Duke Backpackers Greymouth

... hour and Wellington is a big place, possibly the biggest town I have yet visited in NZ, I booked a night in the Downtown backpackers which was handily placed just across the road from the Ferry which was to take me across the Cook Straits to South Island. <br>Downtown backpackers was a lovely old building which used to be a posh hotel called the Waterloo.<br>A quick mention of the Backpacker hostels... There is at least one in every town in NZ ...

... the small town of Motueka to visit my father's uncle via the town of Nelson. Now, apparently, the one ring used in Lord of the Rings wasn't actually forged from the fires of Mount Doom but was made by some guy there. The South Island is apparently the place to be for Lord of the Rings.<br><br>After having a nice family reunion I then got ready for what would be the coldest night's sleep of my entire life. Thanks to the warmth of the heater I was lulled into a false sense of security ...

... to do it with better weather. Near Murchinson we stopped at NZ`s longest swingbridge, which, besides long, turned out to be a tourist trap. PT: Chegámos a Punakaiki ao cair da noite, o tempo não estava grande coisa e pouco depois de nos instalarmos no parque de caravanas começou a chover, e choveu toda a noite. De manhã quando acordámos ainda chovia bastante, esperámos até que melhorasse um pouco e nessa altura arranc ...

... I also booked on to the TranzAlpine for the next day. This train takes you across the country to Greymouth (near Barrytown for those that remember) through Arthurs Pass, and it supposed to be one of the best train rides in the world. The next day I was up before any of the rest of the bus crew. I was waiting for the free bus to the station. I saw Kerry briefly outside and we said our goodbyes again. At the station, the train was 8 carriages ...

... say that the waterproof trousers are becoming my favourite item of clothing - it's a great look whatever the weather!! At least the weather means you see some impressive sea action with the waves crashing against the rocks. This walk took us right out to a small penninsula with huge rock formations - which was mental with the waves all around you. At one point I saw this big creature coming up the rocks ahead of us and I have to admit (the shame ...

... thing about glaciers is that you can't capture their enormity in a photograph, particularly on a grey day. We hiked in beyond the safety boundary (as did everyone else and) after crossing a rocky stream, got close enough to tell that they weren't lying: it is sluffing off front layers. The ice is a deep blue, but again, you can't really tell that in a picture. Then, we drove north to Franz Josef Glacier but the rain was even more intense. We opted for ...

... so dass im Inland Fluesse Hoehlensysteme in die Erde gegraben haben. Wir konnten uns die Gelegenheit nicht nehmen lassen, bei Westport mit einem Fuehrer, der diese Hoehlen vor 30 Jahren mit kartografiert hat, in ein solches Hoehlenlabyrinth herabzusteigen. Wir mussten uns 50 Meter in ein Erdloch abseilen und sind dann durch enge Kanaele gerobbt, Waende und Wasserfaelle hoch- und runtergeklettert, haben unterirdische Seen durchwatet und Hoehlentiere wie ...