WELLINGTON TO WEST COAST
WOW!
I think it’s only been ten or eleven days since my last post, but since then I’ve made it onto the south Island via Wellington by boat, and travelled all the way down the west coast to Te Anau in Fiordland. I’ve just finished the Routeburn track, which was phenomenal, but I think i’m a few posts behind… So I’m going to try and catch up a bit.
Photos at the bottom! Lower quality because the internet at this hostel isn't much.
WELLINGTON TO THE WEST COAST OF SOUTH ISLAND
It was a bit of a long drive to Wellington, but most of it was through beautiful farmland. All the little towns have great little produce stands where you can pick up some of whats being grown, by the time I finished my drive, I had an entire box full of fresh produce and free range eggs for only $20!
Wellington was a great town. Felt like a little San Francisco. Spent my only day there walking around and climbing mount Victoria to get a better view of the city. With my microphone in hand everyone kept asking if I was with the news. Got a few interesting sounds. Also if you visit Wellington, stay at the Dwellington! One of the best hostels I’ve stayed at.
Took the Ferry down to Picton on the south Island the following evening. Got to awkwardly record a very casual fire drill on the ferry. The next day I made my way over to Punakaiki on the west coast with a quick stop over in Abel Tasman. Thanks to my buddy Andrew for the tip on visiting Marahou. It was gorgeous and I’m glad I got the opportunity to swim in the Tasman at least once!
My hostel in Punakaiki was a real change of scenery. Basically a well maintained two story hut in the middle of dense jungle. At night the sound of the birds was crazy! Good way to fall asleep. Met the first Americans i’ve seen here the second night, an entire class of Minnesotan environmental students. The beach and the jungle here is unreal. Cliffs tower over you next to a beach that runs for miles. I probably spent three hours playing with my microphones in the turbulence where the river flows out of the jungle into the sea.
