NZ Study Abroad Celebration Video

As made by J&T for our Kiwis for the Summer 2010 students.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rdYswTnZIx0

Temple Basin trip-July29th and 30th

Thursday morning we met up in front of the dorms, gathered in the gator waka, and headed out once again towards Arthur’s Pass National Park. Our destination this time was to Temple Basin, a ski lodge in the Southern Alps. On the way, had tea time at the ever popular café in Arthur’s pass, where curious Keas are easily spotted. Soon after we made it to the area where we began our strenuous hike straight up the mountain side and to the lodge. The hike was tough, and making it to the top was a great accomplishment. It was worth the effort though, the view of the mountains around us were breathtaking. 

Temple Basin

Once there, we settled in and signed up for our ski gear. A few of us had never skied before, some had experience and the rest were able to snowboard. It was a bit of a challenge for those who couldn’t ski but all in all everyone had an exciting day. Afterwards, we went in for dinner and hung out in the main hall playing ping pong and cards. 

Friday morning we were up and ready to hit the slopes once more. While the others went to the other side of the mountain to ski, Kristin, Dania, and I decided we would take skiing lessons. Our instructor was a really cool Kiwi named Alex. He was very patient and encouraging. He made skiing much more enjoyable for us three Floridians. We all became very confident in how to side step in the skis, how to slide down slopes, and how to direct ourselves. 

After a morning of fun skiing, we all went inside for lunch before it was time for us to leave the lodge.  We gathered up our things and headed down the mountain, trying very hard not to slip on the icy ground. In the end, we all had a great time staying a night in the Southern Alps, and once again had an amazing adventure in the land of the long white cloud. 

-Julianna

July 27, 2010 - Cricket!

This morning we learned how to play Cricket.  The Tuataras took on The Snipe Hunters in a rousing game that was played in a strong southerly wind with scattered showers.  Despite the cold and damp, we all had a good time and were thankful that the match only lasted a few hours instead of the few days that traditional play would.  That left plenty of time to have lunch near Poplar Lanes and spend the afternoon exploring Christchurch.

Looking up at art in The Lanes, Christchurch, NZ

Free weekend July 23rd-25th

 Mitre Point at Milford Sound

View of Queenstown from the gondola

Woke up extra early on Friday along with Seth, Ashley, Kirstin and Dania at around 6am. It was worth it though because we had to catch an early morning flight into Queenstown from Christchurch. After a very generous ride from Meryl, we got on the plane and about 45 minutes later we were in Queenstown. We spent the day walking around the shops and checking into our hostel. Queenstown was very unique. I loved how everyone walked around either carrying a snowboard or skis, making it an ideal skiing town. While Dania set out to try her hand at rock climbing, the others and I took the Queenstown gondola up a mountain to where we had tea time in a café.  Seth, Ashley and I tried out luging which was so much fun. That night we ate at the famous burger restaurant, Fergburger, and it was the best burgers we've all ever had.

Riding in the gondola

The next day, Saturday, had to get up extra early again in order to get on the coach ride to Milford Sound. It took a good while to get to Fiordland national park from Queenstown, but the scenery on the way was amazing. On the way we made one stop at Lake Te Anau, New Zealand's second largest lake, to have tea time. Driving through the national park was breathtaking and the tour bus made a few stops so we could capture some photos of the natural landscape made up of beech forest and snow-covered mountains.

Lake Te Anu

Fiordland National Park, largest national park in New Zealand.

When we made it to Milford sound, we hopped on a cruise that took us out in-between the mountains. It was definitely one of the most spectacular things I’ve seen. At one point we were directly under a waterfall. It’s so fascinating to think that that region was once a valley covered by a glacier. Sunday was our flight back into Christchurch and we basically just spent the afternoon relaxing from a wonderful free weekend. 

  

Cheers! -Julianna

July 13 to 15 - Banks Peninsula/Akaroa/Hinewa

Overview map of the Banks Peninsula with Hinewai Reserve circled.

Just 20 years ago, this area was farmland with only 4% old-growth native trees.  Today, Tui have been reintroduced into this 1,250 hectare reserve and native vegetation is thriving.

Looking down on into Akaroa Harbor from atop the Banks Peninsula.

Loaded down with tons of food from the Lincoln Uni lunch ladies, we headed out to the Banks Peninsula for our three day field trip to Hinewai Reserve.  Again, we were thankful for beautiful weather. Stops along the way on day one included Lake Ellesmere to see black swans; 

Little River to take in some local NZ artists and have morning tea; 

lunch at the  Onawe Flat atop lava rocks and exploration of the sea life there; 

and snooping around in a few of the shops in the French settlement of Akaroa. In the mid-afternoon, we headed over to Hinewai Reserve to get settled in - set up our bunks, learn about the pee and poo loos, start the wood stove to keep us warm, and prepare dinner.  That night, we had bed time stories from botanist and author, Hugh Wilson, and hunted snipe.

Wednesday was spent hiking the reserve. Everyone completed the 4.5 hour top to bottom trek past the old totara, and through upland beech forest, riparian habitat with tree ferns along creeks, and kanuka/podicarp forest to the beach where we had lunch, looked for paua shells and watched reintroduced tuis in awe.  Five of us braved the two hour trek back up the bank while the rest of us drove back to the lodge at Hinewai.

Thursday started cold, wet and windy with low clouds hugging the mountain and limiting visibility.  

The best laid plans to take the scenic drive around the crater rim of the extinct volcano which formed the banks peninsula were not a total loss as there was some clearing as the day wore on.  We did go down to Okains Bay to explore the Maori and Colonial Museum, then the beach where an old cheese making factory used to be until a tidal wave flooded the valley in 1863.  

We stopped again in Litter River for afternoon tea before ending the day with a beautiful sunset at Birdlings Flat where we looked through beautiful sea-polished rocks along the shore.

July 14, 2010

Hello all!


Today we were woken by the glorious smell of eggs and bacon being cooked by our professor Mark. It was our second day in Hinewai and we were preparing for an epic hike ahead of us. After eating up and saying a quick hello to our new friend Hugh, the caretaker of the land, we headed out. The sun was shining and there was not a cloud to be seen, once again the weather gods had favored us. At first we were surrounded on all sides by an exotic weed called Gorse, brought over by the English a long time ago, and has been a nuisance ever since. The Gorse plant, even though a beautiful flower, is cover in gnarly spines and impossible to move through. A quick fact about the Gorse plant is that it thrives on disturbance, so the harder you fight, the harder it fights back. Hugh's plan is to allow nature to take its corse and let the native vegetation grow over and shade out the Gorse. We then ventured into a fairly large Beech forest standing well above head. As we continued we encountered plenty of other native vegetation such as the Totara and Kahikatea tree which once thrived on the land until cut down for wood and farming. We could see the beach a ways in the distance and new we had a ways to go.


          Three and a half hours later we had finally made it to the farmers land below in search of the Tui, bird, and some relaxation the beach had to offer. We walked on to find that the beach was surrounded by cliffs on both sides with a breath taking view. After a quick lunch and walk on the beach we headed back towards camp to cook up dinner and discuss the days findings. I speak for all of us when I say that we slept like babies the rest of the night as we kept the wood burner flowing with warmth into the cabin. Overall a most excellent trip and a new appreciation to that part of the island.


-Tyler

Gorse in flower.

View from the West Track.

Beach at Long Bay.

The Before Picture