Queen Charlotte Track

Day 1:

Took a 9AM boat from Picton to Ship Cove (1 hr). Along the way they told us that a 66 year old Dutch guy got lost the day before and we should look out for him (I remember thinking I hope this isn't a bad omen). On the way I chatted with a guy from my backpacker also doing the track. He boasted about how quickly he did the Tongariro Crossing. When we got off the boat, I headed up the Track. He caught up to me and was walking with me. It was up, up, up. My asthma was bothering me. I was coughing and then I noticed he was smoking a cigarette. That didn't help. I was so glad when he said good bye and took off at a faster pace. The beginning of the Track was quite steep but the first day was short. I finished walking around 2pm. My bags were transferred to my backpacker for me so I only carried a day pack. However, they weren't there when I arrived so I walked up to a nearby waterfall. I missed a sign and almost went off the trail myself. I backed up when the trail seemed poor and realised that I missed a turn. The waterfall didn't have alot of water but it was quite pretty. It kind of shimmered.

When I got back to the backpacker, my bag had arrived. Soon I had two new roomates as well but they weren't particularly friendly. I did end up talking for awhile to a German girl who was only going to do the next section of the Track.

Day 2
I walked to Portage. It was an easy walk along the coast. It only took me around 3 hours so I beat my bag again. I stayed at a GREAT place called the Mahana Lodge. The owners were so nice and the place was so clean. The owner switched me into a twin room when he realised I was the only girl in a room of guys. Throughout the day more people showed up including the German girl from Day 1. A few brave souls went for a swim. I generally just chatted and read through the afternoon. We all had dinner and drinks together. The Mahana Lodge offers home cooked meals. I had a chick pea meal. There was also a meat option. It was a really good meal with really great company. After dinner the Lodge owner told us all about glow worms and showed up the glow worm grotto at the Lodge. He said the big difference between his and the ones in the caves was the price. (His were free).

Day 3
This was the longest and hardest day but the views were incredible. It was overcast and there was a bit of rain along the way but nothing too big. I did an extra hike up to a lookout that was a killer but well worth it. I ended up in a place called Portage. I had dinner with two of the people that I ate with the night before. We pieced together a meal from what we were carrying in our backpacks - soup mix (lentils, peas, barley, pasta, seasoning) , a carrot, green thai chili sauce - and what we could buy in the "shop" - a sweet potato, a can of tomatos, and brown rice. It turned out surprisingly well. We chased it down with a couple of beers.

Day 4
Another long and steep day but again the views were incredible. Again I did an extra hike up to the top of a hill and was rewarded with fantatic views. The only down side of the day was being bit by sandflies at the end of the Track. A very nice kiosk worker shared some insect repellent with me. I saw one unluckly lady who tripped and fell off the track. She came back with her arm in a cast.

I never found out what happened to the missing Dutch tourist despite asking around for the first few days. I am off to Abel Tasman now and do not expect to have Internet access while there (probably four days).

I have LOTS of pictures. I will upload them when I have wireless access. I am only in Nelson for 10 hours so I don't have time to track some down now. Hopefully I will find some when I leave here.