Detours

After the Nevis bungee, Jordache and I were scheduled for the Canyon Swing on the following day in Queenstown. Swinging from steel ropes attached to either side of a canyon, the ride starts with a 60 meter free-fall that accelerates you to 150 km/hr and then flings you out through a 200 meter arc. While it may sound as frightening as the bungee (or more so) it didn't have quite the same psychological effects on me. Jordache handled it even more easily than the bungee, smiling widely as he pushed off the platform backwards for his first swing. Unlike the bungee, where jumpers need to dive out from the platform, the swing allows all sorts of different jumps. Jordache did two swings while I did three, as neither of us could pass up the opportunity for following swings for only twenty bucks. The first swings we each did were simply backwards jumps, while the second was what is called a "cutaway." Suspended upside, the operators swing you out over the canyon where you look straight down at the cliff face before they pull the bolt that sends you falling head-first. My last jump was a gainer, a back-flip while moving forwards, and each time the adrenalin rush was as strong as the previous jump.

After the Canyon Swing we hit the road, traveling out toward Milford Sound in Fiordland. The only problem was that we didn't check to see if the wash-out that had closed the road earlier in the week had been cleared up yet. And it hadn't. We parked in a gravel parking lot at the "Closed Road" sign, only a scant 60 kms from our destination. We phoned the road information line that evening, and they said that we should check back in the morning in case things might have changed overnight. We did, and they hadn't. Backtracking south, we decided that we might as well go toward Stewart Island which was next on our itinerary. We got into Bluff on the coast, the town the ferry departs from, and booked our tickets for the following day.

Jordache had high hopes that Stewart Island would be where he would finally set his eyes on a kiwi bird, and while we kept our eyes peeled throughout the day and even went on a guided bird walk, the nocturnal flightless bird eluded us. We should given more thought to fact that it was a nocturnal bird. We arrived on the island mid-morning after the quick one-hour ferry ride and took the first hour or so to get over the trip. The waves were quite choppy and left both me and Jordache feeling slightly seasick. I had ridden the first bit of the trip at the front of the boat, standing while holding on tightly to the hand rails, feeling the ferry alternately drop from underneath me and push me into the air and felt great. It was only after I staggered back to my seat and observed a number of other passengers depositing their breakfasts into little paper bags that I began to feel sick myself. The ride back was much of the same, so Jordache and I spent most our time outside on deck in the fresh air.

After getting back to mainland, we spent the night in the same spot we had the night before, that being the local cemetery, and then headed out in the morning. A farmer observed us pulling out of the parking lot in the morning and just shook his head at us. Other than him, I don't thing we disturbed anyone else with our choice of parking spot. We headed into Invercargill where we used the internet and the public bathrooms and before we left, Jordache spotted a clothing sale and went into check it out. After a long talk with Peter, the owner of the store, Jordache and I each got an item off the sales rack, and Peter gave us a complimentary bottle of wine. By far the best perk I have ever gotten with a purchase.

We drove throught the Catlins along the south-east coast of the South Island towards Dunedin, stopping at the well-known Porpoise Bay. Hector Dolphins regulary frequent the bay, swimming alongside humans, and I went for a swim hoping some would come to see me. None did unfortunately, though while I was rinsing off back on shore, Jordache watched a sea lion surf in on a wave and chase the kids off the beach. When I got there it was sunning itself on the beach, oblivious to us tourists leaning on the fence taking pictures. We left the sea lion to itself, aiming to get into Dunedin by dark, and after making ourselves supper along the way, we realized that our muffler had come undone again. Ears ringing, we pulled into Dundedin around eight and quickly found a place to park for the night. Given the noise of the muffler, it is difficult to move quietly.

Surfing this morning was great, even if it was quite cold, and what was even better was that we found some beach showers. We are entirely self-sufficent except for a way to wash ourselves, so we may hang around here for a while and just enjoy being clean for a few days. Then, off to Mount Cook and Christchurch, unless there is another wash-out.