Moving to New Zealand--Queen Charlotte Reserve Park

..Living the goal..

Getting Away From It All.....

For our last weekend trip with Jeannine's parents, we once more headed up Highway One towards the northern coastal town of Picton. Spending the night in Christchurch at the Dreamland Hostel (whose host was more like a nightmare.), we spent the next day eating mussles in Kaikoura, visiting wineries, and eating fresh lobster at the stands along the coast. The next morning, in Picton, we caught the boat ride to our destination and were treated to penguins, dolphins, and beautiful weather. So where exactly were we headed?
In 1993, a New Zealander named Ron was fed up with the pace of life in Christchurch. Moving to Picton, he quickly found that a sheep farm on 2,000 acres was available in the Queen Charlotte Sound. He purchased the land for $250,000.00 US and moved his entire family out to the jutting peninsula. Everyone in town thought he was a sucker for buying the land, but within four years, the value had already tripled. Today, his property is worth several million. Ron, however, decided that sheep farming wasn't his gig. He sold off the sheep, turned his home into an "eco" lodge of sorts, and has started to take advantage of the tourist industry in New Zealand. For $100 US, you get two fully catered dinners from seafood around the park and three days at the park. There's horse back riding, fishing, hiking, hunting, and plenty of R & R.
   Upon arriving, we were greeted by an entourage of barking sheep dogs and Ron, himself. One thing that always surprises me in New Zealand is the lack of rules. There just isn't that "lawsuit" mentality. Upon hearing that Jeannine had ridden horses before, Ron mentioned that the had all escaped the paddock the night before and were somewhere out on the peninsula. He gave Jeannine a bridle, told her which horse would be best to ride, and sent us out on our first hike to find them. After dropping our gear off at the comfortable home overlooking the Sound, we took off up the trail in search of the horses.
    After hiking through some beautiful beech forest and exploring some old abandoned gold mines (always a safe thing to do.) we stumbled onto the rogue horses. I was initially supposed to ride with Jeannine and help her lead the rest of the horses. Unfortunately, as is my track record with these creatures, it didn't quite work out that way. I went to brush the side of my horse and he attempted to bite me. I moved to calm him and he ran away. Excellent. Jeannine took her bridle, slipped it over the lead horse, and climbed on to ride bareback. I am a very lucky man for having married such a gifted woman. We all followed her home.
    That night we feasted on some wonderful fresh butterfish, abalone, and drank Manhattans till the aches of the days were a memory.
     The next morning, Dave and I woke early, went down to the dock and took out motor boat to fish along the cape. After catching roughly 10 cod, Dave and I threw in our last casts (as every good fishing story starts) and got ready to head home. My line went taut and I knew I had a small cod on the line. Pulling it up, the leader line suddenly went shooting out away from the boat. Something larger was now on the line. There was a splash on the surface and I tugged hard only to have the head of my catch come into the boat. The rest of the fish was gone. While I was exclaiming this catch to Dave, I dropped the line with the head back in the water, and watching in dumb fascination as a large shadow came up and took the line again. Dave shouted, "Barracuda!" and I pulled up at the rod. After a few minutes of fighting, Dave and I placed our feet over the edge of the boat and lugged the fish in. Its teeth were our main concern and we waited till it stopped flopping to place our legs back in. Ahhhh....Dinner was caught for another night.
      The rest of the day was spent picnicking out on the peninsula with lunches that Ron had supplied, horseback riding, and collecting mussels for a dinner appetizer. You know, just like home.
      So, that was Queen Charlotte. Highly recommended. If nothing else, you won't be in contact with the world for awhile. No TV, Internet, Telephone. We were on the tip of the South Island living simply while the rest of the world was focused on a war that had just started. We had no real idea until we got home. Highly recommended, but once more, I'll let the photos below speak for themselves.
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