We left Queenstown for Te Anau where we experienced our first day of bad weather - an all day rain. Luckily we had seen the weather system coming and delayed our excursion to Milford Sound until the following day. As scheduled we had great weather, and made use of the rain-day to get a little rest from the go-go-go. The drive to Milford Sound was through an area know as Fiordland. The landscape was amazing. The nature cruise out Milford Sound equally breathtaking. When we take a guided tour, we always feel that the guide is who adds that extra something to the experience. We were not disappointed on this tour. We had multiple recommendations to see the 30 minute short film on the Fiordlands, and managed to find it playing at the local cinema. It was stunning, with the footage shot from a helicopter - the only way to see much of the area.

From the Fiordlands we went south to Invergargill and Bluff, the southern most point on the South Island. From there we could wave to Antarctica. Invergargill is also the home of the Worlds Fastest Indian. If you haven’t seen the movie, treat yourself to the story of Burt Munro, who with much persistence managed to take his 1000cc Indian motorcycle from Invercargill to the Bonneville Salt Flats and set the speed record for this class. His motorcycle is on display at a local Hardware store (Hayes and Sons). They have an outstanding collection of motorcycles, old woodworking tools, machining tools, as well as some fun and unique tools and pieces of hardware. We had a blast looking at their collection. If you ever make it to Invercargill don’t miss this collection!

From Invercargill we headed to the east coast of the South Island through an area called the Caitlans, taking the “scenic route” vs Google’s “fastest route”. For our choice we were rewarded with a bit of an off-road excursion and an opportunity to see the Purakaunui Falls, and an up close and personal delay as sheep were herded down the highway - yes, by a working dog (and a four-wheeler). The Otago Peninsula coastline has become the home to an interesting group of wildlife, including albatross, yellow-eyed penguins, blue penguins, fur seals, and seal-lions, along with a number of other birds.that make the wet-lands areas their home. We spent 6 hours with the Elm Peninsula Encounters Wild Life tour seeing these species - perhaps one of the most informative tours we have done.

On our way to Christchurch we spent some time on the beach at the Mouraki Boulders, a unique geological formation, with an equally interesting Mauri Legend as to how these spherical boulders got there. Christchurch suffered a “killer” earthquake in 2011, where some 185 people died. The devastation was still obvious in the CBD, but the city is slowly rebuilding. Our guided walking tour highlighted both the old and the new. Prior to our tour we met a local man from Christchurch who pointed out the rubble of what was at one time the tallest building built in Christchurch. As a boy he had watched it be built with his father. He explained the difficulty of his Anglican Church in making a decision as to whether try and rebuild the badly damaged cathedral or tear it down and replace it with a new one. He also shared the experience of one of his friends that escaped death on three different occasions the day of the earthquake. I can only imagine that Christchurch will one day be like Chicago rebuilt after the fire that destroyed much of it or San Francisco, rebuilt after the earthquake.

Unknown to us, NZ closed a small section of SH1 (it had been re-opened for a while), meaning that the short drive up the coast to Kiakoura would take far longer than normal. We blindly followed Google (who obviously didn’t know either) only to find a construction worker blocking the bridge and politely explain that the GPS only got people in trouble since the November earthquake that closed many of the roads in this area. After turning around and re-tracing our steps, we finally did make it to the sleepy town of Kiakoura and had some great seafood at a roadside BBQ trailer. The shoreline of the area was changed during the Novemeber earthquake as new sea bottom was thrust upward. The seals, sea lions and birds don’t seem to mind the changes, as they were casually lounging everywhere.

Our last stop on the South Island will be Blenheim. Unfortunately, the 1-2 hr drive will be 7 hrs since this section of SH1 has not yet been re-opened since after the November earthquake. The good news is that we know iabout the road closure this time!