Banks Track - Stoney Bay to Otanerito

Early Wednesday morning, we awoke to a rooster call and rose to get ready for the 6k walk to Otanerito. We hiked up the cliffs along the coast again and somehow missed the blowholes, but got some great pictures of the sea arch from high above! This was the least difficult of section of hiking thus far, a good warm-up for the afternoon ahead.

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Our lunch stop on day 2 was at Otanerito, the cutest cottage of them all (including a fridge stocked with bottled beer)! Chris cooked up some gluten-free pasta with tuna and tomatoes - interesting to meet another gluten intolerant hiking enthusiast so far from home! After a short lunch break, we got back on the trail for the final 10k leg back down to Akaroa.

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We started with a steep and never-ending climb through the bush – it felt just like you were deep in the Amazon jungle, minus the monkeys, frogs and bugs! I happened to be in the lead when we turned a corner and ran upon a poisoned possum in the road. Apparently they are the biggest pests in New Zealand, introduced by settlers long ago, but now outnumbering sheep and even people and known for destroying the vegetation. Possum traps are everywhere in the bush, but it is sad to see them killed because they’re still much cuter than the ugly possums we have at home!

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As the vegetation started to change, we realized we were finally nearing the top of the chasm! We tramped through what looked to be ‘hobbit land’ in the Red Birch forest and stopped for a snack break at what we thought to be ‘the saddle’. We finally did reach the summit and thought the hard part was over… until we began the super-long, super-steep tramp (sometimes walking backward!) down to Akaroa. Chris and Rachel were smart and had left their car near the track, so we took them up on their offer of a ride into town. After such a long 2-days, it didn’t even feel like cheating! Chris convinced us to go back to the Akaroa Fish Shop for some more well-deserved fish and chips.

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It’s just crazy to look back on the past 2 days and think about how many things fell into place to set us up for a once-in-a-lifetime hike! We owe so much to Geoff and Shelly for pointing us in the right direction and lending us their gear. We were also so fortunate that Chris and Rachel were our bunkmates. They were such a fun couple and there’s no one we would have rather been stuck in the middle of nowhere with! There is a certain amount of risk involved in trusting and opening up to other people… in NZ it seems we’re finding out just how much that risk can pay off!

Banks Track - Onuku to Stoney Bay

On recommendation from Geoff and Shelly (and with 2 of their sleeping bags in tow), we headed to Akaroa to do a 2-day hike on the Banks Peninsula (www.bankstrack.co.nz). We booked the trip on standby, boarded a shuttle downtown and crossed our fingers as the driver weaved his way up and over the hills of dormant volcanoes toward the harbor town of Akaroa, a French settlement an hour and a half east of Christchurch. Captain James Cook was the first to land here, mistakenly naming the peninsula Banks Island, not realizing that the gorgeous NZ South Island was attached to it! With a couple hours to kill before our shuttle to the Banks, we strolled through the gardens and shops and had a dinner of fresh fish and chips at the famed Akaroa Fish Shop. Yum!

The Banks Track is an amazing hike through privately owned farmland and reserve. The track and 4 huts are attended to by farmers who gain extra income from the fees paid by hikers. To maintain the pristine conditions of the track, it is closed to the public and only 16 people are allowed to do the hike at any one time. You can choose to walk the 35k in either 2 or 4-days. Being the super-fit athletes we are, of course the 2-day option was for us!

That evening, our shuttle took 16 hikers (12 doing 4-days, 4 doing 2-days) from Akaroa onto the peninsula and dropped us at the the first of 4 cabins. At the Onuku cabin, the 2-dayers had a detached hut with our own kitchen and 2 bedrooms. The property was beautifully landscaped and cabins were equipped with full kitchens, solar lighting, shared outhouses and very cool ‘stargazers’ (plexiglass sleeping huts with queen mattresses). We spent most of the evening in the 4-day hut, drinking wine around the wood-burning stove and getting to know the group. We met Amanda from Seattle and Nick from Detriot (2 couchsurfers touring NZ together), Dave and Sue from Chicago (who work seasonally in Montana Glacier NP and Antarctica during 24hr sunlight), other various British biddies (who dared to question our super-fitness!), and Chris and Rachel from Otago NZ (our 2-day tramping buddies).

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From Onuku, Chris, Rachel, Josh and I started out early with a steep climb up to Look Out Rock. I was the brave one who climbed out for a photo. On our way up the hill, we took another marked detour to ‘the end’ of the ridge walk, all the while talking politics and religion. We had ‘morning tea’ and rested a bit at the top of the hill, but not long enough for all the 4-dayers to pass us! 

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We continued the 11k morning tramp through sheep paddocks along the coastal ridge with stunning views of the harbor. Then we got a chance to dive into the bush, detouring to several waterfalls and swimming holes before arriving at Flea Bay cottage.

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At Flea Bay, Chris and Josh raided the fridge and purchased a couple beers on the honour system. Chris and Rachel introduced us to ‘baked bean toastie pies’ for lunch. As the 4-dayers arrived and unpacked their gear, we took off our shoes and sat on the porch drinking coffee and contemplating the 8ks left ahead. The boys grabbed another Tui (local beer) for the road and we made our way up from Flea Bay to the cliffs above the harbor. It was amazing to look back from where we’d come to see the waves crashing on the rocks and the dolphins and gulls playing in the bay below! 

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We continued up and down the coast, passing the red cliffs, the hole in the rock, and Pompeii’s Pillar in the sea. We paused to peer into the seal cave and caught glimpses of them resting on the rocks and twirling in the surf. We made another steep climb down the side of the cliff to Stoney Bay cottage, relieved to have finally found our refuge for the night!

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At Stoney Bay, we were curtly greeted by some unhelpful ‘oldies’ who promptly pointed us to our hut. Luckily, we didn’t need to make any more friends and the accommodations were too luxurious to worry about it! Our hut had a kitchen, wood-stove, outdoor grill and sink. The shower in the tree was a neat (and necessary) experience – Josh said it felt a little ‘Gilligan’s Island’! 

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There was free coffee, tea and sugar available along with a stock of local beer, wine, farm-fresh steak, veggies and eggs, milk, yogurt, cereals and candy bars in the ‘wee shop’. We pooled our money for dinner and Chris was dubbed the master chef after making a gourmet meal of steak, eggs and chips. We shared 2 bottles of wine from the pantry and played a couple hands of hearts. After Chris and Rachel started the fire, we took turns in the ‘bathtubs under the stars’. No electricity here, but we blew out the candles pretty early anyway, as we were all spent! 

South Island Hospitality

The ‘Marathon of Friendship’ was in full swing again when we hopped off the plane in Christchurch to meet Geoff and Shelly. The easy going, quick-witted couple run an adventure touring company on the South Island and were kind enough to take us in sight unseen after a few short emails. Geoff said anyone who quits their jobs to ‘re-focus’ and travel New Zealand must have some good stories!

After passing the landmarks in Christchurch and hearing a little of the history, we unload our gear in the self-contained apartment over the garage and met in their living room for conversation over wine, rugby and the Vancouver Olympics opening ceremonies. The next morning, we organized the day over musli, then Geoff drove us up Dyer’s Pass road and dropped us at the summit of a great mountain biking track so we could enjoy the run back down.

Over the next couple days, we learned that Geoff and Shelly have travelled the world over. They were both teachers in a previous life, then made the leap from outdoor retail to adventure tourism with just a van and some cycles in their driveway. Now the organization is a bustling business, with summer guides taking foreign and local tourists across New Zealand on group bike, hike and walk trecks. Their ambition and courage were inspiring, especially because they seem to have found their passion and live it daily!

Josh and I spent Valentine’s Day in downtown Christchurch, a British settlement that Geoff dubbed ‘more English than England’. With street names like Gloucester and Cambridge, British colonial architecture and old-time red phone booths, there was a distinct resemblance to Boston! We wandered through the Arts Centre marketplace, a myriad of galleries, craft and jewelry shops and had takeaway lunch on the lawn. We strolled through Cathedral Square and visited the Christchurch Cathedral and the Chalice (a giant steel waffle cone structure erected to commemorate the city’s birthday).

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Christchurch is aptly named ‘The Garden City’ for its bountiful botanical garden and Hagley Park (the third largest city park in the world behind Central and Hyde Parks).  

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We stopped to watch punters (gondoliers) carrying couples down the Avon, then shared a giant bowl of coffee before being picked up for dinner by our gracious hosts. A lovely Valentine’s Day in a quaint little city!

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Socializing and Sailing Lessons

On Friday evening, Alaina drove the 3 of us down to the posh suburb of Ponsonby (her favorite Auckland haunt, just west of the city). We had drinks with a few of her kiwi friends and tried to keep up with the conversation, in spite of the loud music and troublesome accents! Diane and Sid were a riot, even if we couldn’t understand a word they were saying! We stayed at Ponsonby Backpackers for the night so we could meet Alaina’s dad for sailing on the bay on Saturday morning.

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We met Murray and Jean at the marina around 9am, loaded up with some fresh quiche and panini from the café and set off on their gorgeous 41-foot sailing yacht, First Landing. Murray has been doing recreational and competitive sailing since he was 10 years old and he and Jean have entered some competitions together. Currently, they live on Australia’s Gold Coast during the winter and sail around New Zealand for a few months each summer.They told us they like Waiheke Island the best and gave us some great food, wine and hiking tips to follow while we're staying there.

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Josh got to take the helm for a bit as we sailed out into the harbor, past Devonport. We saw 2 retired America’s Cup yachts doing sailing tours in the harbor and passed the Rhapsody of the Seas cruise ship docked in Auckland’s port. Josh (on the lookout for more dangerous sea life) spotted a little jelly fish floating by. We dropped anchor near Cheltenham for lunch, but it was a little too chilly to get in the water. Murray and Jean shared some fun stories about their adventures and it was great to see a couple who really is living their dream!  

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After motoring back into the marina and docking the boat, we parted ways, hoping to meet up with Murray and Jean on Waiheke Island in a few weeks. Then Alaina dropped Josh and I at the airport to catch our flight to Christchurch – the South Island journey begins!