Zoom Zoom to Wanaka

Yesterday we had a leisurely morning to wake up, enjoy our cereal, talk to Sierra Designs about our uniquely shaped tent, and pack up before heading onwards. We even took a short walk along Minnehaha Trail to appreciate the green wonder of the surrounding rainforest. (Apparently this trail also has glow worms, but they do not glow in the morning.)

We then made a lot of ground... travelling from Fox Glacier to Wanaka... over 250 km! We weren't even tired by the end of our trip. Bus travel is sure a lot easier than riding the bike. However, you miss out on a lot of your surroundings. We couldn't smell the fresh air oozing out of the forest, or hear the chirps of birds and hums of wildlife behind the green forest walls, or feel the cool breeze of the downhills and warm sun on the uphills. Everything passes by a little too quickly as well. One blink and you miss out on waterfalls pouring down the mountain walls along the road. If you don't look carefully, you miss seeing a cow wading in the crystal clear stream along side you. And you don't have quite enough time to enjoy the view at the top of Haast pass before the bus zooms along down the hill. It's not quite the same looking out of a bus window.

Yet, we did see some spectacular scenery. There were many waterfalls streaming down mountainsides. We passed through more lush rainforest up to Haast pass where we caught an amazing glimpse over the cliff walls to the ocean beating on the rocks below. And we weaved between two beautifully clear lakes surrounded by the peaks and hills of the Southern Alps as we approached Wanaka. The bus journey was certainly not a ride to nap on. I just wish I could have stopped to appreciate the beauty a little more... (an extra bathroom stop would have been nice too)... but now I am convinced that the bike is a great way to travel across NZ and appreciate all the natural wonders it holds.

We arrived in Wanaka around 4 and asked to be dropped off at the bike shop, as my bike was feeling down since it was not used all day and wanted its bum wheel to be fixed. The first bike shop I went to was not so sure about my wheel and didn't have any replacement wheels in stock so I went on to another shop with a much more knowledgable bike mechanic. He agreed that my wheel was not meant to carry all the weight it was lugging around and suggested building a new wheel... after sadly spending all the money I had just gotten from the ATM, I visited the ATM again, and headed onward to find a home for the night.

We ended up camping just a walk away from the main town. After setting up our tent we went to the grocery to get some BBQ foods and cooked up some burgers. We then took an evening stroll and headed to bed in our Dr. Seussesque looking tent. Some Australian guys outside the tent put us to sleep with their endless stories of Double Brown (a beer).

It was nice to have a day of rest.