Way Down South

We have indeed been busy for the last few days. We traveled hard for two days to get way down to Queenstown from our hike on the Abel Tasman. We stopped half way down at the Franz Joseph Glacier and rang in the new year Kiwi style in a local karyoke bar. Karen and I had a late night... We arrived in Queenstown, which is dubbed the adventure capital of the world, planning on doing one, maybe two, big things and ended up breaking the bank and going for the gusto. We took a family jet boat ride on the Shotover River and it was indeed a crazy, fast, 360 filled ride in and out of the canyon. Kyle especially loved it. We then headed out to the bridge where bungee jumping originated and watched some crazy folks leap out and down 145' to the river. Of course it was hard to watch and not want to give it a shot so I gathered up all my courage and did it. I've never been so horrified in my life, but oh what a rush! When I was done Kyle and Mariah went double and didn't back out. It was pretty tough to watch your children jump off a bridge into a canyon. Karen was more nervous than I, but we survived their thrill seeking. The next day the family took the gondola up to the overlook above Queenstown for some views and to do the concrete luge. While we were up there we watched people jump off the cliff and paraglide down to town. Of course Karen felt like she had to make up for not wanting to bungee so she booked a tandem ride and rode the currents for about 15 minutes to the waitng bit of grass on the school playground 1500 feet below. We have so many good pictures that we'll work on downloading once we get to Aussie land.
From there we headed down further south to an overnight stay on a working sheep ranch. 720 acres from the gravel road up to the top of a mountain. We got to go out with the owner as he worked and had such an education watching the dogs do their masterful job. At 6 this morning we got up and watched them separate the lambs from their sheep moms and then the rams from the ewes. Quite and education for sure. Of course we had lamb for dinner...We are now in Te Anau getting ready to head down to cruise on the Milford Sound tomorrow. The weather finally got hot and we're definitely enjoying that. I had to buy a bucket hat today after a round of golf that was too sunny. We hope you all had a great New Years. Who won the Ohio State/Florida game? I'm hopelessly lost about the world of US sports. I suddenly know a heck of a lot about cricket and rugby :(
Love to all,
The Stinks

Kia Ora!

As the Maori's say-Kia Ora,
We spent 3 wonderful days hiking the Abel Tasman Coastal Trek. One of the most beautiful hikes we have ever done. It was very different from our usual mountain hikes. The trail has great views of golden white sandy beaches strewn with kayaks. We hiked through plush terrain that looked just like the setting from the movie King Kong, which was filmed in New Zealand. The water is turquoise. It is very tropical. Try googling it. All you hikers should try doing it someday.
Both nights we slept in communal huts, a new experience for the kids. It reminded Mike and I of our youth hostel traveling days in Europe. Laying next to complete strangers and falling asleep to the symphony of 14 snorers is quite an experience. The weather was perfect for our trip. We did a total of about 25 kilometers one way and then took a water taxi back to the car. (I like this metric system, it makes our hike seem longer and my weight less in kilo's than pounds).
When we weren't tramping, we were relaxing by sun bathing on the beach, playing cards, whittling sticks and writing in our journals. Imagine that- the Steens have down time.
It's New Year's Eve Day. This morning we were on tropical beaches and now we are on glacial fields. It is such a diverse country. We are camping at Franz Joseph Glacier. It has been a long traveling day. Good thing it is light out until 10:00. We can pitch the tent and still see. Then it will be time to ring in the new year...2007. The year down under, the year of new adventures.
Love,
The Steens