Kia ora!

Unbelievably (given that it’s just across the ditch), this was my first trip to New Zealand. It was breathtakingly beautiful – the scale of the landscape is so enormous it’s almost difficult to comprehend.

We had eight days on the South Island – flew into Christchurch, and took the TranzAlpine train across the island to Greymouth on the west coast. From there, we hired a car and drove south to the glacier town, Franz Josef. After that, we headed north again and did the Great Coast Road, finishing in Nelson (on the east coast), where some dear friends live. Our last few days were spent at Kaikōura and Akaroa, before returning to Christchurch and flying home.

The highlights (roughly following our itinerary) –

I don’t think you have to be a train enthusiast to enjoy the TranzAlpine, a 223km journey through the Southern Alps (and reaching an elevation of 920 metres at Arthur’s Pass). Although other passengers were most thrilled by the Alps, I enjoyed the Canterbury Plains, where you could see the braided rivers (so different from the way rivers behave in Australia).

A short afternoon hike to Hokitika Gorge (shown at the very top and below). Yes, it really is that blue (and felt like we’d been dropped into a fairy tale landscape).

Our second full day was spent hiking. First, a couple of walks to see the glacier at Franz Josef –

And the stunning (and I think underrated) Peter’s Pool –

Next we took in a view of Fox Glacier/ Te Moeka o Tuawe (again, the scale blew my mind) –

And finished the hiking part of the day with a circuit of Lake Matheson/ Te Ara Kairaumati – wasn’t difficult to see why this mirror lake is a favourite spot for photographers.

By this point in the day, I’d clocked 24,000 steps… so was very pleased that I’d had the foresight to book us an hour of soaking in a wood-fired hot tub. It was sensational and I never wanted it to end.

We had one full day of driving – left the mountains and wound our way around the Great Coast Road, stopping at Punakaiki / Pancake Rocks.

I’m all for sea-views but my favourite part was turning inland again through the Buller Gorge. I took some pics but honestly, they are unremarkable (again, a failure to capture the scale) and I suspect that it was the hydrologist in me that enjoyed this part of the drive (my family weren’t squealing at every bend in the river like I was).

We had a quiet day in Nelson, hanging out with our friends and enjoying a leisurely lunch and visit to the small but impressive Suter Art Gallery. I loved the Michael Dell exhibition, and the kids loved the weird and funny Wayne Youle installations.

As we were driving, my friend pointed out the Nelson Boulder Bank in the distance – the bank is 13 kilometres long and creates a huge pool. I never knew such a thing existed naturally, and that night I went down an absolute boulder bank rabbit hole. I had to see it up close. My friend, also a geography-nerd, was happy to oblige. Can you tell how thrilled I am from the photo below?!

Our geography thrills didn’t end there. We finished the day on the Kaikōura Peninsula, where an earthquake eight years ago lifted a huge area of land from the seafloor, up, leaving it exposed. Bear with me while I overdo the photos – I couldn’t help myself, it was mind-blowing to be walking across rocks that hadn’t been available for walking on less than ten years ago.

There was more soaking in hot water to be enjoyed at Hamner Springs, before our last activity – a visit to the small seaside town of Akaroa.

It’s a pretty town but we were there for one thing – a boat trip – and for one little guy in particular – Buster.

Yes, we saw the smallest species of dolphin, but we mostly wanted to hang out with Buster (truthfully, I think we hogged his time but not sorry…). Buster’s task is to spot the dolphins and he did a great job. And look at his little life jacket! So cute.

Lastly, some other trip details (less important than mountains, glaciers and Buster but…). Some notable places we stayed:

• Kahere Retreat in Franz Josef – glorious to wake up to snow-capped mountain views.
• Ngaio Cottage at Cable Bay (near Nelson) – the ocean views! The outdoor bathtub! (And yes, I did have a bath).
• A whole house for the night with our friends in Kaikōura – perched on a clifftop, this place was outstanding.

What we ate:

• Incredible roasted lamb with celeriac puree at 5th Street.
• Whitebait fritters in Hokitika; lasagne toppers (as recommended by Ben Shewry); pies, pies, pies (New Zealanders seem to love a pie but the ones at Burleigh Gourmet Pies were the standouts).
• Crayfish from local favourite, Nin’s Bin.

We packed a lot in to our holiday but felt completely recharged by the gloriousness of New Zealand. We’ll definitely be back.