avelog

Stewart Island is a small island south of New Zealand’s South Island, and considered the country’s third and oft forgotten island. It has a small tourist-oriented town and a lot of wilderness/wildlife. The plan was to head over on the passenger ferry this morning, since departure times are posted as 9:30am, 11:30am, and 3:30pm, but for no apparent reason, they decided to sail at 9:30am and 5:00pm today, so we’ve been stranded in Invercargill for a few hours with no plans.

I’ve had a couple of disappointments the past few days. After applying to UBC and having lenghty discussions and visits with one of the profs there, I was of the understanding that I was going to start a program there in the fall with funding through a research project involving the study of invasive species brought in by shipping on the west coast. I had a week of deliberations after leaving Canada and decided to accept the position offered within the timeframe given, only to receive a reply two days after my email stating that the prof had gone behind my back and found a different Master’s candidate to fill the spot, leaving me with no opportunity at UBC for the fall and no plans. I was quite frustrated with this and felt betrayed, but I recovered after a few beers and some sleep. I still had hope in my NSERC application, and with that funding would likely be able to pursue something interesting along a different avenue.

Well, during our current limbo awaiting ferry departure, I’ve received news that NSERC sent me a rejection letter sometime last week, stating that this year’s competition was particularly severe. That leaves heading to South America and getting lost in the jungle for a few months my only option left. Hopefully I’ll still have a chunk of money left after this New Zealand/Australia trip. I guess I’ll have to do some thinking in the next few months and decide where I’m headed; some serious world-wandering, accompanied by the necessary job-seeking in foreign countries, or a re-grouping and a concerted effort to find something interesting to do in grad school (I only applied to one school this year because I wasn’t entirely sure what I wanted to do).

No photos today (it’s now been a while) since the computers at this internet cafe in Invercargill are fairly difficult to use. We spent three or so days along the Catlins Coast and stayed the last night at a little campground that only had a tiny kitchen and pay-stove. This wouldn’t normally be a problem, except that we still hadn’t found a fuel canister for the stove and had no other way to cook. Problem solved: the girl at the office gave us the end-of-day meat pies and sausage rolls that were sitting in the oven since they were closing up. Not the most elegant, healthy, or invigorating meal, but free and filling!!

On Stewart Island, the plan is to do a morning of sea kayaking followed by a three day hike on the Rakiura Track, one of New Zealand’s Great Walks. We’ll take the ferry back on April 3rd and make a dash for Queenstown to return the rental car. Then our other tramps and we’re off with our cheap-cheap-cheaper rental car after Easter.

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Brilliant sunshine, bright blue water, and howling wind combined to make today gorgeous, yet terribly chilly. We’ve made our way south from Dunedin, landing in a very friendly and comfortable motor camp last night. Given that the cold weather seems to have set in on the south island, we’ve invested in hot water bottles, and put them to good use last night.

Today was a series of walkabouts with wonderful views, the warmth of the car quickly forgotten every time we stepped out into the fierce wind. An afternoon stop at Cannibal Bay to find sea lions turned into a four hour adventure during which we crossed a head narrow stretch of bush to another beach, following it for a few kilometers when we became aware that the beach around us was scattered with sea lions enjoying the sun, partially obscured by the sand they intermittently flipped onto themselves.

The internet access is only dial-up, so no photos. If we can find a place to get a fuel canister for my stove we might do some more primitive camping. Tonight’s stay is courtesy the fine folks at Surat Bay Lodge - a backpackers hostel - who’re allowing us to tent beside the main building for a reduced fee, instead of getting a room.

A couple more days on the Catlins Coast and we’ll be in Invercargill and go over to Stewart Island.

Sorry for the boring, descriptive posts, but we aren’t getting much quality time on the internet these days (read: we have better things to do! ).

We managed to snag a computer at the uni here in Dunedin using Laura’s login/password, so I’ve been able to upload some new photos to Flickr, including some earlier ones from Liz’s camera, having just received the cord from Canada. NOTE: I’m not showing all the Flickr photos on this website, cause it’d take too long to load!!! Make sure to check them out!!

I neglected to mention earlier that upon arrival in Dunedin, we proceeded to the tourist info downtown in the Octagon, and while walking back to the car, were absconded by a pair of boorish hooligans (read: Laura and Nelson). Apparently Dunedin is small enough that there’s no need for any form of communication other than random street yellings and we didn’t need to go find their address or phone number.

Last night was filled chocolate dreams after taking the Cadbury World tour and picking up some cheap chocolate at the shop on the way out (not enough free samples!!!!).

Some sightseeing will follow internet activities this afternoon, and a tour of the Speights Brewery is in order tonight once Nelson gets off work. Tomorrow will be the Otago Peninsula, and we’ll proceed down the coast sometime later in the week.

PS. Elizabeth says “Hi Mum!!!!”, and waves vigorously!

But that’s alright, because we got lots of sunshine yesterday!

We’re currently in Dunedin visiting with Liz’s sister Laura, and Laura’s fiancé Nelson. We made our way down the coast from Akaroa, stopping in Oamaru for a night at a completely mediocre Top 10 holiday park. Top 10’s are supposed to be the best holiday parks around, and are priced accordingly, but I’ve been less than impressed thus far. Mostly filled with campers and sites less than a couple feet from eachother, crammed into a little grassy space with simple bathrooms and stove/sink for $26 per night for the two of us. We really need to swing by the Department of Conservation office here and grab a map with their campsites, since they tend to be much more scenic, and cost as little as nothing and at most $10. We’re more than willing to forego the kitchen and flush toilets for a bargain, a nice view and a smidgen of privacy.

Oamaru was a simple rural city of approx. 28 thousand. We went and watched the yellow-eyed penguins in the early evening as they made a very steep climb up the side of a hundred-foot cliff to get back to their nesting sites for the night. We also had a walk through the historic downtown filled with beautiful white limestone buildings and a nice church.

The drive down to Dunedin yesterday morning included a few stops along the way to enjoy the brilliant sunshine and magnificent views, as we opted to avoid the well-travelled SH1 highway and instead followed a couple of more relaxed, scenic, and local coastal roads. Upon arrival in Dunedin, a walk along the beach with Laura and Nelson was followed by wine and a filling pasta and roast vegetable dinner with some trip-planning thrown in. A night sleeping indoors on the floor of Laura and Nelson’s little rented room, along with the luxury of a borrowed pillow, provided a excellent contrast to our windswept, cold, and damp night huddled in the tent at Oamaru. This morning was swim and gym at the city’s main pool complex, which turned out to be very refreshing after a week of almost no vigorous exercise.

The plan from here is to sleep another night on the floor, perhaps heading out to the wildlife-filled Otago peninsula tomorrow. After another day or two around here we’ll be heading south to explore the Catlins coast, which is apparently less-frequented, more rugged, and more beautiful than anything we’ve seen thus far. The car has definitely been worth it, even though I think I may have to paper over the gas gauge so I don’t have to watch our fuel bill climbing at $1.50/litre. It’s great to be able to pull over for an hour and explore the countryside or enjoy the views wherever we want.

Due to the poor facilities in this particular soulless internet cafe, I won’t be uploading photos of penguins and rocks and such until sometime in the next couple of days.

I hope everyone is well back in Canada, and enjoying the late-March cold and snow!

Just a quick update with some photos. You can also visit my Flickr photo site to see more.

The area where we’ve been for the last two days, the Banks Peninsula, is the sunken remains of several massive volcanoes, and therefore the hills around here are the rim edges. You can see it fairly well on the google maps representation. We had a great hike up through the sheep farm we’re staying on yesterday, with lots of sheep and great views! We also had our first driving-through-the-cloud experience, when we took the half-hour drive up over the rim to Okains Bay for lunch and a walkabout. I couldn’t see more than 20 feet ahead, and nothing at all over the cliff edge we were driving along.

We’re now heading south, probably to stop in Oamaru and see some penguins. Apparently there’s not much else to do in that town. We need to find another Pak’n Save (like Canadian Superstore) so we can stock up on food again, since our budget is tight.