Day 13: It's Gorge-ous!
Bit of a slow day today, with all the driving catching to me a little bit. I slept in a little at the campsite at Hokitika, since it was relatively empty and quiet. Packing up and driving out in the nick of time, I went into town and had breakfast at a cafe and caught up on a few postcards. Then, since I had managed to hoard quite the pile of them, I sought out a postbox to send them out.
The main location on the agenda for today was Hokitika Gorge - one of the places I had fallen in love with online and drew me to New Zealand in the first place. About half an hour out of the township of Hokitika, the gorge was fairly easy to find and had a convenient car park to set down in. Walking towards the trail there was a little coffee vendor selling, blessedly, sandfly repellent so I purchased some and lathered up. And my was I glad I did.
The walk into the Gorge was fairly easy if all downhill (not boding well for the return trip, but even that was fine). A lovely little nature trail it curved around and followed a little trail and pleasantly placed bridges. All very lovely and picturesque.
After a bit, the trail opens up to the gorge itself, and the long swing bridge crossing it. This really was a day of indulgence for my love of bridges, but I’ve never been on a swing bridge before! I had desperately wanted to traverse Carrick-a-Rede Rope Bridge in Northern Ireland when I went, but unfortunately, it was closed on the day due to (extremely) strong winds. This did make up for it a little.
I waited my turn in a swarm of sand flies, wanting to get a shot of the empty bridge and as you can see from the video, it was immediately rocky the minute you stepped on it. Not dangerously so, but unnervingly bouncy.
The real draw of the gorge is the turquoise blue waters caused by ‘rock flour’ or ground mineral rocks that is too fine to really settle to the bottom of the river. Staying suspended in the water as it flows, it refracts the light in the most beautiful ways.
Many people swim at Hokitika Gorge and I had thought perhaps I might… but no one else was and seeing it in person has made me question the judgement of those that too. The water was definitely moving way too fast for my liking - and it was very cold to boot!
After the admiring of the gorge-ous water (thanks to Jess S for that one!) I moved on to Franz Joseph. It was my original intention to hike on the Fox Glacier tomorrow, but I had cancelled it a few days ago because I really didn’t think my cold was up to literally hiking on ice. Though disappointed, I still think this was the right call. At my accommodations tonight though, I spoke to reception and have sourced a helicopter tour of both the Franz Joseph and Fox Glaciers, will good views of Mount Cook also. And, as a bonus, it’s half the price of the original tour. Not quite the hands-on adventure, but pretty good.
I wandered about the main strip here in Franz Joseph for the afternoon, popping into the Wildlife Centre (not really worth the price of admission, but since it goes to conservation efforts, you can’t really be mad), checking out a few shops (found a cute kiwi shirt for the nephew), and had dinner at a restaurant (actual non-rehydrated food!).
A good day, and now it’s time to recharge the batteries (literal and figurative) and get ready for a morning helicopter ride!
Animal Sightings:
Today's Playlist
The main location on the agenda for today was Hokitika Gorge - one of the places I had fallen in love with online and drew me to New Zealand in the first place. About half an hour out of the township of Hokitika, the gorge was fairly easy to find and had a convenient car park to set down in. Walking towards the trail there was a little coffee vendor selling, blessedly, sandfly repellent so I purchased some and lathered up. And my was I glad I did.
The walk into the Gorge was fairly easy if all downhill (not boding well for the return trip, but even that was fine). A lovely little nature trail it curved around and followed a little trail and pleasantly placed bridges. All very lovely and picturesque.
After a bit, the trail opens up to the gorge itself, and the long swing bridge crossing it. This really was a day of indulgence for my love of bridges, but I’ve never been on a swing bridge before! I had desperately wanted to traverse Carrick-a-Rede Rope Bridge in Northern Ireland when I went, but unfortunately, it was closed on the day due to (extremely) strong winds. This did make up for it a little.
I waited my turn in a swarm of sand flies, wanting to get a shot of the empty bridge and as you can see from the video, it was immediately rocky the minute you stepped on it. Not dangerously so, but unnervingly bouncy.
The real draw of the gorge is the turquoise blue waters caused by ‘rock flour’ or ground mineral rocks that is too fine to really settle to the bottom of the river. Staying suspended in the water as it flows, it refracts the light in the most beautiful ways.
Many people swim at Hokitika Gorge and I had thought perhaps I might… but no one else was and seeing it in person has made me question the judgement of those that too. The water was definitely moving way too fast for my liking - and it was very cold to boot!
After the admiring of the gorge-ous water (thanks to Jess S for that one!) I moved on to Franz Joseph. It was my original intention to hike on the Fox Glacier tomorrow, but I had cancelled it a few days ago because I really didn’t think my cold was up to literally hiking on ice. Though disappointed, I still think this was the right call. At my accommodations tonight though, I spoke to reception and have sourced a helicopter tour of both the Franz Joseph and Fox Glaciers, will good views of Mount Cook also. And, as a bonus, it’s half the price of the original tour. Not quite the hands-on adventure, but pretty good.
I wandered about the main strip here in Franz Joseph for the afternoon, popping into the Wildlife Centre (not really worth the price of admission, but since it goes to conservation efforts, you can’t really be mad), checking out a few shops (found a cute kiwi shirt for the nephew), and had dinner at a restaurant (actual non-rehydrated food!).
A good day, and now it’s time to recharge the batteries (literal and figurative) and get ready for a morning helicopter ride!
Animal Sightings:
- Cows
- Sheep
- Alpaca
- Deer
- Kiwi
- Tuatara lizards
Today's Playlist
- Anne of Green Gables - LM Montgomery
- D&D is for Nerds - Hus Firma Pride #21: Trauma
- D&D is for Nerds - Hus Firma Pride #22: Funerals
- How Stuff Works: Did the CIA test LSD on unsuspecting Americans?
Daily Stats:
Kilometers travelled: 194km (2757 in total)
I'm a Teacher Librarian in the Western Suburbs of Sydney, just wandering about and taking up more projects than is wise for anyone's mental state. This blog is a digital bag of holding for all my craziness.
That water looks beautiful!! Its a really pretty colour! The bridge looks great too. I can see why you like bridges so much!! Can't wait to see your photos from the helicopter ride tomorrow!!
ReplyDeleteI’m a cribbage girl myself
ReplyDeleteI don’t play bridge
Nicely done.
DeleteI’m excited to make you that drink one time when you get back! Good budgeting and saving to ride in a helicopter. How many people can say they saved money by taking a helicopter instead of hiking?
ReplyDelete