The worst of South Island

- Gorse: the noxious weed is everywhere and scars the vistas all too frequently

- Hamner Springs; marketed as tiny mountain village with quaint attitude and a destination in itself, horribly good marketing for a dull, crowded and souless urban settlement.

- Recreational hunters and hunting everywhere. A mentality I just don’t understand and a practice I abhor.

-Picton: The first landfall for the ferry from the North Island is encircleed by scarred hills from forestry. What isn’t covered in rubble or pines is covered by gorse.

In hindsight, if this is the worst on offer then the best can surely be noted as being brilliant!

South Island....again

The best of the South Island


- The West Coast: aggressively rugged coastline, being comforted by a lush smooth blanket of wind sculpted rainforest, a true juxtaposition of beauty.

- Oamaru: architecturally gracious city reflecting the perseverance and strength of the early European settlers.

-Coronet Peak: Queenstown ski field with the most impressive facilities and efficient operations I have ever seen at a ski field.

-McKenzie Basin: endless, sweeping, snow covered pastures, surrounded by protecting ranges, a white wonderland.

- Kaikoura: coastal village managing to retain its small village atmosphere amidst a multimillion dollar whale watching tourism industry, jagged mountain peaks plummeting down to the shoreline.

For my part, I travel not to go anywhere, but to go. I travel for travel's sake. The great affair is to move. -- (Robert Louis Stevenson 1850-1894)

Southern Alps, New Zealand

The governing feature of the South Island is the magnificent Southern Alps. They run for 450 kilometres stretching the entire length of the island . Their highest point is Aoraki/Mt Cook at 3,754 metres compared to Mt Kosciusko 2,228m, Mt St Helens 2,549m, Kilimanjaro 5,893, Mt Fuji 3,776m, Mount Blanc 4,810m and Mt Everest 8,848m. They are one of the most southern ranges in the world and as such they have a permanent snowline above 1600-2700 metres and over 3000 glaciers. Associated with the Alps are raging mountain rivers, wild fjords and expansive glacial lakes. For anyone who has seen Lord of the Rings, you would have seen some of the Alps without realising as the scenery featured significantly in the movie trilogy. My enthusiasm for snow was set free and wild amongst this scenery as the mid winter climate cloaked these glorious vistas in gentle white. It evoked memories of when I studied in the USA and worked in Norway. It cleansed me and fed my soul with nourishing magic.

Me? A tourist??

When did I become a camera carrying, rubber necking tourist? Was it when I turned 40? Was this the point at which I leapt at being an independent traveller to a crusty crazy snapshot tourist? Maybe I am over exaggerating, but it was thoughts like this which burst in to my head during our recent holiday on the South Island. Buying a new multi lens camera kit, with carry bag, on the first day of the road trip, probably aided in me seeing myself in a different sense. I couldn’t take enough photos from enough angles without feeling like I was viewing everything through a lens, and not the reality. A bit like watching someone else holiday unfold on a television travel show, a hazy insight in to the experience but not doing it yourself. Now that I am back to base, I have hundreds of photos of the trip. What I didn’t realise at the time that I do now though, is that these hundreds of photos will immortalise the many memories I also have of the trip. So the crusty crazy snapshot tourist may not be a comfortable coat to wear, but the physical evidence of memories which evoke emotions of enjoyment and adventure outweigh any fleeting negative self image I may have stumbled upon. So if you will all excuse me for now, I have some more photos I need to go and take…..