Road trip.
The plan was to first head to Hanmer Springs, roughly 135 kilometers north of Christchurch. Known primarily for its natural hot springs, Hanmer also boasts some incredibly scenic hikes, which I'm discovering is true for much of New Zealand. Leaving two hours later than intended, the unruly gang got underway just before noon. Though whipping down the highway at a decent pace, I managed to snap a few shots of our surroundings.
Not too bad.
Finally arriving at Hanmer Springs, the gang set out on a trail that eventually led to a waterfall. Needless, to say we were all very excited. I mean... a waterfall?! Good times.
The trail started out relatively easy, but progressively grew more challenging as we continued to ascend into the mountains. Keeping a steady pace, we tried to make our breaks minimal. Not always so successful.
More random shots:
This next one may be my favorite picture that was taken all day.
Do Cameron and Jon help to convey the level of enjoyment we were all experiencing?
Just a bit?
After about 1.5 hours we arrived at the waterfall. About 50 feet high, it wasn't quite as intense as I had expected it to be. Or hoped anyways. I would say it was more like an amped up shower, but lacking one important aspect: the temperature control. I'm not opposed to bathing in colder water every now and then, but this was just brutal; a little bit more than the refreshing dip I had hoped for.
But this obviously did not deter us from entering the water. The general consensus was that we didn't hike all that way to not get soaked at least once. So each of us took our turn wading our way underneath the waterfall, only to be greeted by a rush of water that sucked the breath out of you. But, honestly...
It was glorious.
Stopping to take a final group photo, we decided to continue onwards towards the summit, as we were too close to do otherwise.
It is fairly safe to say that the hike had been leisurely up to this point. Great weather, good spirits, and the exhilaration of standing in the icy water made things easy to bear. But all of that changed once we approached the summit. Dramatically steeper and with no shade to shelter us from the scorching New Zealand sun, the last half-hour was more grueling than the previous three. However, it is important to note that on that day, the mountain experienced its most thorough domination ever. Because we owned it. We knew no fear. We saw, and we took.
And we were rewarded.
After standing and admiring the view for a good 45 minutes, we decided that it was time to head down. Due to our late start, we were now running the risk of ruining the plans for our ultimate destination, Kaikoura. In order to get there, we would have to get back into the car and drive for another two hours. And because we found ourselves standing on top of a mountain at 3pm instead of 1pm, we realized we had to move. And somewhat quickly.
The first of many fateful decisions to be made on the trip occurred shortly after this. Choosing a different path than the one we came from, the gang began moving down the mountain. Revived at the prospect of descending opposed to constantly ascending, our spirits once again rose. Jokes, Star Wars banter and sports talk filled the air as we flew down the mountain. It was not for quite some time until we realized that, yes, our elevation was certainly decreasing, but the path we were on was taking us far from our original entry point.
Which was no big deal or anything. Except...
That is where the car was parked. Obviously.
Upon this discovery, we did our best to try and keep an open mind.
The rest of the way down was slightly more subdued, but, really, only slightly. New Zealand isn't the worst place to be mildly lost.
Once we reached the base of the mountain and found a sign, our fears were confirmed.
We should have been at the Waterfall Track Junction. As the sign made painfully clear, we had moved away from that path. Whoops.
So what did this mean for us? What was the gang's next move?
About a two mile stroll down the road and back to town. This was far more upsetting at the time. Several of us even attempted to stick out a thumb and try to hitch, but alas, people were too wary of the herd of 20-somethings roaming the hills. Probably smart.
Retrieving the car and heading into the town of Hanmer Springs for some relaxation and dinner, planning had to be done. We knew that Kaikoura was the ultimate destination, but when we intended to arrive there was hardly settled. Eventually the group decided that to not explore Hanmer's natural springs would be foolish, especially after the marathon hike we had just went on. So it was settled: the gang would invade the natural springs, followed by a quick dinner before hopping back into the car for the next leg of the journey.
The springs... Ahh. Wow. Thank goodness the plan unfolded as it did.
Honestly, I don't know what I can say about the springs. They were extremely pleasant and relaxing, and certainly felt good on the body after the day's events. But there was an added bonus.
In the back of the complex was a large, green waterslide. This might not sound overly exciting; in fact, many people may have no interest in a huge waterslide when faced with the option of just sitting and relaxing in a natural hot spring.
But those people are fools.
God was in this slide. Pushing aside small children to get in the front of the line, we managed to fly down the thing at least four times within the half hour, each time emerging from the water laughing harder than before. It is safe to say that the Green Slide will be remembered for a long, long time. I'm not sure exactly what it was that made it so legendary, but to describe our experience on the Green Slide as anything short of epic would be a fallacy.
After a hurried meal (my first fish and chips experience), the car was reloaded and back on the road. Arriving at a free campsite after dark, we quickly pitched the tents and then headed to the beach, as we were located directly on the water.
That last point is an important one to keep in mind.
As we drank some wine and watched the tide roll in, we reflected on the day and marveled at the sight of the ocean before us. It was truly a wonderful ending to an even more wonderful day. But elsewhere in the world, not everything was quite as idyllic.
As we sat on the rocks and gazed into the sea, a massive earthquake was about to rip through South America, devastating Chile in one of the largest quakes ever recorded. Though thousands and thousands of miles from there, we were about to be confronted with the harsh realities of a natural disaster of such a magnitude.
Yet we knew nothing of this as we closed our eyes for the night. And the combination of that fact with the eventful day we had just completed allowed the gang to quickly drift off to sleep.
But reality would hit us shortly after the sun rose the next day.
Tomorrow: The conclusion of the greatest weekend ever experienced.
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