Dock Bay Lodge Te Anau

... the tree people in the LOTR films. In the afternoon I did manage to sample some of the central Otago Pinot Noirs without driving around various vineyards by getting a wine card in The Wine Experience where you put the card in a slot and select either a taster sample or glass sized sample. It was an expensive sampling method but hassle free. I particularly enjoyed a Wild Earth 2007 and soaked it all up later with my first experience of NZ fish & chips Next stop Te Anau where I planned ...

... I noticed when parking up in Queenstown that the rear right tyre on the car seemed to be losing air, after giving it a little more the previous day which seemed ok, today it was almost completely flat. Not being mechanically minded (nor having owned a car) I called Hertz who said take it to their Tyre place in Queenstown and they’d sort it out – and they did, in 15 minutes flat (excuse the pun). There was a nail/splint of rock stuck in the tyre which ...

... get onto the Milford Road as it was shut due to snow/ice. The journey to the sound is supposedly one of the best road journeys in the world and it truelly was! I really can't describe the scenery in this part of the world as there is nothing to remotely compare it with at home; the photos will just have to speak for themselves. Not only is the road to Milford one ...

... well, I should just turn back, and she will not tell anyone. The cost to walk the Track is small, a few dollars a night during the off season, paid in advance through a series of tickets to be deposited in a drop box at the end of each day's walk. I also have to check at the DOC upon my return to Te Anau, otherwise a search party will be sent out. She gives me the card for a place in town that rents out gear, because other than my backpack and my boots, I'm not really equipped for this ...

... up to Harris Saddle, passing by Lake Harris, rugged peaks, and impressive warerfalls. After lunching at the pass, Becca, Micah and I made the steep trek up Conical Hill where we found the predicted 100 km/hr winds, but also had incredible views of the Fiordlands side of the park. From there we descended to Mckenzie Hut, passing through the Fairy Glen forest, which was literally carpeted in brilliant green moss. Every surface was ...

... and we stop in Queenstown on the way and I accidently bump into JO who I hadn't seen since Wellington! What a lovely sruprise that was!! we have a quick chat before i head back on the bus and get to Te Anau.... And after a great shower I meet Michelle!! I met Michelle in the UK a few years ago and she now lives near Invercargill and very kindly offered for me to stay round her house and even came to pick me up in Te Anau!!! It's great to see her again!! :o))

... to go out into the Tasman Sea again to get back to Doubtful Sound. We are in the Roaring 40's, which is the latitude and means the waves come all the way up from Antarctica. The waves were especially big today - four meters high. I did not feel sick today, but Lu was a little scared. The boat rocked and we could see the huge swells coming right at us. The water splashed all the way over the boat sometimes, but we were fine. Finally we got back ...

... and I lowered ourselves into our double sea kayak for the return trip to Deep Cove. All around, the water glittered beguilingly, the mirror surface portraying the mountains in all their colourful magnificence. We paddled lazily in this area, loath to disturb the utter tranquillity with our oars and in the hope of seeing a breaching whale. After a while our ...

... only noise was a roaring waterfall and a few seabirds, and it took a real effort to tear ourselves away for the 2 hour drive home. This was extra fun as they turn off the traffic lights in the tunnel after 6pm - although there are passing places, it takes an act of faith to go through!<br><br>As I write we are ensconced in one of our favourite hostels, Jimmy's Freestone Backpackers above Manapouri, with the tinsel ...

... fact that you don't have to tip!<br><br>We're also enjoying NZ TV - there are three channels which show an eclectic mix of UK, US and Aussie soaps, detective dramas etc, plus quite a few movies. We love the adverts; there are some endearingly amateurish ones on the radio and the TV has ads for farmers; we particularly enjoy the one for a worming treatment for sheep which features a cartoon woolly creature saying 'this will kill the baa-stards!'.<br><br>I'm ...