Saturday, our final day in Australia before flying on Sunday, turned out to be our worst day of the trip.
We started out the morning by returning to Shute Harbor from Hamilton Island via the Ferry. When our luggage returned to us, in transit, one of the wheels had broken off so we had to carry the luggage to the car. I think we'll have to retire your luggage Grandpa and Grandma.
We were planning on driving 3:30 hours to Townsville which we would fly out from today. Along the way, we stopped for lunch, and then I told Ted I'd be willing to drive the rest into Townsville. This was the only leg of the trip which we did not book a hotel room. We had changed some of our trip plans prior to leaving home, and decided we'd look for a place on a whim. BIG BIG BIG MISTAKE.
We rolled into Townsville around 2:30 to hit up the shops downtown only to find out they all closed at 2. Then it was on to looking for a place to stay. Long story short, we spent the next 4 hours searching near and far in the town of 140,000 using our TomTom as our guide and EVERY SINGLE HOTEL WAS BOOKED! We kid you not. EVERY ONE! Talk about feeling rejected and discouraged. Apparently they said there was some big rugby match going on in the city is which one receptionist told us. Finally at 6 we decided we'd drive an hour back to the previous town to see if they had anything available. On the way out of town Ted spotted a Holiday Park and we decided to see if there was anything left. He went in, came back out and said all of the cabins were booked, but they had campground spots available. I'm SOLD! So, Ted and I camped in the little Toyota Corolla Hatchback. We put down the back seats, slept on the hard back end of the car and called it a night. Only cost $20 and we got a hot shower in the morning. Tossed and turned all night as my side started hurting. Ted says I took the sheet and the good pillow, depriving him of a good night's sleep. In between all the wake-ups, I did have a dream that Ted and I were able to try out for the show, Amazing Race, and made it through the first two rounds of screening...
Then today, 8June, we are now sitting at the airport, awaiting our departure. We are to fly with Jet Star down to Sydney before we hook back up with Air New Zealand. In booking our flight, Air New Zealand doesn't fly out of Townsville, so Ted booked with Jet Star. What we failed to realize, was the fact that we would be charged $90 for being 9kg over their baggage limit. GRRRRR! I guess staying at the campground was a good thing.
Anyhow, that should about do it for our trip. It's been an amazing adventure that we both enjoyed so much. Not sure when we'll make it back here, but hopefully one day. Thanks for keeping tabs on us for those of you who read our blog. Hope you enjoyed our commentary, pictures, etc.
See some of you very soon (whether you like it or not)!
Love, Ted and Britt
Saturday, June 7, 2008
June 6 - Britt in the deep blue sea!
On Friday, we spent our day out on the Great Barrier Reef. We booked a full day excursion with the Fantasea company, who has a large platform out on the Hardy Reef. We traveled via a large yacht that had three levels. We were served a small meal on the way to the reef with some pastries, breakfast pizza and fruit. While on the ship, I signed up for a 45 minute scuba dive session, which finally allowed me to utilize my scuba certification that I earned two years ago, which I can now say after seeing the reef was well worth it. Luckily, they also had a semi-submersed sub with glass bottom at the reef platform that allowed non-swimmers to use to see the reef up close and personal, which Britt planned to do while I scuba dived. As soon as we arrived at the reef, the large amount of aquatic life was evident with large schools of fish swimming around the platform. As soon as we were able to get off the boat, I was whisked away to scuba dive and I gave Britt a huge hug and kiss and told her to enjoy my life insurance if I didn’t come back. I was quite nervous after not scuba diving for a couple years and watching the dateline and 60 minutes episodes on TV about people dying on the reef. It definitely seemed like I would have the same fate because I swear Britt and I watched like 10 of the episodes right before we left.
For the scuba diving, there was a separate platform that had an under ground area to allow everyone to get fitted up with gear and get the correct amount of weight to float correctly in the water. It was quite amazing to see the amount of fish life just underneath the platform while I was suiting up. It was very exciting. While suiting up, I struck up a conversation with my dive buddy, Jerry. He was from Santa Barbara, California and over in Australia on business. He is a designer specializing in computer interfaces that are used the cabs of heavy duty machinery. I told him I worked for John Deere in Waterloo and he actually knew where it was and had actually been to PEC. He had done some work with John Deere on the 9000 series cab with someone with the last name of Dunkin. The name didn’t ring a bell with me. This just goes to tell how small the world really is.
Once fitted up, we embarked on our scuba journey. For the first 8 meters, we held onto a rope to help everyone get acclimated to the water and their equipment. Fish were swimming all around and I could see a huge school of fish swimming around on my left side. They looked just like the videos you see on TV, where the school looks like it is dancing and changing formation every second. It was amazing. On my right side was the reef edge, which was a steep cliff with hundreds of different coral and clams attached to it. The coral was all different colors and many different species of fish were feeding on it. I could not believe how many different species of fish there were swimming around. The colors of the fish are beautiful. Also, due to the large school of small fish, there were many larger predator fish swimming around. Some of the large fish were easily the same length as me. During the dive, the guide showed us many things and allowed us to hold onto a few pieces of coral and starfish. On the way back up to the platform, we had to take a 5 min decompression stop at 5 meters deep, which gave our guide an opportunity to feed the fish. He had a little orange container, which the fish recognized instantly. A large swarm of fish that were a little larger than the size of my head swarmed around his hand and around the group. The guide went in front of each of us and let out a few pieces of food, which made the fish go crazy around my head. It was really cool. The dive was amazing and I wish I could have stayed down longer. I will definitely be making a trip back to the Great Barrier some day to get some more scuba diving in.
After the dive, I made it back to the main platform and found Britt. She looked very depressed and said “Oh, it’s you.” I said, “What is the matter? Why aren’t you happy to see me?” She was depressed because she was hoping I wouldn’t come back and she would get the life insurance money to buy many new pairs of shoes and even build a teal house with teal carpets and walls. Sorry Britt, your dream hasn’t come true yet, maybe next time.
I had some plans of my own, since I had watched the dateline episodes and really was hoping to start my retirement early with lots of fishing, golfing and watching football games. As you can see from the picture below, my plan worked……..
Just kidding about all the jibberish above. As you can see, Britt finally overcame her fears and went snorkeling. While on the ferry to the reef, Britt and I signed up for a guided snorkeling tour. The tour was with a real life Marine Biologist. The same type that Britt wanted to be until she found out that a Marine Biologist does all their work in the water. Before our guided tour, I got Britt all suited up with her flippers, mask, snorkel, wetsuit and life jacket. Once equipped, she looked like a professional snorkeler. We met up with our guide and got on the platform. Luckily, the guide had two life preservers tied together, so she could pull her groups along and show them different things along the reef. Britt did not let go of this at all once we got in the water. It took her a little bit of time to get used to her snorkel and kicking her feet, but once she got going she did awesome. The guide took us to various spots on the reef and told us the different names of the fish, coral, and other marine life. It was really cool and it was awesome to finally see Britt out in the water enjoying herself.
Once done with the tour, we got out of the water and I had bite to eat. Britt enjoyed herself so much on the guided tour, she decided to go out on the reef again with me. This time, we had no life preserver and no guide. We got into the water and I instantly found out who would become Britt’s life preserver, ME! Even though, Britt was in salt water, had a 5 mm wet suit and life jacket on, she still thought she was going to go under. She had a hold of me and wasn’t going to let go. One time, I was trying to adjust the camera to take a picture and had to get both hand free from Britt. Once I did this, Britt grab ahold of my back and didn’t care that I was going under. As long as she was above the water and alive, she didn’t care. I finally had to stop doing everything and tell her she was going to be fine and that she wasn’t going to drown. After this, she seemed to settle down and didn’t need to hold onto me. Before I knew, Britt was swimming around the reef like a pro and I had to look around every 30 seconds to see where she was. She was swimming around the reef like mad and taking pictures of everything. Before we knew it, our time out in the water was over and we had to get back on the boat. It wasvreally disappointing for both Britt and I because it seemed like we had just got into the water. I really wished we had more time out on the reef because it was awesome to finally see Britt out in the water comfortable and having fun. I think this may be the beginning to Britt overcoming her fear of water and finally enjoying some water activities with me. Don’t worry Janet, I’m not pressuring her into any of this. The swimming lessons she took at the YMCA before the trip may also have helped her out.
We took about 50 pictures under the water and look forward to seeing how they turn out. Once out of the water, we headed back to Hamilton Island. We were so tired from the big adventure, we decided to take a nap and didn't wake up until the next day, which turned out to be the worst day of the trip....
Britt’s Version:
Ted pushed me in the water Mom. I swear he did! And he told me I’d be just fine and to give him a thumbs up so he could one more picture of me.
Anyhow, I didn’t tell you guys that before we went on our trip, I got up the nerve to call the Y and sign up for some private swim lessons. Although I didn’t really “learn” how to swim, it at least gave me the opportunity to be more comfortable in the water, even go under water, and also practice with snorkeling gear (I bought some from Target for a couple of my lessons). Ted never pressured me one bit, I did it all on my own.
My only regret is, that I wish I could’ve had more time in the water. After I was out there, I was amazed at how beautiful the Reef was and all the different life that exists underwater. Pretty incredible!
Large school of small fish swimming at the surface
Hardy Reef (Part of the Great Barrier Reef)
For the scuba diving, there was a separate platform that had an under ground area to allow everyone to get fitted up with gear and get the correct amount of weight to float correctly in the water. It was quite amazing to see the amount of fish life just underneath the platform while I was suiting up. It was very exciting. While suiting up, I struck up a conversation with my dive buddy, Jerry. He was from Santa Barbara, California and over in Australia on business. He is a designer specializing in computer interfaces that are used the cabs of heavy duty machinery. I told him I worked for John Deere in Waterloo and he actually knew where it was and had actually been to PEC. He had done some work with John Deere on the 9000 series cab with someone with the last name of Dunkin. The name didn’t ring a bell with me. This just goes to tell how small the world really is.
Once fitted up, we embarked on our scuba journey. For the first 8 meters, we held onto a rope to help everyone get acclimated to the water and their equipment. Fish were swimming all around and I could see a huge school of fish swimming around on my left side. They looked just like the videos you see on TV, where the school looks like it is dancing and changing formation every second. It was amazing. On my right side was the reef edge, which was a steep cliff with hundreds of different coral and clams attached to it. The coral was all different colors and many different species of fish were feeding on it. I could not believe how many different species of fish there were swimming around. The colors of the fish are beautiful. Also, due to the large school of small fish, there were many larger predator fish swimming around. Some of the large fish were easily the same length as me. During the dive, the guide showed us many things and allowed us to hold onto a few pieces of coral and starfish. On the way back up to the platform, we had to take a 5 min decompression stop at 5 meters deep, which gave our guide an opportunity to feed the fish. He had a little orange container, which the fish recognized instantly. A large swarm of fish that were a little larger than the size of my head swarmed around his hand and around the group. The guide went in front of each of us and let out a few pieces of food, which made the fish go crazy around my head. It was really cool. The dive was amazing and I wish I could have stayed down longer. I will definitely be making a trip back to the Great Barrier some day to get some more scuba diving in.
After the dive, I made it back to the main platform and found Britt. She looked very depressed and said “Oh, it’s you.” I said, “What is the matter? Why aren’t you happy to see me?” She was depressed because she was hoping I wouldn’t come back and she would get the life insurance money to buy many new pairs of shoes and even build a teal house with teal carpets and walls. Sorry Britt, your dream hasn’t come true yet, maybe next time.
I had some plans of my own, since I had watched the dateline episodes and really was hoping to start my retirement early with lots of fishing, golfing and watching football games. As you can see from the picture below, my plan worked……..
Just kidding about all the jibberish above. As you can see, Britt finally overcame her fears and went snorkeling. While on the ferry to the reef, Britt and I signed up for a guided snorkeling tour. The tour was with a real life Marine Biologist. The same type that Britt wanted to be until she found out that a Marine Biologist does all their work in the water. Before our guided tour, I got Britt all suited up with her flippers, mask, snorkel, wetsuit and life jacket. Once equipped, she looked like a professional snorkeler. We met up with our guide and got on the platform. Luckily, the guide had two life preservers tied together, so she could pull her groups along and show them different things along the reef. Britt did not let go of this at all once we got in the water. It took her a little bit of time to get used to her snorkel and kicking her feet, but once she got going she did awesome. The guide took us to various spots on the reef and told us the different names of the fish, coral, and other marine life. It was really cool and it was awesome to finally see Britt out in the water enjoying herself.
Once done with the tour, we got out of the water and I had bite to eat. Britt enjoyed herself so much on the guided tour, she decided to go out on the reef again with me. This time, we had no life preserver and no guide. We got into the water and I instantly found out who would become Britt’s life preserver, ME! Even though, Britt was in salt water, had a 5 mm wet suit and life jacket on, she still thought she was going to go under. She had a hold of me and wasn’t going to let go. One time, I was trying to adjust the camera to take a picture and had to get both hand free from Britt. Once I did this, Britt grab ahold of my back and didn’t care that I was going under. As long as she was above the water and alive, she didn’t care. I finally had to stop doing everything and tell her she was going to be fine and that she wasn’t going to drown. After this, she seemed to settle down and didn’t need to hold onto me. Before I knew, Britt was swimming around the reef like a pro and I had to look around every 30 seconds to see where she was. She was swimming around the reef like mad and taking pictures of everything. Before we knew it, our time out in the water was over and we had to get back on the boat. It wasvreally disappointing for both Britt and I because it seemed like we had just got into the water. I really wished we had more time out on the reef because it was awesome to finally see Britt out in the water comfortable and having fun. I think this may be the beginning to Britt overcoming her fear of water and finally enjoying some water activities with me. Don’t worry Janet, I’m not pressuring her into any of this. The swimming lessons she took at the YMCA before the trip may also have helped her out.
We took about 50 pictures under the water and look forward to seeing how they turn out. Once out of the water, we headed back to Hamilton Island. We were so tired from the big adventure, we decided to take a nap and didn't wake up until the next day, which turned out to be the worst day of the trip....
Britt’s Version:
Ted pushed me in the water Mom. I swear he did! And he told me I’d be just fine and to give him a thumbs up so he could one more picture of me.
Anyhow, I didn’t tell you guys that before we went on our trip, I got up the nerve to call the Y and sign up for some private swim lessons. Although I didn’t really “learn” how to swim, it at least gave me the opportunity to be more comfortable in the water, even go under water, and also practice with snorkeling gear (I bought some from Target for a couple of my lessons). Ted never pressured me one bit, I did it all on my own.
My only regret is, that I wish I could’ve had more time in the water. After I was out there, I was amazed at how beautiful the Reef was and all the different life that exists underwater. Pretty incredible!
Large school of small fish swimming at the surface
Hardy Reef (Part of the Great Barrier Reef)
Thursday, June 5, 2008
June 4-5
Spent the 4th driving 8+ hours up to the Whitsunday Islands. I told Ted I could drive some for him, but I found myself being able to read in the car without getting a headache for once and never ended up driving a lick. Thanks Ted! We got to our Holiday Park around dusk and decided to hit up the main drag and find a place for dinner. When we got out of the car, Ted had this perplexing look on his face. He says, “I don’t know where my camera is.” I told him I never saw him bring it to the car so I didn’t think he had brought it along. He thought he had. We walked around and found a seafood place to eat dinner which was pretty decent. Head back to our cabin at the park to find Ted’s camera bag with two cameras and our camcorder laying on the table of our porch. Oops Ted! I think he’s testing the locals to see if stealing is in their blood—first with his wallet in New Zealand and now the camera bag. Would’ve been pretty devasted had someone taken the camera with all of our vacation pictures! Won’t let him live those down, but lucky to not lose either. Could it be an early case of Alzheimers??
Today (Thursday) we were up early to catch our ferry to the island we were staying on (Hamilton Island). I had called the previous night to book for the 6:55 departure time. We got to the dock just as the ferry was departing. Another oops. I blamed it on Ted wanting to sleep an extra five minutes and then taking FOREVER figuring out how to pay for our parking spot. He blamed it on me who apparently said waking up at 5:40 would give us enough time to leave by 6:25 (and no, we didn’t leave at 6:25). Either way, we figured out after that we would’ve still had to buy tickets to get on the ferry which we had thought was included so I doubt we would’ve made it anyways. We caught the next ferry an hour later and arrived on the island pretty early. Checked our bags in and decided to check out the small island. How do you figure they get around out here? Well, it’s either by foot (and you better have your walking shoes on to walk these hills) or by renting a buggy (golf cart). So we rented ourselves a golf cart for 24 hours and strolled around for quite some time. Parked the cart for a bit and went on a short hike back to a secluded beach. I went swimming while Ted sunbathed. No, wait, otherway around. Who am I kidding? Had the place to ourselves for an hour until two middle-aged women decided to check out the beach. I guess I missed the sign that said it was a topless beach (there never really was one), because as I was sitting up to see who walked by, I noticed one was missing an important part of a bathing suit! I figured it was time for Ted and I to get on our way….
Other than that, just rode around the island and watched the sunset from a lookout point. Also daydreamed as we walked by the realty company’s window checking out the housing market on the island.
Today (Thursday) we were up early to catch our ferry to the island we were staying on (Hamilton Island). I had called the previous night to book for the 6:55 departure time. We got to the dock just as the ferry was departing. Another oops. I blamed it on Ted wanting to sleep an extra five minutes and then taking FOREVER figuring out how to pay for our parking spot. He blamed it on me who apparently said waking up at 5:40 would give us enough time to leave by 6:25 (and no, we didn’t leave at 6:25). Either way, we figured out after that we would’ve still had to buy tickets to get on the ferry which we had thought was included so I doubt we would’ve made it anyways. We caught the next ferry an hour later and arrived on the island pretty early. Checked our bags in and decided to check out the small island. How do you figure they get around out here? Well, it’s either by foot (and you better have your walking shoes on to walk these hills) or by renting a buggy (golf cart). So we rented ourselves a golf cart for 24 hours and strolled around for quite some time. Parked the cart for a bit and went on a short hike back to a secluded beach. I went swimming while Ted sunbathed. No, wait, otherway around. Who am I kidding? Had the place to ourselves for an hour until two middle-aged women decided to check out the beach. I guess I missed the sign that said it was a topless beach (there never really was one), because as I was sitting up to see who walked by, I noticed one was missing an important part of a bathing suit! I figured it was time for Ted and I to get on our way….
Other than that, just rode around the island and watched the sunset from a lookout point. Also daydreamed as we walked by the realty company’s window checking out the housing market on the island.
June 2-3
It’s now Tuesday night and I thought I’d update the last few days even though we won’t be able to post today.
Yesterday (Monday), was our last day in New Zealand. We didn’t fly out until noon, so Ted and I went downtown Queenstown and ate breakfast at The Bakery again. Took our time and then walked around for a bit before we headed to the airport. Security within New Zealand airports, flying domestically, is extremely lax in some airports. We were surprised when we flew from Hamilton to Christchurch that we or our bags weren’t even screened.
Having some free time yesterday, I had a hard time putting down the book I brought along to read, “Pillars of the Earth”. Hopefully I can finish the book before we return home (I’m 400 with 600 to go!). While I spent time reading on the plane yesterday, Ted caught up on South Park episodes he downloaded to his iPod.
We made it into Brisbane, Australia last night around 6, welcomed by rain. Brisbane received 4” of rain yesterday which will bring the town out of a Level 6 water restriction. Not sure what level 6 consists of, but we heard plenty of talk on the radio about it today. Apparently, with all the rain, they will be allowed to water their lawn, and wash their cars certain times during the day. Brisbane, along with other cities here along the coast are in a huge water crisis and sounds as if it will only be getting worse as more people move into the city. Our B&B hosts from New Zealand said some haven’t been able to water their lawns for over four years!
Today Ted and I drove North and stopped at the late Steve Irwin’s Australian Zoo. Spent about five hours walking and exploring everything from croc’s to kanagaroo’s to dingo’s. As you can see by the pictures, we were even allowed to pet the roo’s! They also had a snake area, and I only counted 11 venomous snakes that live in Australia. Yikes! Another picture you’ll see is a replica of the salt water crocodile which can grow to 27 feet. I think he could take Ted in one bite.
From there we drove another two hours to Hervey Bay to stay the night. Tomorrow (Wednesday) we’ll drive 500+ miles up the coast to the Whitsunday Islands. The Whitsunday’s consists of 72 small islands and is the start of the Great Barrier Reef.
Random Notes:
I don’t think we ever mentioned the condition of the roads in New Zealand. I don’t believe we saw a pothole the entire trip. All of their roads are like new, and it seemed as though we ran into road crews every 30 miles (and I’m not exaggerating either) on the North Island making minor repairs. It was incredible the number of road crews out fixing the smallest of cracks or holes or what have you.
Stopped for a few groceries in Australia tonight. Good news: 24 pack of pop was on sale: $9.99 originally $17.00. A savings of $7.01! What a bargain.
Yesterday (Monday), was our last day in New Zealand. We didn’t fly out until noon, so Ted and I went downtown Queenstown and ate breakfast at The Bakery again. Took our time and then walked around for a bit before we headed to the airport. Security within New Zealand airports, flying domestically, is extremely lax in some airports. We were surprised when we flew from Hamilton to Christchurch that we or our bags weren’t even screened.
Having some free time yesterday, I had a hard time putting down the book I brought along to read, “Pillars of the Earth”. Hopefully I can finish the book before we return home (I’m 400 with 600 to go!). While I spent time reading on the plane yesterday, Ted caught up on South Park episodes he downloaded to his iPod.
We made it into Brisbane, Australia last night around 6, welcomed by rain. Brisbane received 4” of rain yesterday which will bring the town out of a Level 6 water restriction. Not sure what level 6 consists of, but we heard plenty of talk on the radio about it today. Apparently, with all the rain, they will be allowed to water their lawn, and wash their cars certain times during the day. Brisbane, along with other cities here along the coast are in a huge water crisis and sounds as if it will only be getting worse as more people move into the city. Our B&B hosts from New Zealand said some haven’t been able to water their lawns for over four years!
Today Ted and I drove North and stopped at the late Steve Irwin’s Australian Zoo. Spent about five hours walking and exploring everything from croc’s to kanagaroo’s to dingo’s. As you can see by the pictures, we were even allowed to pet the roo’s! They also had a snake area, and I only counted 11 venomous snakes that live in Australia. Yikes! Another picture you’ll see is a replica of the salt water crocodile which can grow to 27 feet. I think he could take Ted in one bite.
From there we drove another two hours to Hervey Bay to stay the night. Tomorrow (Wednesday) we’ll drive 500+ miles up the coast to the Whitsunday Islands. The Whitsunday’s consists of 72 small islands and is the start of the Great Barrier Reef.
Random Notes:
I don’t think we ever mentioned the condition of the roads in New Zealand. I don’t believe we saw a pothole the entire trip. All of their roads are like new, and it seemed as though we ran into road crews every 30 miles (and I’m not exaggerating either) on the North Island making minor repairs. It was incredible the number of road crews out fixing the smallest of cracks or holes or what have you.
Stopped for a few groceries in Australia tonight. Good news: 24 pack of pop was on sale: $9.99 originally $17.00. A savings of $7.01! What a bargain.
Sunday, June 1, 2008
May 31st - June 1st
Saturday saw us up and at ‘em just after 7. We took our time getting ready as we didn’t have to be to Milford Sound until 3 pm. A five hour drive from the Holiday Park we stayed. The drive was long and windy as most of our journey has been. I am having an exceptionally good time driving on these roads and may try out for the NASCAR or Indy car circuit when I get home, if I get bored with my current job of course. It is pretty amazing how rural it is on the South Island. The night before we drove 160 miles before we saw another town. We have no idea how people get groceries, fuel, medical assistance out in the rural areas. We’re assuming that they simply don’t and live of the land just like in the good ole’ days.
We stopped in Queenstown at the bakery for breakfast. Britt had an apple cinnamon roll and I had half a boysenberry stick (only half because Britt must eat half of all my food). Filled up for gas at a whopping $81, which is a lot for the size of car we are driving. A guy next to me was filling up his SUV and he was well over $100. Gas is currently $2.03/liter. The mountains in Queenstown are covered in snow and town is getting ready for the snow season. Queenstown reminds us of Dillon, Colorado with the hundreds of condos and resorts and the ski shops all over.
After grabbing breakfast, we continued our trek to Milford Sound. The drive was quite beautiful as we made our way into New Zealand’s Fjordland. We made a stop at a picnic area and a large Kea (looks like a large green parrot) swooped down on top of a motor home. The women sitting in the vehicle came running out wondering what the heck had just hit their vehicle. Kea’s must be very smart as he attempted several times with his beak to open the top hatch on the motorhome. Luckily, the owners had locked up the inside or they may have had a pet Kea with a razor sharp beak and claws.
We continued to make our way through Fjordland park and came up to Homer Tunnel. Homer Tunnel was made back in 1931 and took 4 years to make. The areas is susceptible to avalanches and three men perished while making the tunnel due to this (I guess is was due to the 200 km/hr winds that the avalanched produces that killed them, not the avalanche itself). We pushed on through the small tunnel and into Milford Sound. We were welcomed by thousands on tiny sandflys. We quickly unpacked our belongings and headed indoors for the checkout counter. At 3:30, we headed for the boat and placed out things in our cabin. The cabin was actually very spacious with a queen sized bed and a decent sized bathroom. We headed to the deck to take some snapshots of the area. The skipper even took us up close and personal with Sterling Falls by taking the vessel only about 10 feet from it. At 7:00, dinner was served with a buffet style meal. We were expecting a much fancier meal from the reviews we had read online, but unfortunately it was like any typical buffet. At dinner, we sat with a young woman from England. Just like the other English and Irish people we have met, she was on a 6 month holiday to travel around the world. I think this is something that should be accepted in the American culture. Britt and I would definitely be on board. After dinner, we sat down and had some hot tea and cocoa and read a book about Milford Sound.
We woke up at 6:15. Luckily, everyone else on ship was still sleeping, so the whole outside of the ship was open to view the Sound. It was still very dark, so you could see very little, but the little bit of light produced by the ship was attracting small schools of fish, which attracts some other very cool animals. Several seals were outside of the boat coming up to the surface to eat the fish, which was very cool to see. The albatross were diving down at the fish, as well. We even had some dog fish sharks coming up to the surface to feed on the fish. It was all very impressive. At 7:30, breakfast was served, which was buffet style as well. We ate as much as we could, so we wouldn’t have to eat lunch. Breakfast was much better than the dinner in our opinion.
After breakfast, the ship made a trip out of the sound and into the Tasman Sea. We got some good views of the Milford Light house and made our way back into the sound. It was simply amazing to see this place. The Glaciers did an awesome job carving out the vertical walls and creating the deep valley for the ocean to flow into. Definitely one of the highlights of our trip.
Britt here. I think Ted summed up the last two days better than I could. Milford Sound was what I had expected and more. Breathtaking views, astonishing waterfalls, which leaves me speechless. We were thrilled to take the overnight cruise and were actually pretty lucky as ours was the last one for the season.
We had some free time this afternoon as we got back into Queenstown in mid-afternoon. We checked into our lodge and went and walked the downtown streets for a bit. Came back and finally did some laundry, made a fire in the community lounge area to warm ourselves up and write our blog and upload pictures. Now, we plan to head back downtown for dinner at Fergburger’s, a restaurant the young English woman we met on our cruise recommended.
Our food at the Fergberger was AWESOME! We were pleasantly surprised at how good the food tasted and how BIG the burgers were. We both got Southern Swine burgers with all the fixin’s and an order of fries to split. We took our food to go and stopped at the local grocery store for a bottle of pop. Britt was tempted to pay $5 for a freakin’ bottle of ketchup. Thank goodness she came to her senses and resisted the temptation. Neither of us were able to eat all of burgers. Luckily, there was a friendly stray cat to help us finish up. I named him Zorro and even tried to talk Britt into letting him sleep with us. It would have been just like being at home with Buddy nestled between us, but she wouldn’t go for it. At least Zorro got some Fergburger, so I am sure he will make it through the night.
Therefore, our time in New Zealand is almost over. It’s definitely a beautiful country we’d both like to visit again. We’re excited for warmer weather in Australia, hopefully shorts and beach attire!
Random notes:
When we stayed in Rotorua, we stopped for some dessert at a place that was serving gelatin ice cream. It was awesome! We found another store here in Queenstown and had some more today. Beats Dairy Queen and Cold Stone any day of the year!
I’m also surprised by the lack of convertibles in this country. We’ve seen less than a handful and with the weather they see during their summer months, I am quite surprised. We stopped at Queenstown yesterday, and pulled up next to a purple Prowler. A pretty sweet car if you ask me.
Off to Australia. Probably won’t hear from us for a few days.
Thanks for the note Mom. We miss you too. We’ll do our best on the baby makin’ thing, but no guarantees ;). I thought Cooper was going to be good enough to hold you over for at least a year.
Theresa, you know I’ve been bumping the Celine Dion all over New Zealand. I’ve got my whole Christmas Display choreographed in my head. It is going to be sweet.
Joyce and Roni, I'm up for fly fishing any time. I'm not sure anywhere in the US can match the size of fish they catch here in New Zealand (At our B&B in Rotorua, our host Sandy catches 13 pounds rainbows on a regular basis), but I'm sure Roni can tell me some good fish stories.
For those of my co-workers who are actually reading this…I forgot to mention that Friday when we did our glacier hike-I was sporting my pink shirt casual wear. You can see the pink shirt poking out from under my jacket…proof that I’ll wear it ANY FRIDAY. ALSO NOTE THE PINK IOWA STATE HAT!!!!!
Huge Kea on Top of Motorhome
Crusin' in Milford Sound
Sterling Falls
Milford Sound in the Morning
Bad Picture of Ted (Britt forced me to put it on here)
Snowcapped Mountains outside of Milford Sound
We stopped in Queenstown at the bakery for breakfast. Britt had an apple cinnamon roll and I had half a boysenberry stick (only half because Britt must eat half of all my food). Filled up for gas at a whopping $81, which is a lot for the size of car we are driving. A guy next to me was filling up his SUV and he was well over $100. Gas is currently $2.03/liter. The mountains in Queenstown are covered in snow and town is getting ready for the snow season. Queenstown reminds us of Dillon, Colorado with the hundreds of condos and resorts and the ski shops all over.
After grabbing breakfast, we continued our trek to Milford Sound. The drive was quite beautiful as we made our way into New Zealand’s Fjordland. We made a stop at a picnic area and a large Kea (looks like a large green parrot) swooped down on top of a motor home. The women sitting in the vehicle came running out wondering what the heck had just hit their vehicle. Kea’s must be very smart as he attempted several times with his beak to open the top hatch on the motorhome. Luckily, the owners had locked up the inside or they may have had a pet Kea with a razor sharp beak and claws.
We continued to make our way through Fjordland park and came up to Homer Tunnel. Homer Tunnel was made back in 1931 and took 4 years to make. The areas is susceptible to avalanches and three men perished while making the tunnel due to this (I guess is was due to the 200 km/hr winds that the avalanched produces that killed them, not the avalanche itself). We pushed on through the small tunnel and into Milford Sound. We were welcomed by thousands on tiny sandflys. We quickly unpacked our belongings and headed indoors for the checkout counter. At 3:30, we headed for the boat and placed out things in our cabin. The cabin was actually very spacious with a queen sized bed and a decent sized bathroom. We headed to the deck to take some snapshots of the area. The skipper even took us up close and personal with Sterling Falls by taking the vessel only about 10 feet from it. At 7:00, dinner was served with a buffet style meal. We were expecting a much fancier meal from the reviews we had read online, but unfortunately it was like any typical buffet. At dinner, we sat with a young woman from England. Just like the other English and Irish people we have met, she was on a 6 month holiday to travel around the world. I think this is something that should be accepted in the American culture. Britt and I would definitely be on board. After dinner, we sat down and had some hot tea and cocoa and read a book about Milford Sound.
We woke up at 6:15. Luckily, everyone else on ship was still sleeping, so the whole outside of the ship was open to view the Sound. It was still very dark, so you could see very little, but the little bit of light produced by the ship was attracting small schools of fish, which attracts some other very cool animals. Several seals were outside of the boat coming up to the surface to eat the fish, which was very cool to see. The albatross were diving down at the fish, as well. We even had some dog fish sharks coming up to the surface to feed on the fish. It was all very impressive. At 7:30, breakfast was served, which was buffet style as well. We ate as much as we could, so we wouldn’t have to eat lunch. Breakfast was much better than the dinner in our opinion.
After breakfast, the ship made a trip out of the sound and into the Tasman Sea. We got some good views of the Milford Light house and made our way back into the sound. It was simply amazing to see this place. The Glaciers did an awesome job carving out the vertical walls and creating the deep valley for the ocean to flow into. Definitely one of the highlights of our trip.
Britt here. I think Ted summed up the last two days better than I could. Milford Sound was what I had expected and more. Breathtaking views, astonishing waterfalls, which leaves me speechless. We were thrilled to take the overnight cruise and were actually pretty lucky as ours was the last one for the season.
We had some free time this afternoon as we got back into Queenstown in mid-afternoon. We checked into our lodge and went and walked the downtown streets for a bit. Came back and finally did some laundry, made a fire in the community lounge area to warm ourselves up and write our blog and upload pictures. Now, we plan to head back downtown for dinner at Fergburger’s, a restaurant the young English woman we met on our cruise recommended.
Our food at the Fergberger was AWESOME! We were pleasantly surprised at how good the food tasted and how BIG the burgers were. We both got Southern Swine burgers with all the fixin’s and an order of fries to split. We took our food to go and stopped at the local grocery store for a bottle of pop. Britt was tempted to pay $5 for a freakin’ bottle of ketchup. Thank goodness she came to her senses and resisted the temptation. Neither of us were able to eat all of burgers. Luckily, there was a friendly stray cat to help us finish up. I named him Zorro and even tried to talk Britt into letting him sleep with us. It would have been just like being at home with Buddy nestled between us, but she wouldn’t go for it. At least Zorro got some Fergburger, so I am sure he will make it through the night.
Therefore, our time in New Zealand is almost over. It’s definitely a beautiful country we’d both like to visit again. We’re excited for warmer weather in Australia, hopefully shorts and beach attire!
Random notes:
When we stayed in Rotorua, we stopped for some dessert at a place that was serving gelatin ice cream. It was awesome! We found another store here in Queenstown and had some more today. Beats Dairy Queen and Cold Stone any day of the year!
I’m also surprised by the lack of convertibles in this country. We’ve seen less than a handful and with the weather they see during their summer months, I am quite surprised. We stopped at Queenstown yesterday, and pulled up next to a purple Prowler. A pretty sweet car if you ask me.
Off to Australia. Probably won’t hear from us for a few days.
Thanks for the note Mom. We miss you too. We’ll do our best on the baby makin’ thing, but no guarantees ;). I thought Cooper was going to be good enough to hold you over for at least a year.
Theresa, you know I’ve been bumping the Celine Dion all over New Zealand. I’ve got my whole Christmas Display choreographed in my head. It is going to be sweet.
Joyce and Roni, I'm up for fly fishing any time. I'm not sure anywhere in the US can match the size of fish they catch here in New Zealand (At our B&B in Rotorua, our host Sandy catches 13 pounds rainbows on a regular basis), but I'm sure Roni can tell me some good fish stories.
For those of my co-workers who are actually reading this…I forgot to mention that Friday when we did our glacier hike-I was sporting my pink shirt casual wear. You can see the pink shirt poking out from under my jacket…proof that I’ll wear it ANY FRIDAY. ALSO NOTE THE PINK IOWA STATE HAT!!!!!
Huge Kea on Top of Motorhome
Crusin' in Milford Sound
Sterling Falls
Milford Sound in the Morning
Bad Picture of Ted (Britt forced me to put it on here)
Snowcapped Mountains outside of Milford Sound
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