Caboose

We had quite a few stops for photo opportunities on the way from Franz Josef to Queenstown, although Lake Matheson (famous for reflecting the mountains) wasn’t cooperating — a slight breeze was ruffling the water.

One of the stops was the Kawarau bridge, famous as the location of the first commercial bungy jumping operation. We got shown a video about the history of bungy, although it seemed to be more about what an amazing man A.J. Hacket is. After that most of us went out to the viewing platform while two people from the bus did their jumps.

Not long after that, we arrived in Queenstown and I was dropped off at my hostel, the slightly grotty Pinewood Lodge. The unit I was in was a mess, obviously some untidy occupants hadn’t done any tidying up for a while and neither had the staff. As it turned out I was sharing a room with the untidy ones, two young Swedes. In the evening a bunch of us met up for an evening on 2-for-1 beer at a local bar…

The next day I got up pretty late, but even after a slow breakfast and some laundry my Swedish roommates were still not up. They had managed to pile up some more dishes in the sink though. My main activity of the day was picking up a leaflet from the DOC about walks in the Queenstown area.

On Tuesday I got up early, planning to go walking although the weather wasn’t looking great. The Swedes had gone, leaving piles of rubbish in the room and lots of dishes in the sink.

My original plan had been to follow the One Mile Creek track up from Queenstown and then the Fernhill loop back down, although that makes for a fairly short walk. Once the rain slackened a bit I started out, leaving the decision on my destination to later. The track follows an old water pipeline that used to connect Queenstown’s first power station from a dam up above. Bits of the pipeline are still present although it hasn’t been used for years. Occasionally I could see Queenstown through the trees and cloud as I approached the top station of the gondola.

The rain got worse again, so I sheltered in the top station then decided to head up the Ben Lomond track until I got fed up. The DOC leaflet warned that it takes 6-8 hours and requires a “high level of fitness”. Despite that I managed to get all the way to the summit in less than six hours. I met a crowd of young Americans who’d been studying in Australia and were taking a holiday on their way home. We enjoyed the fine views at the summit together before I scuttled back down in the lashing rain.

I spent the rest of the day reading, relaxing and washing my wet and dirty clothes.