Well another successful weekend is now under my belt as the reality of needing to start a couple essays sets in. This weekend the location was Fjordland National Park on the western side of the south island. I was a little nervous at first before going because my very sore Achilles tendon was making me far less mobile than I like to be at 19. Although it did make me have empathy for those who have trouble getting around because of various aches and pains in their legs. This problem had lingered since the first tramp out in Mt. Aspiring National Park and on the wednesday before St. Patrick's Day I decided to suck it up and go for a run. Miraculously, that seemed to nearly cure it. I wouldn't recommend this strategy for everyone but for me it seemed to work. On Friday, with the car full of gear and my belly full of corned beef, we headed out for Milford Sound. With a sleepy car owner, I got my first left side of the road driving experience. It's a little nerve racking at first but you get the hang of it pretty quickly when your life depends on it. I don't think I've ever thought so hard about a roundabout or right turn in my life, but I was successful and did not crash into anything or anyone. Andrew drove the rest of the way into the Fiords. Rain pounded down on the roof of the car as we wound down to the sea through the deep U shaped valleys. Thanks to the rain, dozens of waterfalls streamed down every cloud shrouded mountain face. New Zealand had waged a full assault against what we had previously found impressive and the whole experience was unbelievable. We warmed up with some tea after walking around the Milford sound area for a couple of hours and then headed back to our campsite outside the town of Te Anau.
The next morning we headed over to the Kepler Track for a hike up Mt. Luxamore. Our pace up the mountain was literally blistering for some of us but we were running out of day light so I think it was necessary. We made the posted 4.5 hour trip to the hut in 2 hours and caught or breath once we cleared the treeline and had an unobstructed view of the lake and the fjords. We didn't make it to the summit due to darkness and time constraints (grrr) but managed to see some incredible landscape still. The trek down the hill was interesting as well. As the sun set, we were impressed with how far we had actually hiked up. That night we hunkered down on the beach with a campfire and enjoyed a dinner of cookies, wine, cheese, and baguette under a full moon reflecting off the glass like water. One of those times you wish you could dial a number and come back to at any time. My good friend Usch summed it up when she said, "What did we do to deserve this?" I don't know the answer, Usch. But as long as we're here all we can do is give thanks and make the most of it. With that, I'm off to class. Love to you all.
Well another successful weekend is now under my belt as the reality of needing to start a couple essays sets in. This weekend the location was Fjordland National Park on the western side of the south island. I was a little nervous at first before going because my very sore Achilles tendon was making me far less mobile than I like to be at 19. Although it did make me have empathy for those who have trouble getting around because of various aches and pains in their legs. This problem had lingered since the first tramp out in Mt. Aspiring National Park and on the wednesday before St. Patrick's Day I decided to suck it up and go for a run. Miraculously, that seemed to nearly cure it. I wouldn't recommend this strategy for everyone but for me it seemed to work. On Friday, with the car full of gear and my belly full of corned beef, we headed out for Milford Sound. With a sleepy car owner, I got my first left side of the road driving experience. It's a little nerve racking at first but you get the hang of it pretty quickly when your life depends on it. I don't think I've ever thought so hard about a roundabout or right turn in my life, but I was successful and did not crash into anything or anyone. Andrew drove the rest of the way into the Fiords. Rain pounded down on the roof of the car as we wound down to the sea through the deep U shaped valleys. Thanks to the rain, dozens of waterfalls streamed down every cloud shrouded mountain face. New Zealand had waged a full assault against what we had previously found impressive and the whole experience was unbelievable. We warmed up with some tea after walking around the Milford sound area for a couple of hours and then headed back to our campsite outside the town of Te Anau. 
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