Rob Roy Glacier

I have been excited about going to Wanaka for the whole trip, so when we finally got there I was super pumped. We checked into our hotel and then we walked downtown.Then we bought some chiken cordon blue and had a picnic by the lake. Dad decided we should go swimming in the lake so we put our suits on and hopped in. Once we got cold we got out and walked home ( managing to lost twice).

The next day Mom woke me up early so Dad could drive us to the Rob Roy Glacier. It only took about 45 minutes to get to the glacier but we had to drive on a super bumpy dirt road. When we finally arrived we hiked up this mountain (in the rain) until we got to this lookout peek where we could see a beatiful blue glacier surrounding a bunch of mountains covered in snow. After admiering the glacier we hiked down the mountain. At the end of our hiked we crossed a rope bridge, battling the wind in our faces. Unforchantly my bulldog hat blew off of my head and into the river bellow. I will never forget how I lost my hat at a glacier hike in Wanaka.

Me and Dad on the rope bridge.



Dad with some cows.

Mom's millionth picture of me.



Me and Dad hiking way in front of Mom.



Rob Roy Glacier!



Pretty view!



Another picture of Rob Roy

Fuzzy scarf bandage.

Me and all my glory!

Sandflies and Wildlife in Okarito

After the awesome time in Hokitika we drove to Okarito, home to the rarest kiwi bird in the world. We wanted to find the Okarito kiwi so we walked on this trail hoping to see it. Instead we got attacked by sandflies, saw a Tui, and saw a bell bird. When we got to the end of the trail we had a great view of the Alps which were all covered with snow. Then we went to the beach to try to see a Royal Spoonbill. Of course we didn't see it but we did see one of the White Herons, very rare in New Zealand with fewer than 100 birds alive today. Then Dad decided to go mountain biking and I rode on the the handlebars. We peddled onto a boardwalk and there was a little kid in front of us and Dad stopped abruptly and I went flying off the handlebars and I hurt my ankle. Luckily it wasn't too serious and it healed after Mom put ice on it.

The picture I took of Mom and Dad at the beach.

The picture Mom took of Dad and I at the beach.

Pretty mountains!

Me and Dad with sideways hats!

More pretty mountains!

Even more pretty mountains!

Us hiking in Okarito.

My handmade, sand Royal Spoonbill.

Eel feeding

After Riwaka we drove to Hurunui Jacks which is in Hokitika. We were staying at this place called The Nest that was really tiny but offered me legos and a doodle book. Plus they also had this super cool dog named Dennis. Once we settled in Dad and I put on gumboots (which are really handy unless you fall in a lake like me) and went exploring with Dennis. The next day me and my parents got up early and went mountain biking. I rode on the handlebars of Dad's bike. We biked on the bike trail until we were too tired to bike any longer. On the way back Dad biked through a huge river. When we got back from biking John, the owner of the house, said we should feed the eels in the river. John grabbed a cup of cat food (instead of bacon) and we followed him as he walked toward the river. After John moved the cup around in the river a few times 3 short finned eels, one of which was a hundred years old, swam over. They flopped up onto a rock to get their food. Dad and I were wearing gumboots so we stepped into the river to get a better look. We watched the eels until they swam away. We had a great time at Hurunui Jacks.

The little shack we stayed at called The Nest.

We went to Dorothy falls (which I forgot to mention).

We also went to the gorge (which I also forgot to mention).

Me at the bottom of the gorge.

Dennis, my favorite dog in the world!

Kayaking

Kayaking is a very fun activity in New Zealand. All you need to kayak is a kayak, a paddle, and a body of water. I once kayaked in New Zealand all by myself. My parents wanted to go with me but their bottoms couldn't fit in the boat. My parents pushed the kayak into the water and put me in it. They didn't realize that someone was fishing a few yards down and I had no idea how to steer the kayak. Dad finally noticed the people fishing and jumped into the freezing cold water to push the boat in the other direction. Once he got me far enough away from the fishing people he taught me how to steer and control the kayak. Soon I paddled super far out and my parents looked like dots in the distance. After I paddled back to the beach and we decided to go home we realized that the kayak was old school and that we all had fiberglass stuck in our skin. Fortunately Dad's dad used to work with fiberglass so Dad knew that duck tape would get it out.

Me on the kayak.

Daddy helping me with the kayak.

Me paddling the kayak.

Me playing at the beach.

Off to the South Island

The other day we drove into this HUGE ferry to get from the North Island to the South Island. The ferry had a play area, an observation deck, a movie theater where I watched Alvin and the Chipmunks, and much more. The ferry ride took about 3 hours, and once we arrived at the South Island we had to drive 3 more hours to get to Riwaka. In Riwaka we stayed at a small farm with a beautiful view (that sold really good jams and jellies).

The next day we decided to hike in Abel Tasman National Park. Abel Tasman was like a rain forest with lush green trees, tons of birds, and a view of the ocean. Once we got to Apple Tree Bay we stopped at a beach and Dad swam super far out in the ocean.We had a great time in Riwaka.

Rainbow on the ferry!

Our ferry.

The Abel Tasman view!

Hiking at Abel Tasman National Park.

Still hiking at Abel Tasman.

Mom's 27th pic of us at Abel Tasman.

The pretty ocean view at Abel Tasman.

Another pretty ocean view at Abel Tasman.

A waterfall at Abel Tasman!

A stream at Abel Tasman.

Me at the beach digging a hole (at Abel Tasman)