West Coast

Sun Rain Sun Rain More rain and beautiful mountians. NZ has everything Colorado has except more water. The trees are tall, but the mountains are impassable, unless you are a kiwi in which case they don't believe in switchbacks and point to the top of the mountain and don't ever divert from that path. I am now sitting in a grocery store in Te Anau (pop about 1000 which is huge for the west coast) writing this and will probably do an overnight kayak tour to doubtful sound tomorrow. Been hiking about 1500 meters of vertical every day and about 15 kilometers. Figure it out in American units...Mur'ka. Oh and I have a guitar on my back to help the situation. Rambling is rambling however and it is rainy today. The Fjords are abruptly rising out of the lake next to me with such stark contrast that it is a miracle the trees are able to take root at all. There is either flat or cliff in NZ. Flat glacier carved valley turned swamp, or cliff with eroding vegetation and old swinging 1 person bridges erected years ago. Fox and Franz Josef glaciers, Hokitika beaches, and now Te Anau Fjords. All I can say negative is STAY AWAY FROM QUEENSLAND! Unless you enjoy hanging out with 18 year old Americans who want to party harty, and even then they don't even party with style. The exuberent display of annoying that is everything an 18 year old American who is paying 600 dollars for skydiving one day then going on a 1000 dollar cruise the next, then renting a mountain bike for a week? I want their job...Aside from Queensland, NZ is everything. Cheers! Leaving in a Week for Australia which I hear is one big Queensland with more Germans...