Pearson Lake

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Less than 30 minutes after our hike we drove past Pearson Lake, a gorgeous valley that felt a lot like the crowsnest pass.

We pulled out our chairs and Kylie read the kids a chapter from The Giver.

It was a gorgeous but pretty low key spot with one water tap and a very clean outhouse.

I bucked convention by parking broadside to the wind to protect our campsite. Ty and Zeke slept in the tent which really helped the crowding.

Lots of space to explore.

Amazing first night on the road. Woke up to a dead battery though! Turns out you need to open the driver door and close it again to convince a new Mercedes sprinter van that you actually want to turn everything off. Who knew? Not me or Kylie… luckily a quick boost got us back on the road and we had a decent drive ahead to charge the battery again.

Christchurch and Castle rocks

After Hanmer springs we drove to Christchurch to pick up our home on wheels for the final 2 weeks of our time in NZ. I didn’t take a single picture of the holiday park in Christchurch but it was basically a parking lot with lots of toilets and showers.

With all our kids stepping on each others in the confines of the motorhome, Kylie and I were seriously reconsidering our life choices! When the kids caught me looking up our rental contract to see if we could return it they began reassuring me: “don’t worry dad, we’ll get in the groove” it became a bit of a mental health mantra.

So after some shopping at the mall (way busier than any Canadian mall and with a hopping mostly Asian food court) and stop at a local park we hit the road for Arthur’s pass.

The benefits of campervans became apparent right away when we drove past the castle rock area and stopped for a beautiful hike. Our house on wheels made it easy to pack for a day hike and adjust our night destination on the fly.

The boys found a bit of exposure and Mikaya got my adrenaline flowing by insisting on following them.

Think writing on stone but way bigger and harder. Readers may be familiar with this area as the setting for the final battle scene in The Lion the witch and the Wardrobe.

Some really fun lines.

And photo ops.

Hanmer Springs

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After a sometimes chilly and a bit tumultuous hike it was lovely to relax in the resort town of Hanmer Springs!

The above picture are all in a cold plunge if you can believe it considering the smiles. The kids were cold plunge stars and the other patrons definitely noticed. Almost everyone here seemed to be from NZ. Must be more of a local holiday spot than Queenstown or Franz Josef.

The resort was built around a hot springs but they have added an entire waterslides complex in recent years. There was hardly ever a line so we certainly got our exercise railing the tube rides. I don’t remember their actual names but readers will know their equivalent as the valley of fear and the toilet bowl. There were also two smaller slides that included trippy light shows and holograms.

Mikaya counts these pools as the highlight of the trip so far. All the kids had a blast. A family day pass including 2 large pizzas was only about $80 Canadian so we took the opportunity to go two days in a row.

I missed getting a picture of the delicious wood fired pizza. Best food we’ve had from a waterslide park!!

Doing hot/cold was great for me and the kids. I could go back and forth for hours. Ty and Zeke got into a bit of an unspoken competition over who could stay in the cold tub the longest. At one point Zeke was in there for about 15 minutes. It took him half an hour in the hot pools to stop shivering. Kylie mostly stayed in the mid temp lounging pools or the waterslides and we all played in the lazy river to cool down.

Cool as a very cold cucumber.

Some of the hot pools smelled like sulphur but it didn’t stick to our clothes like rotorua.

I didn’t get many pics bc the phone was tucked away most of the time, but the pool system was the most extensive and beautiful I’ve seen. Around every corner there was a different pool with its own waterfall feature or specific temp.

After the pools we relaxed at our little three bedroom cottage. One of the first places we have stayed that was part of a resort rather than a home. Small but very functional and a very quiet spot even though it was a 2 minute drive from downtown.

We also got in a walk at Hanmer’s version of the Community Forest. It was fun for Kylie to see a field trip going on and to see the way this forest played things out. The area was heavy on chainsaw carvings but very light on trail design. A decent chunk of the trail system had just been clearcut which proved it was a working forest but was a bit surprising for a tourist town.

Graham and I will have to work on our chainsaw carving skills!

Cannibal Gorge

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Our second hut hike was to Cannibal Gorge in Lewis Pass. The weather was a bit cooler with some rain early in the day, but we never got soaked.

On paper this hike seemed only modestly more difficult than Whariwarangi. A little longer and about twice the elevation gained and lost. However the numbers don’t factor in all the roots and rocks and clambering up and down creek beds. It was a lot more technical.

The kids really enjoyed the dynamic trail and the two big suspension bridges.

According to a trail sign, it’s called Cannibal Gorge because of a huge amount of human bones, thought to be the spot where victorious warring tribes ate their captives who were not suitable slaves. We ate mostly noodles. Woe to the vanquished.

Kylie did amazing on this hike with a broken toe sustained in Rarangi. Taped the toe, tightened the boot, paracetamol and ibuprofen and away we went. A gorgeous hut at the end of a big meadow was a welcome sight.

Our only two hut mates, Wayne an intensivist and Rupert an ICU nurse (both from NZ- we had a whole code team) had already started a fire. Of note, everyone we met on this hike who was staying in a hut was from NZ.

A group of ladies moved on to the next hut so our family had one half of the place (3 story bunks!) to ourselves.

The kids loved playing in the creek bed and ranging in the meadow. I had to work hard to keep them dry, reminding them we only had one change of clothes!

At least we could dry them a bit on the clothesline in the hut.

Tasty dinner and instant oatmeal breakfast was enjoyed by all. I thought we brought way too many snacks but we went through them all and came out with only a pack of oatmeal and some wraps, plus an emergency macaroni and cheese…

The weather was much more pleasant on the way out and the hike felt a lot easier with all the food gone and the weight redistributed.

A wonderful two days with a decent sleep in between and some fun memories.

Up next, Hanmer Springs! Bye Cannibal Gorge.