In Search of Kiwis...

Tomorrow we leave for Stewart Island in search of the cute little kiwi, New Zealand's national bird. It can be seen all over New Zealand but is very rare and is best seen on the island. It is a nocturnal bird so we are going to be up in the middle of night searching for it. We will be in the island for about 5 days before starting up the east coast. We have scheduled in the superbowl in Queenstown, maybe before we jump off a bridge or do something else slightly insane there.

Milford Sound

We just finished the Milford Track, a 4 day and 33 mile hike, through Fiordland National Park. It was incredible and we met so many amazing people from all over the world. We are going to spend the next few days in Fiordland before heading down further south to Stewart Island.
Here are some pics so far...

Queen Charlotte Sound - From Picton

Fur Seal in Abel Tasman



Island Stop in Abel Tasman

Abel Tasman

Curious fur seal right beside our kayak

Pancake Rocks along the West coast

Lake Hawea - Cutest little town in New Zealand's southern alps

BBQ in Lake Hawea

Driving into Mt. Aspiring National Park

Rob Roy Glacier in Mt. Aspiring National Park - We got to see snow in January!

Milford Track - Glacier formed river, it was freezing!

Milford Track - Summit of Mt. McKinnon

Summit of Mt. McKinnon

Curious Kea bird

One of the many beautiful waterfalls on the Milford Track

Milford Sound Cruise

Wanaka

We are in Wanaka, a small town on the south island. We have been travelling for just over a week on the South Island and its amazing! It has exceeded all our expectations and there is still so much more to come. So far we kayaked with seals, hiked a glacier and drove/hiked through the Southern New Zealand Alps! We are starting our 4 day trek through Milford Sound tomorrow with a day cruise on the last day into the sound. Then heading further south.
The south island is so beautiful and very relaxed, we would recommend it to anyone.
Next time we are in a bigger city we will post another round of pics!

Hope all is well back home
Love Ashley and Chad

To The South Island...

So here we are, a few days away from finishing up in the north island in Wellington.  Chad is done his job on Friday and we head to the south island for 8 weeks or so via the interislander ferry early on the 1st.  We start things off in Abel Tasman National park where we will be kayaking for 2 days in the sea and then hiking for a day.  The whole next 3 weeks or so will be packed, lots planned, including hiking a glacier, hiking milford sound and then heading to Queenstown.
Wellington was a great experience, but we are excited to get back on the road.

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays

We wanted to take this opportunity to wish everyone a very Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays.
We miss you all and hope everyone has a safe and happy holiday season!

This picture was taken outside the only house we found with Christmas lights. It is actually a promotion run by Cadbury chocolates. The night we were there so were a few hundred others to check out the display.

Wellington Pics

Wellington Harbour - On a typical morning with dense fog over the hills, it usually clears my midday.

 

Te Kopahou Marine Reserve - Hike along the coast about 5 minutes outside Wellington. We went with a British traveller we met at Ashley's work.

Te Kopahou Marine Reserve

Te Kopahou Marine Reserve - Lava rocks

Makara Peak - Mountain bike park

Notice the sign post and how far we are away from Canada!

Makara Peak 

"Honeycomb" - New Zealand's Parliamentary Buildings

Approaching the holidays

Only 12 days until Christmas and it is going to be a very different holiday season over here. We are not sure what our plans are yet but it will likely involve a beach and hopefully some sun. We are busy planning the next part of our trip throughout the south island. It seems so close and we are getting really excited! Over the next few weeks we are going to try take some more pictures to capture some of the everyday sights we have experienced while living in Wellington. They will be posted before we leave....