Wanaka, NZ

The southern area of the South Island of New Zealand has been the most populated with tourists that I have seen since traveling around the country. Many travelers I meet tell me they prefer the South Island. It covers a larger land mass, with less residents, and consists of a more alpine environment, covered in lakes and waterfalls.

The most popular cities that attract tourists were my next stops, including Wanaka, Queenstown, and Te Anau, which all offer spectacular natural wonders. Due to these areas being so popular, this also means that accommodation is more sparse, so I switched where I slept often since I couldn’t just extend my stays in the mornings due to a lack of vacancy.

Wanaka, my first stop, is a stunning resort town sitting on the coast of Lake Wanaka, surrounded by mountains and full of adventuresome activities that fit any level of adrenaline junkie.

During my drive from the West Coast, I kept stopping at lookout points to admire the views, extending my driving time, and thus increasing my hunger. By the time I reached my hostel, I was hangry and needed food as soon as possible. This actually happens to me quite often, where I forget to eat and then I’m too hungry to save money and cook myself dinner. I marched over to a highly rated burger restaurant, and ordered one of the largest burgers they had, with a huge side of fries (chips, as they are called here). In one sitting, I ate the glorious feast, leaving my belly quite satisfied.

I met so many people in my first hostel that night. One was a German girl my age who was traveling for a month, and we spent the next day together. Later, we even met up in a different city! It was nice to be around someone with whom I had lots in common with.

In addition, when I went down to the social area to make my plans for my next few days, I met three other Germans and we chatted late into the night. One of the guys actually had a very similar story to mine; he had worked for a while as a doctor, then quit his job to travel for about a year. He also seemed to be living each day spontaneously, and it made me feel validated to meet someone else with that mindset.

I have always been obsessed with lavender, and there are several lavender farms in New Zealand. The smell can put just about anyone at ease, and I love how gift shops at these farms are like cults of all things lavender. I had to pay a visit to the lavender farm in Wanaka, and it was so cute with purple benches, tractors, and random purple doors for an artsy effect. We had a blast taking pictures here and swimming in a sea of lavender.

Mountain Biking

I had intentions to hike to the top of a nearby mountain called Roy’s Peak, to watch the sunrise. But that would involve getting up around 3 AM to make it to the top of the mountain, which is a steep hike, before sunrise. I decided to acquire information at the i-SITE first and get some ideas on what else to do in Wanaka. The woman working the desk was such a good salesperson that she convinced me that I did not need to hike at the break of dawn and that instead I should go biking during the day to explore the area.

So the next day, I hired a mountain bike in town and met a small group of people near the i-SITE. We were driven to the neighboring lake, Lake Hāwea, where we would get on a trail that eventually takes you back to Lake Wanaka.

For the first half of the trail, I rode next to a breezy river. At one point along the stream, a man-made wave was constructed so that surfers and kayakers could practice riding the waves. I stopped for a while to watch kayakers battling the waves like pros. A young man also tried to surf the wave, but he struggled. The strong wave kept knocking him down so he was never able to stand up on the surfboard. It made me feel better about my own surfing abilities.

As I kept biking on the path, I was reminded in the friendliest of ways as to why my biking shoes at home don’t have shoelaces. At one point, one of my shoelaces got caught around the peddle sticking my foot to it, which caused me to lose my balance and fall over. I hit my shin really hard, leaving a bruise, and sat there for a while feeling sorry for myself. I always manage to injure myself, even doing a seemingly low impact activity such as biking!

Eventually I made it to Wanaka and still had about an hour to spare before I had to return my bike. I rode to a place called #ThatWanakaTree, which is a lone tree that grows out of the water on Lake Wanaka, and has become a popular tourist attraction. This tree is famous on Instagram and there were plenty of people taking pictures of #ThatWanakaTree. Despite making me feel like such a millennial, it was a cool tree to photograph, with scenic views in the background.

That evening, I met a girl in my new hostel and we cooked dinner together. Since I had a cooking buddy, I acted much more confident in the kitchen and it ended up taking almost an hour and a half to finally prepare dinner. I had learned a trick from my Dutch friend from earlier in my travels for frying up the perfect fries (chips); first boil the potatoes briefly, then cut them up and fry them. This way, they are soft on the inside yet crunchy on the outside. Yay cooking!

Canyoning

An activity I had been wanting to try for a while in New Zealand was canyoning, which is navigating through canyons by walking, climbing, jumping, swimming, and of course abseiling (rappelling). I got a good deal for a canyoning tour, and that is how I spent my last day in Wanaka.

When I showed up in the morning for my tour, it turned out I was the only one going, so just me and the guide! He was a fun French man who loves rock climbing, hiking, and canyoning around the world. He drove us for about an hour north to a place called Cross Creek. You could see a tiny sign and we literally just parked on the side of the highway, which seemed weird to me at first. I did see others parking nearby on the other side of the highway ready to go into the same forest, so that eased me a little bit.

I put on the tight wetsuit, threw my stuff in a waterproof backpack, and we waded into the forest. After walking for about 15 minutes on a steep path, I couldn’t help but heave and sound like I was dying. The tightness of the wetsuit greatly constricted my breathing and movement.

Eventually I couldn’t take it anymore, so I took the wetsuit off so I could breathe and we continued walking. I felt kind of funny hiking around a forest in just a bikini and boots, but it was a difficult walk, and just no good in a wetsuit. Eventually we arrived to the beginning of the canyon. After a struggle to put the wetsuit back on, I was all harnessed up and ready to go.

We waded into the water and walked along the stream. The water was icy cold and the wetsuit kept me decently warm, but my fingers were freezing in the thin gloves. After a short walk, we reached our first waterfall, where my guide told me it was time for the first jump. I’m glad it was just me on the tour because I was so hesitant to spring forward. My heart pounding from my fear of heights, I closed my eyes and leaped.

I felt so alive jumping down waterfalls and facing my fears! After several more leaps, we reached our first abseiling (rappelling) spot, where it was too high to safely jump. He attached me to the rope and slowly lowered me down the tall waterfall. I found it to be quite the challenge to properly walk down the waterfall while leaning back and relying on the rope. I slipped a number of times and eventually just hung on to the rope as I was lowered down.

There were other places where you had to slide down a smaller less steep waterfall, like a waterslide, and those were super fun. The whole day was just one exhilaration after another. I was constantly shaking from either the cold, my fears, or excitement. It was just us, in beautiful unspoiled nature (apart from my screams), surrounded by lush green rocky canyons and turquoise crystal clear water. Whenever I got thirsty, I just dipped my head in the water and took a sip. It was some of the most delicious water I had ever tasted.

I loved every minute of canyoning, between jumping, sliding, and abseiling down waterfalls. I felt such a rush and was sad when we reached the end of the canyon. I’m glad I tried it and maybe next time, I can join a more advanced group with taller waterfalls!

-Anastasia