WARNING: Once again, this is not a sailing related entry. This as well as future entires through May 2025, reflect our effort to capture our experiences while we explore Australia, New Zealand and other places in the southern hemisphere across the world from the country we call home by land with some air travel assists. We are metaphorically putting our memories in a bottle to savor on some future date. If you are not interested in reading an amateur attempt to document travel experiences you may wish to skip these entries. No offense will be taken. You were warned!
Greetings from the South Island of New Zealand. When we left off our last blog entry we had cobbled together a Plan B built around, what turned out to be, a fairly major misunderstanding of Jill’s treatment plan and recovery process. (More on that below.) Specifically, we would find a long term rental in Wanaka and, other than a brief departure for Jill’s 2 week follow up visit in Timaru, we would remain there until Jill’s 6 week follow up appointment in Timaru. At that point, we thought, Jill would be getting her brace off and we would be ready for more far afield exploring. We chose Wanaka, a spectacular lakeside town located in Central Otago, as our base for several reasons. First, Wanaka, itself, offers breath-taking wild scenery — with its beautiful lake and surrounding snowcapped mountains that seemed close enough to touch — as well as a vibrant city center filed with restaurants and interesting locally owned shops. Second, Wanaka is the gateway to many other attractions within a one hour drive. This includes Queenstown, lovely small towns, scenic drives through valleys with mountain views and alpine lakes at every turn and the wineries that Central Otago is famous for. Of course, it didn’t hurt that Central Otago is know for its sunny, dry days. Central Otago is the driest region of New Zealand with dry spells of more than two weeks not uncommon.
That said, we did not go direct to Wanaka following Jill’s discharge from the hospital. Wanaka was about a 3.5 hour drive from Timaru. When Jill was discharged from the hospital traveling in a car for long periods wasn’t the most comfortable so we decided to break up the first trip to Wanaka with a stop in the lovely town of Oamaru. We spent 4 nights/3 days in the High Trees Chalet, a self contained cottage on a beautiful lake filled with ducks and swans. While Jill was never in a lot of pain — even right after the accident which surprises most people — movement (particularly car rides) definitely brought some aches so it was nice to stay put in one place for 3 days to let Jill’s knee settle. We did venture out a little bit, trying one local restaurant, but mostly, we just stayed in the chalet. We enjoyed our accommodation’s oversized deck overlooking the lake as well as the complimentary food pellets for the waterfowl. We acknowledge that spending 3 days in a lakeside cottage, mostly reading and feeding the resident ducks and swans (who took an instant liking to us), may not sound all that exciting but, in those first few days from Jill’s discharge, exciting wasn’t what we were going for. We both just wanted to exhale!
Still, after 3 days in the quiet of our lake-side chalet, we were definitely ready to move in. Our stay in Wanaka was actually in what we called “two acts.” Act I was the 9 day period between our departure from Oamaru to our brief return to Timaru for Jill’s 2 week follow-up appointment. With not much advance notice before our planned arrival in Wanaka the accommodation options were slim. We settled on a small home near the town center in a very crowded subdivision (the houses were so close together that it felt more like a trailer park) with limited mountain views. Act II was the 4 week period commencing after our return from Jill’s 2 week appointment until her 6 week appointment. With more notice for that stay, we had many more options. One of these options included a lovely three bedroom house, close to town and with stunning mountain views. This home was owned by an incredible woman, Annabel, who is a friend of our New Zealand friends, Kristin and Rupp (owners of SV Rumpus). Readers of our blog may recall that met Kristin and Rupp in the Tuamatus (French Polynesia) and promised to visit them in New Zealand when we made our way there. When they heard about Jill’s injury they jumped into action by contacting Annabel and gave us Annabel’s contact into. (Sailors help sailors — on and off the water!) After learning about the details of Annabel’s house we nabbed it and are so glad we did.
We will collectively talk about our wonderful experiences during Wanaka Act I and Act II but, first, a very brief overview of our return to Timaru for Jill’s 2 week post surgical follow-up. In short, we learned that Jill was not going to get her brace off in 4 more weeks. Rather, at the 6 week post surgery mark, her surgeon would just start adjusting the brace to include some degree of movement. That would occur for at least 3 visits, 2 weeks apart, increasing the range of motion with each adjustment. That meant that, at a minimum, Jill would be in her brace for a total of 12 weeks. Only then would rehab begin. We don’t know if her doctors didn’t do a great job explaining the recovery process or we were simply in denial (it was probably a combination of both — you only hear what you are ready to hear) but this news dramatically changed our plans. Most notably, it meant that we really needed to stay within the South Island of New Zealand through the end of July. That also meant we would have to apply for a visa extension since ours was set to expire in early June. We quickly came up with Plan B v2.0. It still involved staying in Wanaka until Jill’s 6 week follow up visit but, assuming Jill’s knee would be feeling pretty good by that then, and having at least some limited range in motion, we would travel around the South Island using what we affectionately called the “hub and spoke” approach. Specifically, we would return to Timaru every 2 weeks but, in between, we would travel to other parts of the South Island on our bucket list. (Of course, even this ended up to be not entirely correct. More on that when we talk about Jill’s 6 week follow up visit below.)
Though the news we received regarding Jill’s recovery was not what we were expecting, our return visit to Timaru wasn’t a total bust. It meant 2 overnights back in Oamaru, this time in the Poshtel, a quirky locally owned downtown hotel with a steampunk theme. While there we had a chance to visit the Oamaru penguins — a colony of little blue penguins. At only 12 inches tall they are the smallest penguins in the world. During the day they often venture out to the ocean for food and, at night — just as it begins to get dark — they congregate together off-shore in groups called “rafts,” returning to land in large packs. The Oamaru penguins are not located in a zoo. Visitors, seated in bleachers, are able to observe the penguins in their natural habitat as they march together out from the ocean and up the rocks back to their nesting boxes. There is never any guarantee on the number of penguins you might see. The penguins are free to go out to sea or stay ashore for the day. We got lucky and literally saw hundreds of them waddle past us on their way back home. While in Oamaru, in addition to the Oamaru penguins, we also visited the local Steampunk Museum, self-proclaimed “New Zealand’s Premier Steampunk experience.” If you have never seen steampunk, it is hard to described so we quote the following from the museum’s website: “Steampunk is a quirky and fun genre of science fiction that features steam-powered technology.” The museum is filled with interactive exhibits featuring an “interesting collection of retro-futuristic sci-fi art, movies, sculpture and sound.” While there we learned that Oamaru’s annual Steampunk Festival was scheduled for May 30 – June 3, 2024, coinciding with Jill’s 6 week follow up visit. We wasted not time reserving rooms at the Poshtel so we could partake in the festival while in the area for Jill’s visit.
But back to Wanaka . . . . We had an amazing time there, becoming locals and enjoying so many different experiences. As promised, winery tours featured heavily in our Plan B. We visited Aitken’s Folly*, Rippon, Cardrona Distillery* (we had to fit one distillery in!), Te Kano*, Monte Cristo, Cloudy Bay, Misha’s*, Prophet’s Rock*, Mt Difficulty, Kinross (which was really a collective of several small wineries), Felton Road, Gibbston Valley*, Chard Farm winery, Carrick! and Quartz Reef. We enjoyed nearly all of the experiences but placed an asterisk next to those that we particularly loved. The exclamation point next to Carrick Winery is not based upon the quality of the wine, but upon Zack’s insistence that we make special note of the visit. As we were leaving the tasting at Carrick, the hostess asked how we liked the wines. Jill responded that we really did not care for the wines and then, trying to be diplomatic, added “taste in wines is so personal, I am sure they are really good.” No one has said “your wine is crap” so eloquently. During our winery visits we learned why the Central Otago climate is perfect for growing the pinot noir grape that made the region famous, the history of wine making in the area (which is relatively young even through some grapes were grown for wine making in the late 1800s) and, importantly, that if you have tasted one pinot noir you have tasted only one pinot noir. Though pinot noir is generally known for being “intense but not dense,” pinot noir wines vary greatly in taste based on climate, soil, genetic clone stock and producer style, ranging from moderate to somewhat full bodied. We had a great time comparing different Pinot Noirs, generally agreeing on our favorites.
Visiting wineries also gave us the chance to take in the scenery throughout Central Otago (always with glorious mountains in view) and visit other cities, like Queenstown, as well as quaint towns and villages including Cromwell, Arrowtown (famous for being the epicenter of New Zealand’s gold rush) and Tarras, with their local coffee shops and cafes. The added bonus was that as we chatted up the tour guides and wine makers we met we got great recommendations of places to visit that we otherwise would might not have heard about. One example was Deer Park Heights, a large privately owned working deer farm just above Queenstown. For a small per vehicle fee (~$30 USD), visitors can enjoy the 5 km drive around the farm which takes you 1,500 feet above lake level, giving you a 360° views of Queenstown as well commanding views of the surrounding mountains in the Whakatipu Basin. While driving through the property you see miniature horses and donkeys, kunekune pigs, lamas and alpacas, goats, stags, several varieties of deer and highland cattle. In addition, there are several small trails leading to overlooks as well as 8 Lord of the Rings movie sites you can visit. (Zack was in his element). Even with Jill’s limited ability to navigate the uneven terrain, we spent 2 hours exploring almost every nook and cranny. While driving around the property we noticed a small road zig zagging up the side of a nearby mountain and decided to do a detour to investigate that before heading home. It turned about to be the Remarkables Ski area. For another small fee — this time $9.19 USD — we were able to drive up to the small ski lodge and experience more stunning views of the Wakatipu Basin.
Finally, as mentioned above, our extended stay meant that we almost became locals. That included so much more than becoming regulars at our favorite restaurants — though that was definitely a part of it. (BTW, for those curious, our favorites were Francesca’s, Fudog, Shinaburo Korean Eating House and The Spice Room — those restaurants are not to be missed if you head to Wanaka). We were very fortunate to have local friends that gave us the opportunity to share in the experience of their daily lives. This included our “landlady” Annabel who took us under her wing. She took Jill along with her to a neighborhood fundraiser for breast cancer research, invited us to attend a local high school musical (Legally Blond Jr.) and joined us for several evenings of food and wine. (We solved many world problems together.) She also hooked Jill up with 2 amazing physiotherapists — one for her broken pinky (the infamous Finger-That-No one-Cares-About) and one for her knee — helping her healing process.
Through Annabel we met her parents Rob and Janet. They invited us over to their home for dinner one evening and also included us in a daytime picnic in the breathtaking and pristine Ahuriri Valley, one of the most beautiful valleys in the area. Carved over millions of years by the once fierce glacial waters of the Ahuriri River, the valley is now a tranquil slice of paradise. On a crisp, but incredibly glorious sunny day, we enjoyed good food (including marinated chicken salad and avocado finger sandwiches, grilled venison sausage and a meat & cheese pie for Zack and Asian noodle salad for Jill) and hot mulled wine along the shore of a trout filled lake with snow capped peaks serving as the backdrop. While we took this all, Rob set up his easel and used water colors to capture the view. We felt like extras in a movie. It could not have been a more perfect day. (We chose a picture of the view from our picnic site as the feature photo for this blog entry.) We are so grateful that Annabel and her parents welcomed us to Wanaka with such open arms.
In addition to Annabel, we connected with our friends Matt and Jo, owners of SV Seamogs. We met Matt and Jo in Antigua during the early part of 2022 and ran into them in the windward islands as we both made our way south that season. They own a sheep farm, Geordie Hill Station, just about 40 minutes east of Wanaka. They kindly invited us over for tea one afternoon — which turned into a tour of their farm (by land for Jill and via their small 4 seater prop plane for Zack), dinner and a few bottles of wine as the day progressed and turned into night. They also invited us to a local concert at the community owned Tarras church one evening. A talented singer/songwriter, Anna van Riel, combined story telling with a musical performance that included a collection of folk, jazz and blues. It was an incredible night and, aside from enjoying a wonderful evening of music, gave us an opportunity to meet more people from the community.
Our 5+ weeks in Wanaka was over in the proverbial blink of an eye! Jill had her 6 week follow up visit on May 29. (Jill’s appointment was supposed to be May 30th but leaders within the indigenous Māori community called for a national strike on that day to protest government policies that they believe are anti-Māori. They chose that day because May 30th was the day that the annual budget would be released and they wanted to “prove the might of [the Māori] economy by disconnecting entirely from it.” Fearing patient disruption, the Timaru hospital moved Jill’s appoint a day earlier.) We received some bad news but MOSTLY good news at the appointment. The bad news was that Jill actually needed to be in the brace for another 8 weeks — not the 6 weeks we thought. The good news came in 2 parts. First, they took an x-ray of Jill’s knee which confirmed it is healing well. Second, though Jill’s brace needs to be adjusted every 2 weeks to increase her range of motion, she doesn’t need to return to Timaru Hospital for those adjustment. Instead, they taught us how to adjust the brace and her next appointment will be at the end of the 8 weeks. While the extra two weeks was not welcome news, not having to return to Timaru is fabulous news and more than compensated for the extra 2 weeks. It will make it so much easier for us to travel around the South Island without constant backtracking. We will gain precious time allowing us to select one or more places for another extended stay — which may include a Wanaka reprise.
Our plan now is to enjoy the South Island of New Zealand until the end of July when Jill gets her brace off. We don’t know how we will possibly handle our extended visit! 😀 At that point we will travel to the North Island for a 9/10 day visit before flying back to Che Figata in Brisbane. Stay tuned — with the Hummels you never know where life will take us next.
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