We left Te Anau just gone 10 this morning and set off for Queenstown. It’s described as the extreme sports capital of the world and home of the infamous Nevis Highwire Bungy. As its ski season we are expecting accommodation to be pricey and difficult to find and it turns out to be just that. We try loads of places, some of which look crap and are expensive. Eventually we decide on Oaks Shores Apartment complex, overlooking Lake Wakatipu and the mountains it’s absolutely fantastic. A massive, luxury loft style apartment with loads of mod cons including under floor heating, flat screen telly and 2 ensuite bathrooms- How the other half live.

It’s definitely the most luxurious place we have stayed in on this trip and for 80 pounds a night, a lot but worth it for the spectacular views through the 3 huge windows that make up one wall. We spend the evening in, none of want to go anywhere when it’s so cool here and the kids make us some Mexican food. Even loading the dishwasher seems like a bit of a novelty! How sad are we?!

Off to bed now, not been feeling too well for a few days and want to get a decent night sleep before going jet boating tomorrow.

We sleep in late today which is good, something we all needed after getting up early for days recently. The kids sit and do some schoolwork for an hour, Maisie does a maths sats paper and Ali concentrates on some of the science areas where he’s still lacking a bit.

At 2pm a fella called Peter comes and collects us in a raised up 4WD all terrain thing. It reminds me of the Hagglund we went on in Christchurch and we bounce off up the road. Peter gives up some good explanations of the history of the area along the way. Queenstown was all but deserted until 1862 when two shearers discovered gold on the banks on the Shotover River and an absolute deluge of prospectors flooded the area. One year later and Queenstown was a mining town with a population of thousands.

We take the breathtakingly scary 4WD only road past Coronet Peak (The ski field) and on towards the Upper Shotover River. One benefit of coming here in such icy conditions is that no one else is mad enough to want to go jet boating in minus 13 degrees (Peter informs us!) and we have the tour and jet boat to ourselves. The road is very narrow, covered in frozen snow and ice and hugs the mountainside and it’s an exhilarating, if nerve wracking experience driving along it. (Almost an extreme sport in itself).

At last we reach the Upper Shotover River and Peter introduces us to Adrian the jet boat fella. I think he thinks we’re a bit mad too and after kitting us out in waterproofs and lifebelts we set off up the river. It’s amazing, we skim along the water, which is full of huge ice blocks and it’s so cold it literally takes our breath away. Luckily the handrail was heated but our faces are so icy I wonder in all seriousness whether we will get frostbite. We pass the spot where Liv Tyler crosses the river on horseback during the chase in Lord of the Rings and Adrian also points out lots of old mining equipment that is slowly being claimed by the river. Apparently Skippers Canyon produced more gold in the mining years than any other gold field in the world.

When we get back we discover that the “Hagglund” has a puncture- shit! I wouldn’t like to get stranded here, there is nothing around and the only way out is back along the treacherous road we’ve just driven. The fellas change it though and soon we are on our way. Peter takes us to the site of the 102 metre Pipeline Bungy. It’s not operating at the moment but we walk out to the platform anyway. Despite my fear of heights I go ok but I don’t think I could jump off there if my arse was on fire. We get back in the truck and continue home. Peter gives us loads of interesting information on the way, telling us about the devastation caused by rabbits and possums to the farming population as well as discussing the impact of tourism on the local community. It’s obvious he adores the land and is very proud to live here and it’s good to hear.

Back at the apartment, we leave the kids and go shopping for dinner. We want to make some decisions about our plans for the next few days. Ali is considering whether to jump the Nevis Highwire Bungy, 134 metres high (Crazy) and we tell him he needs to make up his mind as it takes around 4 hours to get there, do the jump and get back. Settling in for the night with a few beers, we’ve bought Pale Ale by mistake – it’s not lovely Corona but will have to do.

We spent the morning buying skiing gear, most of the stuff can be hired but we have to buy gloves, goggles and hats and spend ages trying to get decent stuff for not too much.
In the afternoon we decide we will ride the gondola to the top of the mountains, it’s an extreme sport lovers playground up here with luge, ledge swing, bungy and paragliding all available. Ali has decided not to bungy jump and I’m secretly glad although I didn’t say that to him and told him it would be more fun in a few years when he’s travelling with his mates.( Probably true)

We have a go on the luge, the kids and Simon ride 3 times and I go once before escaping to the bar with a glass of red wine. I feel quite pleased that I managed to ride the skyride and gondola without breaking into a sweat or crying, but it wasn’t as high as the one we went on in Singapore.

Back at the apartment we have a quiet evening I make dinner- beef marinated in Pale Ale and we crash out around 11pm after a few phonecalls home on Skype.

We managed to get an extended check out this morning and 3 days of internet use for the price of one, on the basis that it had been a bit hit and miss! Good one Simon. He has been researching the local ski fields avidly for the past few days and we have decided the one that will suit us best is Cardrona which is about an hour from Queenstown and half an hour from Wanaka where we plan to stay.

None of us have skied before and we did think about snow boarding instead as Ali thinks its cooler. After talking to some guy in a shop who told us “skiing is the new snow boarding” we decide initially to try skiing and then change to boarding if we want once we’re on the slopes. We leave Queenstown; a bit sadly as it’s a great place and we’ve really had a good time here and drive over the mountains towards Cardrona. All the reports suggest it will snow on Saturday night which will be good timing for us.

We arrive at Wanaka and check into the Alpine Motel, it has everything the lovely apartment in Queenstown had but not nearly as nice and a bit bleak looking. Still we will be spending all day at the ski resort so it’s not a problem. We are going to arrange a 3 day learner package which includes lift pass, ski and boot hire and 4 lessons. It will cost us in total a bit over 400 hundred quid which doesn’t sound too pricy but we still have to hire ski pants and jackets. In the end we also buy thermal glove linings, socks and lip balm and I give up adding up the cost as it’s too scary!

Well I always wanted to try skiing but have to be the least prepared person ever, have just been looking up skiing tips on the internet and deciding its all over exaggeration I reckon blissful ignorance is the best policy. I probably should be a little more concerned as everyone I know always seems to go into some kind of boot-camp training for at least 6 weeks before their ski trip but on the other hand we’re only going for 3 days, I’ve learnt a bit of ski lingo and how hard can it be?

Well by the time we have got all our gear on one thing I know is I won’t be cold. I might be crap but I’ll look warm doing it. We set off about 8.30 and pick up a Japanese fella along the way; there are loads of skint travellers here all hitching a lift to the ski field and we’re hoping to get a few tips. As he hardly spoke any English it didn’t work out that way but he was friendly and grateful for the lift.

We arrive and make our way to the reception area where we pay for our passes, hire of ski’s and boots and lessons. Ali decides he wants to snowboard instead so we sort that out and head to the hire area. The ski boots are so tight I don’t think they will go on but I know they are meant to be really tight and don’t argue when the girl tells me they’re fine. We collect our ski and poles and gingerly pick our way to ski school. Maisie goes off with an instructor called Paul and a 12 year boy Kieran for 1 -2 lessons and Ali gets one on one boarding instruction as he’s the only kid boarding for the first time.

Our instructor is called Bridget and we join a group of 5 first time skiers. We learn how to put the skis on, take them off, tramp sideways and do the wedge. Our lesson is for 2 hours and after an hour we are gliding around on the flat and ready to go up the beginners slope. This is where everything starts to go wrong for me, despite being told not to sit on the pommer lift I must have put some weight on it and ended up falling off and being dragged up the slope. I felt like a right twat and it was all going so well.

I manage to make it up there and we slowly ski to the bottom using the wedge to slow us down. It’s easy, a matter of balance and once we get the hang of turning we seem to do quite well, we go up again and again and by the end of our lesson we feel quite confident. Simon seems to be doing well too, he did fall over more than me but I think this was luck on my part more than any natural ability.

We meet up with the kids at lunchtime; Ali loves it despite spending most of his time on his bum. Snow boarding does look hard and I think skiing is perhaps easier. Maisie looks great, whizzing down the slope like she’s been skiing for years- very brave, I’m impressed! We’ve been surrounded by amazing little kids all morning, racing down and completely putting the adult learners to shame.

At 2pm we have another lesson and it starts to get a bit harder as we get tired. We learn to jump on the skis and ski backwards. (Neither of which I want to do at all!) I fall over for the first time which doesn’t hurt and find getting back up again is really hard. After struggling for a few minutes the instructor has to help me up but as I don’t think I’m any better or worse than anyone else in the group I’m not too worried. He says we can go on the chairlift and up onto one of the slopes but I bottle it mainly because of the height thing on the chairlift. With your legs dangling down it looks horrible and I have watched it stop a few times leaving the skiers suspended in midair. I don’t know how I’m going to deal with this and listening to a lovely girl called Kelly from Liverpool who is also shitting herself about going on the chairlift doesn’t really help!

Its 8.30pm now and I’m in bed having had a steak for dinner, 2 glasses of mulled wine and a paracetamol to ease the pain. Although I only fell over twice today I’ve got a few bruises from falling off the lift and I’m feeling knackered. Although it’s easier than I expected, it’s more tiring, guess that bootcamp gym training is the answer after all!
The kids and Simon have also had a good day. Maisie got really tired and when she failed to stop at the end of the slope kind of fell off the end, (A few tears there) Ali is now boarding down the beginners slope looking cool and loving it.

I’m going to sleep now – need to conserve my energy. They say the second day is the hardest – bring it on dude.

Due to our early night I actually felt ok this morning and managed to get up with no more than my usual slowness. We have our breakfast, I make everyone eat porridge for energy and after a quick shower chuck my ski stuff back on. We get in the car and pick up an English girl hitching on the way. She is from Devon and a snowboard instructor and gives Ali a few tips on the way. As we get closer to the mountain the visibility is really poor and the temperature drops to minus 9.5. I think we’ll definitely need our layers today.

We collect our boots and skis and Maisie mounts a mutiny at this point. Despite having some paracetamol her legs are really aching and she starts crying when we try to get her boots on. Ali dashes off excitedly and we stand there wondering what to do. When I hear another mother shouting at her daughter in a temper because her kid is having a paddy as well I make up my mind to be a little more understanding and not point out to our little darling that it has cost us a load of money and I could kill her for not wanting to go to ski school today. We take her over to the instructors and explain that she is finding it hard, luckily they are so friendly and she manages to dry her tears and sniffles off with “Cat” looking miserable.

It is upsetting and by this point Simon and have missed the 1030 lesson. We decide to practice on the beginners slope and after a few runs I’m also feeling a bit disheartened. The weather is really bad, more than freezing cold, with gusty winds blowing snow everywhere and thick thick fog. The slope is really icy and feels completely different to yesterday and I lose my confidence quickly.

We have a coffee and I decide I’m not going onto the mountain today and will stay with the beginners and repeat yesterdays lesson to get a bit braver. This turns out to be the right thing to do and after another two hours I’m feeling a lot better. Simon goes upto the mountain on the chairlift and Maisie is looking happy now with a few other kids. At the end of the afternoon we all meet up and swap stories. Ali is doing great and has managed to get four hourly lessons on a one to one basis today. This is excellent and should have cost us 400 dollars but as Maisie didn’t hand in one of her lesson tickets yesterday he used that and got 2 hours free.Hurray!

I hope the weather is better tomorrow as the visibility was only about 2 metres and the conditions were hard. I feel pleased that we have managed to do what we have and although I was a chicken this morning I don’t care and I’m glad I’m feeling more confident again now. It isn’t really that hard and I think confidence is a major part so I need to work on that. Don’t feel tired today and I think my boots are better with only one pair of socks. One amazing thing today was that mine and Maisie’s hair froze as did Ali’s eyelashes. Wow! It looked awesome. I told Ali he looked beautiful!! All in all a good day and I’m looking forward to tomorrow.

Its 8pm now and me and the kids are watching A Bugs Life, Simon has gone to the pub to watch the rugby but we didn’t want to brave the cold!

Today we were hoping it would have snowed overnight but no such luck. On the way we pick up a girl called Jackie, another snowboard instructor, from Lake Tahoe in California. She chats away and gives Ali a few tips on the way- perfect. It’s cold again today but once we arrive on the mountain I’m pleased to see it’s a bit clearer and the sun is struggling to break through.

We sort Maisie out and Ali dashes off. I tell the instructor Steve that I want to go on the mountain but am shitting myself about the chairlift and he says he’ll come on with me and I’ll be ok. In the end it was, I was too concerned about the bitterly cold wind whistling around my throat and getting off the lift at the top to worry too much about the height and in the end managed to ski off the lift without falling over.

We start to make our way down the mountain, I keep doing my big turns and don’t go too fast until I hit some icy patches, it all goes a bit tits up at this point and I fall in spectacular fashion all arms and legs everywhere. Steve looks a bit concerned as I’m all screwed up like a broken doll but I’m ok, not hurt and it’s just a matter of unfolding myself and getting up which I manage to do unaided. At last we’re at the bottom and I really thrilled, I feel like I’ve achieved something good and although I never went that fast I’m ready to go again.

We ski down MacDougalls, Skyline and Western Gap again twice and in the afternoon I go down with Simon. He’s doing really well, more confident than me and has done some jumps and stuff. I’m not so confident with him and fall over again but not too hard and get up ok. I meet up with Maisie and we sit swapping fall stories and drinking green tea for a few hours. (Hoping those anti oxidants will limit the damage the sun and wind has done to my face over the past few days!) Ali comes back around 4 having thoroughly enjoyed his afternoon. He got really lucky again and had 2 more private lessons leaving him feeling really confident on his snowboard and doing jumps and turns.

It’s been a fantastic experience and we’ve all loved it, I found it much less tiring and a lot easier than I expected and I’m relieved we all escaped relatively unscathed with nothing more than a few bruises. I feel sorry that we can’t have any longer as I think we would all improve with more time. Definitely going to try snowboarding though next time. Still we’re moving on tomorrow and I’m looking forward to walking on the glacier. Tracey emailed and said she has just walked on it for 6 hours! Somehow I don’t think I need 6 hours to experience it. An hour will do.

Today we have travelled from Wanaka to Fox Glacier. The journey takes around 4 hours and the weather is shocking. It’s raining very heavily, the fog and mist is rolling in across the mountains and it’s still freezing cold. Simon and Ali took ages scraping the car before we left whilst Maisie and I sat shivering inside. We drive slowly as the roads are quite narrow and we have to go through a mountain pass to get there.

Once we get closer to the West Coast the landscape changes massively, from mountainous, sparse brown land to lush, tropical looking vegetation, almost like the jungle in Malaysia. We drive all along the coast and pass red sandy beaches, loads of boulder fields and creeks with nice names like Dismal Creek and Grave Creek. Seems quite appropriate for today.

We’re all feeling a bit achy today from our skiing or boarding and I’ve now got some pain in my left knee that’s causing me to limp a bit. Good job we’re not going walking on the glacier until tomorrow. We arrive at the backpackers we’ve booked and decide we will try a motel instead. For 120 dollars we get a lovely lodge style place with loads of space and two rooms.

Spent the afternoon watching the Discovery channel, after the past three days it’s good to crash out in front of the telly with cheese and biscuits and a few beers. This is the life.

We don’t wake up this morning until 10 o’clock, how lazy is that? There’s no sign of Simon and he’s taken the car so I think he’s probably been up for ages. We bought some bacon yesterday-yum and had bacon, egg and mushroom muffins for breakfast to keep us going on our glacier walk this afternoon.

We spend the rest of the morning doing schoolwork. Maisie does some literacy, I read her a passage about glaciers and we then correct her spellings and look at sentence structure. Simon and Ali do some maths, I have no idea what type.

At 1.30 we change into warm clothes and get in the car. We’ve arranged a 4 hour glacier trip which will entail about 3 hours walking. As the weather is loads better today, no rain and quite warm I’m looking forward to get out and about. Getting out of the car, disaster strikes and I seem to twist my already painful knee a bit more. What a nightmare, straight away I know I won’t be able to go walking on the glacier and I’m so disappointed I could cry. I have been looking forward to doing this so much and due to time constraints we can’t postpone it for a few days. In the end we decide Simon will go with the kids and I go back to the motel.

Its 3pm now- feeling really pissed off and bored, I’ll get Simon to write about their experience on the ice later.

(My effort – Simon)

Having packed Charlotte off back to the motel with the car, we head into the boot room to get kitted out for our glacier walk. Once we’re ready we head off on an old Bedford coach for a 10 minute ride to as near as we can get to glacier terminal face. During the journey our guide, Sam, informs us of the detail of the walk we have ahead of us. This includes hour walk to near the face, then 1 hour up a narrow cliff edge hugging path with 500 steps, we then have an hour on the glacier and finally about an hour back down to bus. At this point Maisie is a little apprehensive as to how she will cope with this amount of exertion.

We arrive and our little group of 10 plus guide begin our trek towards the glacier. It’s fairly easy going at first and the kids are impressed with their first sighting of the Fox glacier. We stop for photos and Sam gives us some history about the glacier and points out where recent icefalls have closed the cave where the terminal river flowed through.

Next we head up around the almost vertical side of the Fox valley to get to the area where we can get onto the glacier. The going now was getting seriously tough and a little scary! Scary, especially when Sam stopped us and informed us that the next 50m is a major rockfall risk area (A major rockfall closed the track for repairs just last week!) and if he yells ‘Rock’ we have to leg-it along the track. Ali gets particularly excited by this and feels he’s in a real adventure now.

When we finally reach the glacier we stop to put on our crampons (spikes for the soles of your boots) and pick up our alpenstocks (Spiked walking sticks), we also get wrapped up with hats and gloves as its pretty chilly with all that ice around. Up close the glacier is seriously impressive and quite eerie looking. It a very strange landscape with all the peaks, crevasse’s and the strange blue glow from the ice. The kids absolutely love the ‘giant ice cube’ and can’t stop licking the glacier much to the amusement of the rest of our group.

Sam takes us to a small ice tunnel, after checking it out for safety he invites anyone to have a crawl through. Ali and I are up for it, I squeeze/wriggle/shuffle in first. It’s a pretty tight fit and I’m glad to emerge safely from the other end, Ali also makes it through with a big grin. We have great fun exploring around the glacier but no time at all, it seems, its time for start our journey back. Ali and Maisie have found this a great trip and we all wish Charlotte could have seen it too. However in hindsight there’s no way she could have coped with her injured knee.

We leave the ice and head off back down track. Maisie troops off in the middle of the group and I don’t catch up with her again until we’re nearly at the bottom. She tells me that she is definitely getting better at this ‘Walking stuff!’ That said we are all happy to get back on our bus for the short ride back Fox Glacier township. When we get back, Charlotte is waiting with the car and we head down to the motel with a much appreciated hot dinner ready and waiting for us.

Today has been such a long day. Seven hours of almost solid driving from the South West coast to the North East. The weather was so bad, really heavy rain and mist and our views of lakes, mountains and rivers were only occasionally broken up by sheep. We arrived at Kaikoura around 6pm and having found a motel room book a trip to go whale watching tomorrow. Fairly expensive at $380 but it sounds cool and we’re all quite excited about going.

We go up the pub for dinner and have roast pork. Not as good as home but not bad. Back at the motel I go to bed leaving Simon writing yesterday’s blog about glacier walking. Early start tomorrow.