So imagine a road that winds its way from picturesque rolling countryside before beginning a gentle climb up a mountainside. Sprinkle in tree's, starting with a cluster here and there and then growing until the hillside is thick with greenery and glistening with recent rains. Come around a bend in the road and suddenly the mountainside ends abruptly, flattening out into a golden yellow valley streaming with sunlight. Another two minutes of driving and the mighty mountainside of sheer rock and shrubs return, waterfalls cascading down, the water gliding thousands of feet from the snow capped peaks and into to small meandering streams. Then suddenly, in the midst of mountains and waterfalls and snow and greenery, the most breathtaking view comes upon the horizon: Milford Sound.
It seems nearly impossible for anything this incredible to get...well, more incredible. But when calm and clear blue ocean waters flood into tropical snow capped mountains, it is literally breathtaking. Without a doubt, I witnessed one of the true natural wonders of the world yesterday, and I can't wait to go back and hike it's world-renowned tracks!
After the spectacular trip to Milford Sound, I didn't expect anything else to come close to impressing me.
Little did I know what surprises were in store: whilst ambling down onto the cold beach of Waipapa Point, I almost literally stumbled upon an endangered species! Jumping from the trail onto the sand, I was admiring the rocks leading into the ocean, when one of the rocks about 8 feet away from me popped its head up! And what a massive head! The New Zealand Seal Lion was not too happy to be woken up from its nap, and when Steve (a young Canadian who still succumbs to his boyish ways) decided to get as close as possible, the giant animal bellowed, barred its teeth, and began to charge! Not wanting to see if the locals were telling the truth about the pain caused by Seal Lion bites, we ran! The big guy eventually lumbered back into the ocean and we then headed to the van to discover more of the South Island.
After a few misguided turns, and about 30,000 sheep (no, I'm not exaggerating guys!), we came upon a trail leading to McLean Falls. A short and gorgeous 20 minute hike through damp tropical forests led to several impressive falls. The first few were 6-8 foot drops but upon further exploration, a waterfall pouring from 40-50 feet above us came crashing into a shallow pool surrounded by moss-covered rocks. Ever the adventurers, Steve and myself climbed a muddy mountainside, squeezed through some huge boulders, and waded freezing waters to find ourselves on the edge of the top of the falls. A few pictures and several vertigo-inducing moments later we were back on the trail and smiling ear-to-ear about how awesome our day had been so far.
Throwing itineraries to the wind, the van (including Brits Rachel, Bec, Rich, and Jeremy, and Canadians Tara and Steve) decided "what the heck?" and drove onward to the college town of Dunedin. So a few hundred kilometers and a handful of memories later, I'm on the East Coast of the South Island and getting ready to bed-down before a big day of sight-seeing and driving back to Queenstown.
I still pinch myself every once in a while to make sure this isn't all a dream, but it's not, and I'm so thankful to have the opportunity to meet such wonderful unique people and experience some of the most incredible natural wonders this amazing country has to offer!
-Ashley
Fun Fact: New Zealand is home to the longest place name in the world- Taumatawhakatangihangakoauauotamateaturipikimaungahoronukupokaiwenuakitanatahua. The Maori name translates to "the place where Tamatea, the man with the big knees, who slid, climbed and swallowed mountains, known as Landeater, played his flute to his loved one."
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