Somehow New Zealand was not the easiest start for us, being a bit shocked because all was so busy and suddenly we are back in a world where need to act according to stricter rules. Just looking for a campsite, not that easy anymore, as it is heavily regulated nowadays. Of course not a surprise due to the high number of tourists, but something we were not used to in the last seven months at all.
However we found a good national park camp spot a bit South of Christchurch at the Peel Forest Reserve. And with that we found also our first hike in New Zealand; welcome to the Big Tree Walk.
And finally we managed to spot some wildlife again, something we were missing a lot in most of the countries on this trip so far.
Unfortunately next morning the weather changed and we had a rainy day ahead. Also the weather forecast did not look promising, so we skipped the planned hike in the forest and headed towards Mount Cook. On the way there we even faced some fresh snow, beside lots of rain, so we were already wondering what kind of spring they have in New Zealand. Well, what a surprise, normally it is neither that cold nor that wet that time of the year. 🙁 At least we had some impressive bad-weather mountain views.
In the afternoon it cleared up and we enjoyed a beautiful short walk to a lookout over Mount Cook. At least we got a glimpse of New Zealand’s highest mountain.
But what a surprise the next morning. After a freezing cold night we woke up with a temperature of around -3 degrees Celsius and the world around us looked like this…
An amazing, but freezing cold morning in the mountains of New Zealand, perfect for a hike to warm up and even better to enjoy the views of Mount Cook and the mountains around.
From here we are now heading roughly direction South, and if the weather allows, there will be a lot to explore. So stay with us…
