Second Summer
When you are old and in decline, time becomes very finite. I tend to think in terms of how many more summers I have left to wade a stream and hike a mountain. It’s a finite number that seems way too low. Lori and I have found we can get a second summer by heading south. The southern hemisphere has summer when it is winter in the northern. Lori and I went to Chilean Patagonia in January of 2022 and New Zealand in 2023.
In 1990, Lori and I went to the North Island for a week in Auckland and Rotorua enjoying it immensely. So this past January, we went to the South Island for 16 hours of day light and shirt sleeve weather to be outside and active. Our good friends Pete and Susan joined us for the full trip. Shelby and Jack joined us for a week after attending a wedding in Sydney.
We thoroughly enjoyed the South Island and will be back in 2025. If you are looking for fine dining, world class architecture, art museums or a sophisticated urban environment don’t go. Also there is no Serengeti or Yellowstone with outstanding land wildlife viewing. However, if you are looking for great outdoor activities in a stunning landscape don’t miss it. They also have a solid wine country and lots of sheep. Below is a slide show of some Queenstown based activities.
Hiking where some Lord of the Rings scenes were filmed 
Jack and Shelby on the trail 
E biking to wineries 
Chard Farm Winery, Gibbston Valley 
Akaroa Overlook 
Kayaking Akaroa to find the smallest dolphin in the world 
Small plane to Milford Sound with friends Pete and Susan on the left 
Milford Sound Jack Shelby 
Flying to landing strip at end of Milford Sound 
Hiking the Remarkables 
Sunset Lake Wakatipu, our Airbnb Queenstown
In addition to Queenstown we stayed in Frans Joseph, Hokitika, Nelson, Kai Kura and Christchurch for a total of three weeks before heading home. Epic, awesome, etc. Pictures are worth a thousand words.
Road to Frans Joseph One of many many waterfalls 
Helicopter Landing pad Franz Joseph Glacier 
Crampons and poles, Franz Joseph 
Kea, the only alpine parrot in the world 
Fissure, Franz Joseph 
8 wheeling the beach, sunset Hokitika 
Hokitika Beach 
Bullet River cliff jump, Pete and me 
White water rafting Bullet River 
Fly fishing the Motueka and Matura Rivers 
Brown trout, Pete, Motueka River near Nelson 
Abel Tasman National Park near Nelson 
Split Apple Rock, Abel Tasman 
Quick round, Kai Kura 
Orcas, whale watching Kai Kura 
Orc prey, fur seal 
Giant trees in Christchurch Park, Lori for scale 
Air New Zealand home, poor airline
Of note is that all these activities were, on time, professionally guided, well equipped and otherwise squared away. We always felt in the know when embarking. Lori and I are really looking forward to our next second summer down under.
R1T Tour 