New Zealand, Part 5 (West Coast detour to Christchurch)

I woke up very early on Saturday to make the trip back to Christchurch.

I drove to the West Coast, past Wanaka Lake, which is very popular among New Zealanders on vacation. You can probably see why. I'm not sure if this is Wanaka, though. I passed a few lakes. Can't really remember which one this was.

As you get closer to the West Coast you move from a dry climate into rain forest. It's quite amazing how the climate switches so quickly.

Fantail Falls

Thundercreek Falls

Along the way to the coast, I passed a number of beautiful waterfalls. It was fun to stop the car and take a few minutes to walk around... except for all the rain. The rain made it less fun.

Once I reached the coast, the weather got better for a few miles. The mountains reaching the coast make for some beautiful locations.

And a lot of sand flies. I have sand fly bites all over my legs and arms. Terrible nasty little things.

I worked my way north along the coast past the Fox and Franz Josef Glaciers. Both would have been nice places to stop if it hadn't been raining so much.

I finally reached Arthur's Pass, which cuts back across the island toward Christchurch.

Starting up the pass, I stopped to use my cell phone. As I stepped out of my car, a Weka bird ran out of the brush. It then started to pick dead bugs of the front of my car.

The little guy had absolutely no fear of humans. I was really surprised. Many of the flightless birds here don't seem to have much natural fear, which is probably part of the reason they are all endangered. Anyways, I chased him off so I wouldn't run over him.

Then I was headed up the pass. I got to the top in the middle of a downpour.

Some poor Kea birds were looking pretty put out due to the weather. It was probably for the best, as the birds are a bit aggressive. They like to tear at car parts. A local said that they like to steal things as well. Once a Kea stole someone's passport. Others have been accused of stealing money and wallets.

Anyways, once I was over the pass, the weather cleared up. The difference is stark, as mentioned earlier. The West Coast receives much higher rainfall than the Canterbury Plains.

You can see here the clouds behind my car.

As I got lower through the valleys, I saw some amazing rock formations. New Zealand is right on the Ring of Fire, and many of its mountains are quite young. This makes for some striking scenery.

Anyways, it was a long, long day. I was extremely happy to arrive at my friend's house (Jim and Naimah), who were extremely gracious as hosts.