New Zealand: Going Back to the South Island

‘It’s a dangerous business, Frodo, going out your door. You step onto the road, and if you don’t keep your feet, there’s no knowing where you might be swept off to.’ – J.R.R Tolkien – Lord of the Rings.

How This Post Works

NB: This post was updated in May 2020. I originally wrote the first draft of this post in April 2015, ahead of a month long trip back to New Zealand’s South Island. As I work through my website, updating and editing old posts, I decided that this one was particularly dated. I’ve been lucky enough to succeed in most of the things on this list, so I’ve added in links out to the stories about those adventures and updated the copy a little to make the post more relevant.

A Month on the South Island!

I’m thrilled to announce that I am going back to the South Island in May and I can’t wait! My last trip on the South Island ended when I came to Wellington to find a job after pretty much burning out all my money. It felt wrong to be coming to the North Island at the time. As I watched the South Island reducing into the distance, I promised myself I’d go back as soon as possible.

Nowadays I love living in Wellington. I have a job and a great group of friends. However, there is still so much I want to do in the South Island. As such, when I started this job, I asked to have a month off so that I could go south again and have another adventure. Luckily, my manager is pretty laid back. He agreed to the time off and so here I am, heading back south for more!

I managed to fit a lot in last time I was on the South Island. I hiked on Franz Josef Glacier and to the bottom of Mt Cook. While in Abel Tasman I kayaked on tropical blue waters and in Kaikoura, I spent a morning whale watching. I’ve luged in Queenstown, drunk wine in the Marlborough region and seen the majesty of Milford Sound. But there is still so much I want to see and do. Last time I was there, I added more things to my ‘to do’ list than I crossed off!

So what’s different this time?

First up, I am not travelling by bus. I loved my time on the Stray bus back in November, but I want more flexibility this time round. I’ve hired a car and will be road-tripping! I will have the freedom to do whatever takes my fancy, whenever I like! That’s a whole other level of awesome!

Secondly, I’ll be visiting places that Stray didn’t take me last time I was on the South Island. I’ll be spending time Moeraki, Glenorchy, Arrowtown and the Banks Peninsula. These are places that the Stray bus simply doesn’t pass through, let alone stop at! This is my chance to explore the South Island in more depth, at my own pace and have some truly memorable experiences.

I have a key list of things I’d love to do on this trip. Without further ado, read on to find out exactly what I’d like to get up next time I’m down south!

Ride the TranzAlpine Express!

This world famous train journey travels from Christchurch to Greymouth over the majestic Southern Alps. It’s an incredibly scenic rail trip traversing the width of the South Island. I am planning to do this as a day trip from Christchurch and take in the view from both sides of the train! I plan to take this trip on my penultimate day on the South Island, as a last hurrah before I head back to Wellington.

Read: New Zealand: Taking the TranzAlpine Express.

Complete the Abel Tasman Great Walk.

I can’t spend all this time in New Zealand and not do a Great Walk. This is some of the best walking in the world, I’d be foolish to let that pass me by! As I loved the sea kayaking in sunny Abel Tasman so much last time I visited, I have decided that this is the ideal location for my Great Walk. G and I will be spending four days hiking the coastline and staying in DOC huts each night. I’m looking forward to getting off grid for a while and having an amazing hiking experience!

Read: A Great Walk: Hiking the Abel Tasman Track.

Explore more of the South Island on foot.

There was literally thousands of other, shorter walks around the South Island. As I was on a bus last time, there wasn’t a lot of opportunity to stop off and go for a hike. This time around, I’d like to spend more time out in the wilds, exploring further off the grid and discovering hidden gems. Hopefully, I’ll get some great photo opportunities too!

Read: Exploring Mt Aspiring National Park: Going It Alone.

Visit Doubtful Sound…

Since visiting Milford Sound, it has become a pipe dream of mine that I should see Doubtful Sound as well. It looks like it’ll be even more mighty, beautiful and breath taking than Milford Sound! Doubtful Sound is also much further off the beaten track and far fewer people go there, which appeals to me! It’ll be a quieter and more peaceful destination, especially in May, when I intend to visit!

Read: Turning Thirty in Doubtful Sound.

Carve a piece of greenstone.

Last time I was on the South Island, I found a piece of jade stone on a beach near Haast Pass. I’ve considered carving it, but I like it in its natural raw form. Instead, I’d love to have a go at carving another piece of greenstone to wear as a necklace! I would like a fern design. Here, in Maori culture, ferns represent new starts and fresh life. That’s exactly how I see coming to New Zealand for me, so it definitely fits!

Wonder at the Moeraki Boulders!

These spherical stones can be found on Koekohe Beach, on the South Island’s east coast. They look really interesting and will make for some great photograph opportunities! As such, I’ve scheduled in some time to go see these weird, wonderful stones and discover a bit more out about them. While I’m in the area, I’ll also check out the penguins that are known to be quite prevalent along this section of coastline. I’m so excited to see penguins in the wild!

And so much more…

This is just a small list of all the things I’d like to do when I’m on the South Island in May. I’ve got no doubt that I’ll end up doing lots more unplanned, unexpected things, making amazing memories along the way!

And, once this part of the trip is over, I fly onto Auckland to begin another Stray adventure down the North Island back to Wellington, which will no doubt be full of fun… But that’s another story!

As I sit here writing, I can’t help feeling that this trip will only end up leaving me wanting more. In New Zealand, it always feels that however hard you try to see and do everything, something else always crops up and makes you yearn to visit again. I think that’s part of the magic. There’s always another adventure just around the corner in this country, always another reason to come back…