Our First Easter in New Zealand

Even though this is our third time in New Zealand, it is the first time we have been here for Easter. 'So what shall we do?' we thought. 'How about about going somewhere we have not been before?' So after some serious 'bible' studying (those of you who have been travelling will know that I mean the 'Lonely Planet') we decided on driving to Arthur's Pass. This small settlement is high up in the Southern Alps, slap bang in the middle of the South Island.

View from Avalanche Track

We booked ourselves into a shared self-contained cottage and settled in very quickly on arrival. We claimed 'our' sofa in front of the wood fire, got the beers in the fridge and let the red wine get to room temperature. We shared the cottage with a Canadian couple, Blair and Laura, who are also living and working in Christchurch. We got very drunk that night, not such good preparation for the Avalanche Peak track the following day!

Our Home for the Night

The main attraction of Arthur's Pass is tramping (Kiwi English for walking/hiking). So, that is what we did. We decided to walk the Avalanche Peak track and, but as we were not wearing correct shoes (Pete was on his Vans) and we both did not have gaiters nor any waterproofs, the ground lying snow beat us. Yes, there was lots of snow on the top so we did not make it completely to the summit. We were only 15 minutes or so away from the peak, such a shame. Such a shame as it means that once we have all the correct gear I, who does not do mountains, have to climb that d*mn thing again!

Above : This is the point at which we decided we were not equipped properly so turned round and started our descent.

After our climb we had a very quiet and peaceful night in, and the following day we drove back to Christchurch, still exploring and stopping for those ever occuring 'Kodak moments'. We are so fortunate to be living in such a beautiful country!

These 'Kodak moments' were actually taken on the way to Arthur's Pass not on the return journey!

http://www.doc.govt.nz/Explore/001~National-Parks/Arthurs-Pass-National-Park/index.asp