Coromandel to Queenstown by Carol

Queenstown Lake

Serpentine Hills, location of "Plains of Rohan" filming
New Chums Beach, Coromandel
View of Tairua estuary, from cottage on Mt. Paku

Just days after arriving in NZ, Megan, Kris & I drove up to the Coromandal Peninsula east of Aukland to see his brother Andy whose wife had just given birth to their 3rd boy. How great for me to get to meet them and see Kris with his brother, plus now I know who they are when Megan talks about them. Our lodging there was a little apartment high on a hill with a view of the beach & high hills dense with bush at Tairua -- a place I could only dream of being before this! We had one good day of weather here that gave us a chance to explore beautiful New Chums Beach. A bit isolated, we had a trek to get to it & were the only ones there until we left. Between Wellington & Tairua we passed by the NZ ironman marathoners at Taupo and waded in hot thermal waters by Huku Falls on the Waikato River. Driving affords the opportunity to really see the land even if it means feeling carsick from the narrow, winding roads of the north island!

Then an unexpected opportunity came for Megan & I to spend a week on the southern end of the south island with jenny from her church. Two days travel each way from Wellington means lots of new scenery! Our road trip began with a 3 hour ferry ride through Cook Strait separating the north island from the south. The bush (dense foliage) covered the steep hills right down to the water and dolphins swam near Pictin (northern tip of southern island). The more south we drive the straighter the roads became (compared to the winding of the northern island). So much new scenery for the senses to absorb! Two opportunities with our host:

Jenny's husband, Simon, is a geologist here in Alexandra for gold mining and took us along to inspect a site at 3,000 feet in the Serpentine area of Central Otago. The fascinating rock formations there were the site of filming the Plains of Rohan in Lord of the Rings "Two Towers" where the people are running toward Helms Deep. The landscape is treeless and dry, and the one lane, deeply rutted and very bumpy road is only navigable by 4 wheel drive. And it was in that setting that we stopped for our "tailgate" tea time from the back of his pickup truck! What a wonderful adventure! The next day Jenny & Simon drove us to Queenstown one and a half hours from Alexandra. Queenstown is a ritzy ski resort on a beautiful lake surrounded by steep, treeless mountains, and is a tourist mecca for the whole country. A college town feel with people enjoying the sunshine in the outdoor seating of the many cafes, an artist outside painting and musicians hoping you'll drop some coins in their instrument case. On the outskirts of the town we stopped at the 1880's bridge that was the birthplace of bungy jumping and watched several brave souls plunge head first toward the aqua water of the gorge. We are so grateful for Jenny & Simon hosting and chauffeuring us!