hamilton. The ladies were not disappointed by the incredible enclosed gardens and felt that 1.5 hours was not long enough. To tempt them back into the van Constance promised them an ice cream stop at Pokeno where they got to sample Hokey Pokey or Boysenberry, iconic Kiwi flavours.
The South Island leg of their journey saw them handed over for a day to another Road Trip guide, Matt who took them on a city tour of Christchurch before driving out to the Banks Peninsula, culminating in an evening encounter with Penguins in Akaroa.
Reunited with Constance the next day, the ladies ventured west, across the Arthur’s Pass to Punakaiki. Stopping for walks at Castle Hill, the Devil’s Punchbowl and the Pancake Rocks & Blowholes.
The following day the group donned wetsuits, mining helmets and inner rubber tubes and went caving to see the glow worms at Underworld Adventures in Charleston. Later in the day they stopped in Hokitika to purchase some special pieces of Pounamu (greenstone) to take home.
Sadly, a helicopter trip had to be cancelled due to cloud cover and with some msjor roadworks and closures on the Haast Pass scheduled that day they were unable to linger in Franz Josef but they did manage to get a glimpse of the glacier on a forest walk in the area.
Wanaka never disappoints and the ladies enjoyed some downtime at their accommodation, catching up on laundry, swimming in the pool and hot tub all the while admiring and soaking up the mountain views.
It was a big day of driving the following day as they made their way to Milford Sound. They started with some sustanence, a delicious breakfast at the quaint historic Cardrona Hotel. Other stops included a breathtaking view of the Gibbston Valley, the Garston hunny shop and a lunch break at the lake town of Te Anau before their overnight cruise on the Milford Mariner.
Upon collecting the women after their overnight excursion, which they enjoyed immensely, Constance was serenaded by a “kazoo” rendition of Country Roads. This became a recurring theme song on the groups travels often resulting in impromptu “kazoo” concerts in the car.
Awash with enthusiasm after kayaking, swimming and spending their evening in nature, the ladies were whisked back to Queestown, stopping for photos at Falls Creek, Mirror Lakes and the Eglinton Valley before embarking on the famous Shotover Jet Boat ride.
The thrills & spills didn’t end there. The next adrenaline ride was an e-bike cycle on the new Lake Dunstan trail from Cromwell to Clyde.
They were glad to have a more sedate time of it the following day with a cruise across Lake Wakatipu on the TSS Earnslaw where they feasted on a BBQ lunch at Walter Peak Station. They loved the entertaining farm show with the sheep and dog also. Once back in Queenstown they took a gondola up Bob’s Peak to admire the spectacular view of the area.
It was a leisurely start the next morning with a stroll around the local market at historic Arrowtown, a mining settlement. They then stopped to watch punters throw themselves off the Kawarau Bridge attached to a giant rubber band.
They lunched at the High Country Salmon Farm in Twizel before arriving at Mt Cook Village, their destination for their Star-gazing experience. It had been a cloudy day so the ladies were stoked that the evening sky cleared enough for them to see the Milky Way, Orions Belt & the Southern Cross.
The final day of their NZ road trip dawned bright and clear. Perfect for their Tasman Glacier excursion. En-route back to Christchurch they went atop Mt John to view Lake Tekapo then ate a late lunch at Fairie Bakehouse, sampling award winning pies.
Then alas it was time to say Haera Ra. The ladies were completely blown away by their NZ experience and some have vowed to return.
