After a month in Queenstown it was time to set out on our road trip. We spent a month driving across New Zealand, and while we didn’t have time to blog, I tweeted as we went. Here’s our month in tweets as we road trip NZ.
Day 1 of the Great Kiwi Road Trip – Queenstown to Franz Josef Glacier in 6 hours. A stop at the blue pools, and lunch by the ocean… now catching up on work from the comfort of our tent…. yes tent! Gonna be an interesting month.
Day 2 of the Great Kiwi Road Trip – Half day of work (it’s Saturday here) followed by a hike to the Glacier, and a quick trip to the beach. Now enjoying a glass of wine in my plastic cup. Oh the joys of camping!
Day 3 of the Great Kiwi Road Trip – Lovely Sunday drive. Stopped at Hokitia Gorge, which has the bluest water I’ve ever seen, and then the Pancake rocks. Tonight’s campsite is a block from the ocean, and I can hear the waves.
Day 4 of the Great Kiwi Road Trip – Morning visit to a Seal Colony, followed by another day of driving. We have arrived in the North-West corner of the South Island, and are staying put for a couple of days to get some work done and explore Able Tasman.
Day 5 of the Great Kiwi Road Trip – Started off rainy, cold & grey, but the sun made a surprise appearance for our afternoon kayak in the Abel Tasman, and I ended up with a “sweet as” sunglass tan! Topped off the day with a Valentine’s pint of craft beer at Sprig & Fern Brewery.
Day 6 of the Great Kiwi Road Trip – Nomadic Freelancing from our portable office.
Day 7 of the Great Kiwi Road Trip – End of the first full week. Been good, and gone by fast, but I have to say this living in a tent thing is getting old, quick… and we still have 3 weeks to go!
Day 8 of the Great Kiwi Road Trip – Fresh Crayfish by the side of the road from a little shack of a restaurant… complete with a view of the ocean.
Day 9 – Spent the day lazing around the campground, chasing ducks out of the tent.
Day 10 – Spent the morning searching for Dusky Dolphins in the worst weather we’ve had since we got to NZ. Pouring rain, choppy seas, and a boat load of puking passengers. Managed to find a small pod and got in a quick swim, but the low visibility and the speedy dolphins made for difficult spotting…. not to mention the chilly 16°C water. Spent the rest of the day trying to warm up!
Day 11 – Goodbye South Island… Hello North Island! Hanging in Wellington with the Hanson-Waind Clan!
Day 12 – Spent the day wandering around Wellington. Checked out Te Papa Museum… saw the Sea Shepard pull into port… drank some craft beer… and had a lovely dinner with Chris & Jen.
Day 13 – Onward and upwards… left Wellington bright and early bound for Napier, on the east coast. Quick stop for a road-side conference call, followed by an evening of work, as the rain poured down.
Day 14 – Abandoned the tent and upgraded to a cabin for the second night in a row. Pouring rain + gusting winds, make camping less than enjoyable. I ♥ NZ Summer!
Day 15 – We’ve hit the halfway mark! 15 more days of road-trippin’ then off to Fiji!
Day 16 – After spending the day in front of the computer, nothing gets you out of a work funk quite like throwing yourself down a hill in a large inflatable ball filled with water… Zorbing for the win!
Day 17 – Climbed… crawled… clambered… slid… squirmed… swam… floated… and tubed through an underground cave.
Day 18 – Drove the Pacific Coast Highway up the Coromandel Peninsula, beach hopping and back-roading along the way.
Day 19 – Got our first look at Auckland. Did a quick fly by as we head north en route to the Bay of Islands & 90 Mile Beach.
Day 20 – Woken up by loud Danish cartoons from the camper next to us, followed by a day filled with children laughing, screaming and crying on the trampoline. Note to self: next time request campsite far from playground area!
Day 21 – I’m so over camping in the rain! Can’t wait to be laying on a beach in Fiji, getting wet from a swim in the ocean… not a leaky tent!
Day 22 – Hooray! So far no rain today… however forecast is calling for gale-force winds to blanket the North Island. Hunkering down for what could be a very long night. Hoping our tent doesn’t blow away!
Day 23 – Lucked out and got missed by the bulk of the storm. Still a very blustery night and an even more blustery day today. Made it to 90 mile beach, and are upgrading to a cabin for tonight!
Day 24 – The sun came out to play and so did we. Drove up 90 mile beach, went sand boarding at Te Paki Dunes, and walked to the far north edge of New Zealand.
Day 25 – Last big day of driving… And last night in the tent. Went from 90 mile beach to Orewa Beach just north of Auckland. Tomorrow just a short hop to the city then time to start prepping to sell the car.
Day 26 – What a hellish day! Awoke to the wind literally destroying our tent… snapping poles, bending pegs, it was as if it knew we no longer needed it. Eventually managed to get everything packed. Chucked the tent, and drove to Auckland where we spent the rest of the day trudging around putting up flyers to try and sell the car. After a long hot non-campground shower I almost feel normal again. Time for a beer!
Day 27 – Gave Sheila a wash so she’s all clean & shiny & ready to sell, then started the quad-annual purge of excess baggage. Auckland is rainy & grey, and the countdown to Fiji is on!
Day 29 – Sheila is sold! $700 in our pocket… Fiji here we come.
Check out our route map, and see more details on our New Zealand Road Trip.
Posted by: Kelly
Wow you really did all there is to do in New Zealand. I also loved zorbing.
After feeling like we missed out on a lot in Australia, we were determined not to let the same thing happen in New Zealand. Buying a car really let us see the country!