On the Road to Queenstown
After a few days in Franz Josef, we boarded a bus for an all-day ride to Queenstown. Lucky us, we had Pete the driver for the first leg of the trip, and Lewis for the last leg. Both of these drivers had the storytelling gene and were steeped in pride and knowledge about the South Island of New Zealand.
Pete pulled off on a side road not too long after we started out from Franz Josef. On this fine, clear morning, he wanted to show us what he called the “trifecta view” …and the crazy white bull. We piled out of the bus on an empty country road and there across a sweet-smelling field, glowing in the morning sun, sat three New Zealand treasures: the Fox Glacier, Mt. Cook, and Mt. Tasman. We stayed there for a bit, taking photos and big gulps of fresh New Zealand mountain air. Back onboard, Pete then told us about the old white bull. This bull, either bored or crazy, is known for chasing cars like a dog—running alongside the road, inside his fence, snorting and carrying on. This morning however, the old bull was sleeping in the back corner of his pen. Alone with the view and the lonely road.
We made more stops that day: at Bruce Bay to look for dolphins, and at Pleasant Flat just to gaze at the fields and mountains. Pete also told us the story of Knight, the opportunistic dog who went back-and-forth between two construction crews to get double the food and love during the west coast road-building of the 1950-60s. The story goes something like this:
Two road construction teams began from opposite ends, intent on meeting in the middle. After some years of construction, the two teams met north of Haast at a picturesque place on the coast. Officials journeyed to the meeting point to make arrangements for a commemorative monument by the roadside. In the course of conversation with the construction crew about naming the location, the crew informed the delegation from Wellington that the area had already been named Knight’s Point. The officials inquired who “Knight” was and were informed that he was the surveyor’s dog. Turns out the dog would stay with one crew part of the day, eat dinner with them, and then sometime in the evening, hike over to the other crew. They would feed him breakfast before he headed back to the first crew later in the day. Neither crew knew until they came together and both mentioned that the dog belonged with their crew. The official opening was on 6 November 1965, and is known as Knight’s Point for the dog.
We changed drivers at Thunder Creek, saying good-bye to Pete and hello to Lewis. We had some time to wander off the road down to the waterfall at Thunder Creek. Just a normal stop on the typical road in South Island, New Zealand…and there’s a waterfall. As I got back on the bus and studied the map, I smiled at the name of the area…Mt. Aspiring National Park. New Zealand is endearing in so many ways.
Queenstown
Lewis, the bus driver, dropped us near our hotel. The Queenstown Motel Apartments are a family run place where the rooms have balconies, spotless kitchenettes, and the breezes from the brilliant blue Lake Wakatipu.
We spent many happy days there in Queenstown, our base from which to explore the Milford Sound and Mt. Cook areas. It was a short but steep walk up and down to the town center, past three 100+ year old sequoias. Some favorite memories center around food and the beach/pier area:
Joe’s Garage. They put a little twist on the typical NZ breakfast offering with the Gorgeous George.
Taco Medic. Picnic tables in a little alley where I filled up on The Producer tacos: a most tasty combination of black beans with thyme and garlic, sweet pumpkin, cole slaw with pickled red onion, cilantro, coriander and feta cheese…yum.
The rock beach at Lake Wakatipu, near the pier, the street performers, and the ice cream shop. One day a couple dressed in wedding attire showed up on the beach with a photographer and a loaf of bread. How entertaining it was to watch this “trash the dress” or “good luck” session on the beach for the next hour. The couple invited the birds to crowd around their feet with bits of bread, and then ran through the flock for photos. Again, and again, and again.
Another day, we sat watching the mama seagulls come and go, bringing back morsels to feed their hungry teenagers. While the nearly full-sized teenagers waited for mom, they’d stand in the surf, staring into the sky and crying out. Some mean little kid came along and threw stones at one of the young birds we were watching. Thankfully, he missed. And I yelled “HEY! NO! Stop it!” as the kid raised his hand for another try. For a split second I thought the kid was going to throw his rocks at me instead. I was ready to jump up and chase the little turkey down the beach. But he thought better of it, dropped his rocks and ran off, I suppose to tell his mum that someone had yelled at him. His mom didn’t come to bless me out, the kiddo didn’t come back to bother the birds, the teenage birds’ moms did come back to feed their rattled babes, and thus, a happy ending.
If you are going to New Zealand, we have unused bus pass hours for two people for sale at a discount. We have 17 hours each for 2 people which is a $175 USD ($260 NZD) total value. We’re selling the hours for $150 USD total. Payment can be made via Paypal, and with a quick name transfer at InterCity.co.nz, the passes will be yours. The pass hours are good for bus or ferry services. Travel has to be completed by January 5, 2019. Comment or message me if you’re interested!