On the tourist road

21/01/2008

The Routeburn track is one of New Zealands most popular tramps. The track is a well trodden 32km long path through some spectacular mountain countryside. Most people do the tramp over three days. However, due to a series of random events I was due at the tracks end in one day and half. This meant I didn't have much time to dawdle so I lugged my pack on and entered the forest. I was a little nervous about what lay ahead, but from my first step to the last I loved every moment. You could not wipe the smile off my face. The first 10km of the track was along a forest track which had taken on the appearance of a waterfall with the persistent rain. Mist prevented visibility beyond the immediate surrounds and streams and waterfalls gushed across the track with the rain. A bypass was required for one waterfall (Earland falls 176m high) which was so powerful, it nearly took my head off just trying to get a look at it. I splashed and rock hopped my way along the track, occassionally passing trampers heading in the opposite direction. They didn't seem to appreciate the rain as much as I, and most eagerly asked "how much further?". The rain and cloud was the perfect start to the walk.

As I broke free of the tree cover the cloud lifted and I was unveiled some of the most spectacular scenery . I took some time for lunch and jumped straight back on the track. Hiking along in the sunshine, up and along the side of the mountains I simply laughed and smiled at the views across the valley of snow capped mountains.

I passed many other trampers heading in the opposite direction and most were happy to stop for a chat about walking plans, the wondrous surrounds and where we are all from. That is one of my favourite things about bush walking, how people loosen up and are willing to talk to just about every stranger that crosses their path. I reached the highest point of the track late in the afternoon and began the decent to my campsite. Most of the trampers were off the track for the day so I walked alone for several hours as the sun settled in behind the mountains. I reached my campsite and had camp set up with the last of the light. I had covered over 26km in one day and honestly I barely even noticed. It was fantastic. My campsite was a spectacular spot on the bank of a running stream in a flat between more mountains. Before bed I chatted with my neighbouring campers. We were three lone trampers, but got along like old friends. In the morning we each went our separate ways.

I took my time packing up camp and enjoyed sitting by the stream picking through my breakfast. I had done the lion's share of the walk the previous day so just took my time walking the last 6km through the forest and crossing swing bridges spanning rapid streams. I stepped off the track as the bus arrived and took the ride to Queenstown. I had done the walk. It was fun. Now what?

Not being a big fan of Queenstown I organised my exit strategy as soon as I arrived and booked myself on the morning bus up the west coast to Greymouth. Early in the morning I trudged onto the bus with a herd of backpackers, most of whom were headed to the glaciers (Fox or Franz Jospeh). As I had lived on a glacier, when down in Antarctica, I thought this was something I could probably skip. The bus ride wound through the mountains and passed from one lake to another until we reached the coast. I was surprised at how tropical the plants looked. Ferny tropics leading up to alpine mountains. Unusual for an Aussie. The bus served a dual purpose, acting as the newspaper mail truck to towns along the way. Our scallywag bus driver didn't even slow down to piff the rolled up papers across the bonnet and scatter the papers across peoples driveways, as we zoomed along at 110km/h. I couldn't help but laugh everytime. Although I wasn't interested in paying the tour guides to take me up and see the glacier I did take a brief moment to snap a photo and admire the Franz Jospeh glacier from the nearby town.

The bus took me the remainder of the way up the coast to Greymouth. A low key fishing town, and the end of the line for the Southern Alpine train which runs across to Christchurch. As I had missed the only train for the day, I spent a night in Greymouth, enjoyed a seafood dinner and visited the beach. The beach had been completely mined for greenstone (jade). This stuff was extremely valuable to Maori tribes who used them to make pounamu mere (greenstone clubs) which they used to bash each other over the head. Apparently, the stone is stronger than metal so they did do a fair bit of damage and the Maori's did manage to wipe out the Moa (3m tall flightless bird) using the tools.

The next day I waited for the train at the station and while minding my own business, randomly bumped into an old mate from my basketball days and his new bride. They were also travelling to Christchurch so we rode the train together, crossing the south island passing through the mountains. The train ride is pegged as one of the most spectacular train rides in the world. It was pleasant and all but it didn't live up to expectation for me. Maybe it is better in the winter when the mountains are frosted with snow. My friends dropped me at a backpackers in the city where I dumped my bags and went off in search of food. I really liked the look and feel of Christchurch. It seemed to have a European town vibe, with beautiful old buildings and cathedrals, big open public squares, a tram system, all set around the river Avon. I had a beautiful meal by the river and then stumbled across a free buskers comedy show, where five or so buskers each did 20 minute sets to a huge crowd in amongst the old buildings of the arts precinct. The show was great and I laughed like an idiot with a crowd full of strangers. Brilliant!

Early in the morning, I was back on the train, this time heading up the East coast along the edge of the Pacific ocean heading for Picton at the north of the south island. I rode the train with a dutch girl I met at the backpackers and swapped travel stories. I did get a bit sick of having the same conversations with people. This was another scenic train ride. Once again the ride was nice and all but I found it a little dull. I think next time to make it a bit more exciting I might try and ride the train without a ticket. I don't think it would be that hard. I scoped it out for future reference. If you want to take a bag that is no problem as they all go into a luggage carriage and no one checks a ticket when you hand it over. The next bit is getting passed the conductors. That is easy enough. Just hide on the viewing platform the entire ride. They never go there. Easy free train ride and you get plenty of fresh air, with only a touch of diesel.

I was keen to get to Picton as I wanted to get out on the water and explore Queen Charlotte Sound. This is an historically significant site where Captain Cook spent a lot of time on his around the world journeys. He liked it as it has lots of fresh water and food available and has good beaches for running a ship aground to make repairs. I jumped off the train and went straight to the ferry harbour and stepped onto a boat as it was leaving the docks. It was fantastic to zoom across the water and imagine the Endeavour sailing these waters (the area hasn't changed much since Cook was there over 200 years ago). I particulary wanted to see Ship's cove and Motuara Island where Cook claimed New Zealand in the name of the King.
The island has a memorial cairn on top and is preserved as a bird sanctuary with blue penguin nesting boxes throughout. I enjoyed my afternoon on the water. At the top of Motuara island, at the lookout along side Cook's cairn I could see to the north a blue hazy landmass, the north island, my next destination.

Tramping in the long white clouds

27/01/2008

My original intention was to spend more time at Queen Charlotte Sound and perhaps take a day trip kayaking around the area. However, as is New Zealand, the weather became a bit grim so I took the next Interislander ferry across Cook Straight from Te Wahi Pounamu (place of the greenstone, south island) to Aotearoa (land of the long white cloud, north island). It was fitting that the crossing was made on a rainy day and that I could barely make out the hills as we eased through the long white clouds. The ferry takes many tourists and vehicles between the islands with ferrys running surprisingly regularly. As the weather was unfriendly outside I sat through the voyage in the main lounge watching kiwi TV for the first and only time in my trip. With my fellow passengers we watched the memorial service for New Zealand's favourite son, Sir Edmund Hillary, the first to climb Everest.

As the ferry pulled into New Zealand's capital city of Wellington, I decided that I was through with public transport and that I would take on the north island by car. Wellington looked like a busy city, so I didn't think anyone would mind if I didn't stick around. I was in New Zealand for the natural beauty, not to bum around the city. I took the keys to my new little car and started heading north through the rain. After meeting so many people on the buses/trains/ferrys etc on the south island I felt like I was cheating a little leaving them behind and taking off on my own. I would have liked to have swung by a bus stop and offered anyone heading my way a lift. With this mind set I was ready to pick up hitchhikers. It was fun driving along the kiwi roads, listening to kiwi radio and the music of the area. My aim was to reach a town called Turangi at the southern end of Lake Taupo in the middle of the north island. It was a cloudy day so I couldn't make out much of the scenery. Along the way I did give a ride to two hitchhikers, heading north to Taupo. They were friendly and talkative and appreciative of a ride in a nice car as we sped along desert road through the rain. I didn't know it then but the cloud we were driving through was obstructing the view of some spectacular mountains in the Tongariro National Park. I would be setting off on a two day tramp in the park the next day. The long white cloud was acting as a stage curtain preventing me from getting the slightest glimpse of what lay ahead.

I had hired the car, primarily to give me the freedom to do a two day tramp in Tongariro without the hassle of timing my trip around buses. Early in the morning I drove through the continuing white cloud to the main visitors centre where I left the car and set off on a 45km tramp around the Tongariro northern circuit. Tongariro contains varying landscapes featuring forests, lakes, streams, desert-like areas in terrain formed by volcanic activity. The cloud continued to obstruct my view, but I was hopeful that is would lift in the afternoon. After about 10km of tramping through the long white clouds, the heavens were lifted and I was rewarded for my efforts with the sight of two spectacular volcanoes which are the centre piece of this wondrous area. Mt Ruapehu (last erupted in 1995) and Mt Ngauruhoe ( last erupted 1976).

My tramp went along the saddle directly between the mountains, and then looped around Mt Ngauruhoe, also known as Mt Doom from the lord of the rings. It was a spectacular tramp between the mountains. Once I had sighted them I couldn't take my eyes off them. I walked on through the desert/lunar landscape (this is where most of the Mordor scenes were filmed) to the halfway point of my walk and my camp for the night. I camped by the edge of a cliff and waterfall, with Mt Ngauruhoe and it's iconic volcano shape always in my sights. I had walked for a day on my own, hardly meeting any others silly enough to take to the track in the morning cloud. I awoke at sunrise to watch the suns light melt down from the near perfect cone of the volcano. I couldn't pack up camp quickly enough to get closer to the mountain and see what else lay on my path. After a reasonable climb up the rocky path alone in the morning I reached the Emerald lakes and sulphur steam clouds as well as the Tongariro crossing. This is the most walked one-day track in New Zealand. I got there just as the first of the day trampers arrived. I would also walk the crossing, although I was going in the complete opposite direction to the bus loads of day trampers.
This part of the tramp was truly spectacular and I can understand why so many come to walk the trail. The track runs between ginormous craters, bright cyan coloured lakes, rocky cliffs, volcanic cuttings and edges along the base of Mt Ngauruhoe. I had never walked anywhere like it and was blown away by the surrounds. It was kind of strange to have walked the previous day without seeing anyone, but then on this day passed close to one thousand day walkers. I was going in the opposite direction to everyone else. I liked that. As I dodged the tourists, trudging up the trail, I edge around the base of the volcano and decided I was going up, Frodo style. Yes, it looked really steep, but I had pretty much walked around the mountain, to be satisfied I had to go up. I dumped my pack and began the scramble up the mountain. It was a long climb and I was a bit disappointed when there were quite a few people already up there. The cloud had returned when I reached the top but of the glimpses I managed, the view below was quite awesome. I walked around the crater rim and gazed into the mess of a cavity which still had patches of snow inside. So, that was it. I had climbed the mountain. The climax of the trip had passed. The only thing left to do was go back down again. Going down was heaps of fun as I almost skied down the loose rocks, where each step took me about five. I re-found my pack and continued on the track. I had climbed the mountain and done most of the track, so simply enjoyed the rest of the trail, occasionally looking over my shoulder at the mountain and smiling to myself.

After two long days of walking and conquering mountains, my legs were well and truly pissed off at me. I drove the car around Lake Taupo before heading on to Rotorua where I promised myself a nice long soak in a spa. Rotorua wasn't my cup of tea. Way to touristy. I was convinced the kiwi's truly are masters of tourism. Anyone who can turn a puddle, stinking of rotten egg sulphur, into a major tourist attraction is a master of their craft. I was amazed at the number of hotels and maori fun parks they had in this place. To be honset I found it a little disgusting. The smell was actually the most attractive part about the place. Learning from my experiences in the heart of NZ tourism, Queenstown. I decided not to spend too much time in the anus of NZ tourism. I reluctantly paid my money and went for a long bath in the Polynesian spa, by the edge of Lake Rotorua. Slipping in and out of spa pools ranging in temperature from 38 to 42 degrees, I gave my legs a much need rest.

Having turned my nose up at Rotorua (the place wasn't all bad, on the way out I did see some impressive buildings and gardens, and I'm sure that if you venture into the surrounding forest there are probably some pretty nice spots) I continued onto Auckland, my exit point for New Zealand. Auckland is a city. That's about all I got. It reminded me a bit of Sydney and Brisbane. The Auckland domain gardens are pleasant and the museum is an impressive building with an interesting Maori/Pacific islander display. I managed to keep myself occupied in Auckland for a day, wandering around the city, looking out over the harbour, before driving out to the airport and saying farewell to New Zealand and it's mountains. I recommend New Zealand, although if you go, try and get off the tourist trail. If you are lucky you may see some real kiwis. My next adventure is to Pohnpei, in the Federated States of Micronesia. I am visiting the land of the little people.

There and back again

28/04/2007

After the long voyage back from Antarctica, two weeks were spent readjusting in Melbourne before making the move back up the Hume highway to Canberra. One week passed in the office, in which the mass of emails which had accumulated after 5 months were deleted. The effort of settling back into Canberra was made easier by the beautiful autumn colours in the trees of the park that is the ACT. There wasn't much of a chance to get comfortable in Canberra as the people in the office re-enforced my belief that they can't stand the sight of me by sending me straight back into the field, which brings us to the main feature of this entry.

Ceduna, in the almost forgotten state of South Australia, is a charming little seaside country town, tucked away on the Eastern edge of the Great Australian Bite and serves as the last town before the drive West across the Nullaboor. Getting to Ceduna involved a flight to Adelaide where one night was spent and a brief visit was made to the CBD of the city of churches. Although it was dark and I only managed a short walk through the mall and along the edge of the park, I got a good vibe from the town and can imagine it may be a nice place to visit again in the future, perhaps when the sun is out. A light aircraft was taken to Ceduna and it was straight to work, performing a small survey and repairing a GPS station sitting in a sheep paddock surrounded by malee scrub. Over three days all the work was successfully completed and time was made to visit the sights of Ceduna.

Ceduna is a classic country/fishing town. No points for guessing that the favourite pass time for the locals is fishing. They love it. They get out on the pier or in a tinny and go fishing or squidding. Ceduna prides itself on the quality and quantity of King George Whiting in their waters, and with good reason. I didn't drop a line but went out of my way to visit the fish and chip shop with whiting on my mind. The fish was pretty bloody good and made the trip to Ceduna all worthwhile. A point of note on fish and chip shops. A real fish and chip shop wraps the fish and chips in paper and that is it. There are no cardboard boxes in the equation. These fish and chip shops who serve the fish and chips in a cardboard box and paper bag are rubbish. I am severely disappointed if the fish and chips arrive in a cardboard box. Fish and chips should come in layers and layers of paper. It should be like playing pass the parcel when unwrapping the fish and chips. Sorry for the rant but it is one of few things I feel passionately about. I also believe the national authority on fish and chip shops should come to an agreement on how much minimum chips really is. Sometimes minimum chips is a bare handful while other times minimum chips is more than me and five friends can possibly eat.


The Ceduna Foreshore Hotel has your standard country town pub and bistro. The locals seem to lash out maybe once a week and drop by the bistro for tea with friends. Particularly, on $9 roast dinner nights. The bakery was sufficient but will not rate on my country town bakery rankings list which is slowly growing, with judging categories for pies, dounuts, slices and carrot cake. The locals we interacted with were friendly, helpful and keen to chat with the visitors from the East coast. We walked out to the end of the pier at Ceduna. We also walked to the end of the pier at Smoky Bay, 40km to the East, and at Glenelg back in Adelaide. I'm not sure what it is with walking to the end of piers. Maybe there is something about walking a long way out over the water. I guess it is a bit like when people are asked why they climb mountains and they reply 'because it was there'.


A short visit was made to Glenelg, a beachside suburb of Adelaide, on the return journey back to Adelaide and then Canberra. The Glenelg mall seemed to be a popular spot with plenty of bars, and eating spots, recent developments and also gave the impression of being another potentially attractive spot in the daylight.

Ceduna was a great place to visit after being away from Australia for four months. I particularly enjoyed running along the coast to the nearby town of Thevenard, working in the dusty paddocks, driving along the dirt tracks through the malee scrub and gazing out over the wide open landscape.

Aurora Australis

10/03/2007

The Aurora Australis has arrived. This statement can have two interpretations, or three or seven, but for now I'll go with two. Firstly, the ship the Aurora Australis has arrived and is now floating in Davis harbour. The ship is currently being unloaded and loaded with freight. In a day I will board the ship and try to make myself as comfortable as possible in my cabin which will serve as my nest for the next three to four weeks. It is a strange feeling to see the ship out there, waiting to take us home.

The second and more spectacular interpretation of the arrival of the Aurora Australis is that the Aurora lights have been lighting up the late night sky for the last few days. The Aurora are a glow in the night sky usually only seen in polar zones. Auroras are believed to be caused by the collision of charged particles (e.g. electrons) with atoms in the Earth's upper atmosphere (at altitudes above 80km). As the charged particles collide with atoms of gases in the atmosphere, the atoms become energized. Shortly afterwards, the atoms emit their gained energy as light which causes the glow (tending to be green). Other colours are sometimes seen but so far I have only seen green curtains of light dancing in the sky. This is one of the Antarctic phenomenon I most wanted to witness. Now, I can go home.

A nice ending

03/03/2007

The last working week in Antarctica and it had a bit of everything. A day trip back to the Larsemann Hills, a few days of wild weather preventing activity outside, helicopter flights throughout the nearby Vestfold Hills and some spectacular sunsets.

One day was spent retrieving the GPS equipment left in the Larsemann Hills the week before. We flew along the edge of the plateau, flying low to admire the crevasse fields and different patterns in the ice. It was a pleasant day to be out and about. After the survey gear was packed away we went for another wander through the area. I don’t think I could ever get tired of exploring in those hills.

We had flown to the Larsemanns by helicopter. On arrival, the Russians, who have a base nearby, came up to greet us in their tank. The tank was an ex-military medical vehicle which had been modified to suit the more friendly Antarctic atmosphere. There is little use for gun mounts and cannons in Antarctica as the wildlife is protected and wouldn’t put up much resistance anyway.

After our little trip the weather turned grim and just about everybody was stranded on station for a few days, until the strong winds died down. The wind was consistently over 40 knots, gusting to over 60 knots. This was a good reminder that you really are at the mercy of the environment down here. When the wind picks up and the temperature drops the only thing to do is get comfortable and wait for it to blow over. I spent those few days reading, finalising reports, watching movies and exercising in the gym. It was great to compare the grey sky and sea to the sight we had seen in the same harbour only days earlier when the sunset created the effect of a solar pillar and lit up the sky and icebergs in the most amazing colours.

Once the wind settled we spent the next couple of days flying in amongst the Vestfold hills from lake to lake, surveying the water levels of the lakes. Some of the lakes are well below sea level and are as much as ten times more saline than sea water. A taste test proved this. It was a nice final project to finish off our work in Antarctica. Hopping from lake to lake, performing short surveys, appreciating the views and simply enjoying being outside and soaking up the last of our time on the continent.

The summer season is finally coming to a close and the ship will arrive in a few days to collect about 50 people from station and leave 20 others to manage the station throughout the winter. There is an extremely positive and friendly atmosphere around station as we approach the end. It is funny how people seem to get on really well when they are just about to part. I have noticed this quite a bit as I have been continually on the move for the last few years. For some reason people seem more relaxed and perhaps let their guard down a bit more when they know they won’t see each other for a long time. It has been impressive to watch a group of people who were once strangers band together during the season and create a strong community. I have had a wonderful time in Antarctica and enjoyed every moment down here. I have seen some spectacular places and had some extraordinary experiences which I am sure will only cause me to smile when I reflect upon them in the future. I am going to lay my pen down now and set aside the book which has covered my adventure On Antarctica.

Vacation

24/02/2007

The Larsemann Hills is a nice spot to visit if you ever get the chance. A splatter of mountains wedged between the coast and the ice plateau, about 100km from Davis Station. Helicopter is the best form of transport, flying over icebergs and huge crevasse fields, where the plateau runs into the ocean. Conveniently, Australia has a small field base setup in the hills. Law Base. This consists of two apple and three melon huts (named according to shape) and Reid hut. After spending some time in polar pyramids in the snow, huts are welcomed as luxury stye accommodation. Mattress beds, couches, dining table, gas stove, heater and electricity powered by generator. It all sounds pretty basic, which it is, but you don’t go on holidays to spend all your time in the hotel. You go on holidays for the adventure, to see something different, to see something amazing.

Your humble narrator visited Law Base under the guise of work. Two GPS units were set up over two survey marks in the hills and left to collect data for the week. I like to think that when the GPS are collecting data I am also working. We spent two full days in the Larsemann Hills even though it took a grand total of about two hours to install the GPS units. The rest of the time was spent exploring and having fun.

The Larsemann Hills could be considered a naturally formed amusement park. You can wander along beaches covered in ice, gaze at giant icebergs in the bay and listen to the penguins squawking out on the ice flows. You can walk over frozen lakes and smash ice shards watching them scatter in all different directions across the ice. You can sit by the edge of lakes and catch snow falling into your hands. You can edge your way through ice caves and admire the streams of water running from the ice melt. You can watch the sun set into the plateau and see the sky come alive with colour. You can scramble up rock faces and climb mountains. At the peak of each rise you can see even more beautiful sights and interesting areas to explore. You couldn’t help but feel completely free wandering around this place, going wherever you liked, walking towards whatever caught your eye. No restrictions, no time constraints, no worries.

An extra day was given to us in the hills due to the snow and poor visibility, preventing a helicopter from collecting us. We were well prepared for this scenario and had brought an abundance of alcohol. Although I do not drink often I do enjoy undertaking stupid behaviour in exotic locations. I had a long fight with the bottle and although the bottle was empty in the morning, based on the bruises and my aching head, I’d say the bottle won. The last time I woke up in such a condition I was in Germany. That day I travelled halfway across the country from Dresden to Munich with my head slumped against the cool train window watching the countryside blur by. This time I flew 100km along the coast of Antarctica over icebergs and crevasse fields with my head slumped against the cool helicopter window.