Queenstown

Woooo hoooo!
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Hmmmm….Queenstown. It’s the extreme/adventure capital for sure in NZ. The main drag is lined with endless numbers of booking offices for more adventures than you could possibly hope for. We chose to keep it simple as we had to prepare for our hike the afternoon that we arrived and had only one full day in town after the Milford Track.

The one activity that I really wanted to do was bungy jumping but both Scott and I were both nervous about that and any injury that might be caused to my back. I looked into doing a canyon swing as that I thought might be softer on the back, but didn’t pull the trigger after debating about it. On our final morning as we were going to make our way to Te Anau, we planned to hit a few wineries as we are very near the Otago wine region well known for its pinot noirs. It so happened that the original bungy site, Kawarau Bridge, is across the road from one of the wineries. Spectators are welcome so we had to go and check it out. The drop wasn’t nearly as high as I previously pictured – only 142 feet (another bungy site here is much higher). After watching a few others drop, I really wanted to do it myself. I looked at Scott and said I have to do it!!

BUNGY !!!!

Waving goodbye....just in case
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As I’m getting strapped in around the ankles, I’m debating with the guy whether or not I want to touch the water (this is the only site with that option). I told him that I really wanted to try it but only if it’s very accurate as I don’t want my whole torso to be dunked. He debated on the setting of the bungy and I got a little nervous so I told him to be conservative. He then scooted me out onto the ledge, I looked over and waved to Scott, told him I loved him, smiled for my photo, and then did as I was told and let go of the bar (though he had to tell me a couple of times as that was a little nerve racking but he assured me that he’d have hold of the belt harness on my back until I jumped). He then instructed me to look straight ahead and when he counted down to one, I was to dive out from the ledge. My heart was racing, but the scary part wasn’t actually jumping off of the platform as I was looking forward (not down) just as he instructed. The point in time that your heart leaps out of your throat and you gasp is the moment after you leap and you start freefalling face first. It is such a vulnerable feeling. But hey, how many opportunities do you get to safely jump off of a bridge 140+ feet up! Turned out my guy was conservative and I stopped about 3 feet short of the water. No worries though as it was exciting nonetheless. WOW!! Great fun – I wanted to do it again but of course, that would be pushing my luck. Scott captured the moment on video with our camera so I can relive the moment any time. My visit to Queenstown was complete and thankfully I’ll have no regrets about not tackling the bungy jump!

Check out the form - this should be an Olympic event
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Oh yes, we also did make it to two wineries along with a cheesery. We also made a pit stop in the historic gold mining town of Arrowtown. We hit the local chocolatier, toured the Chinese settlement where the gold miners lived, and had our first NZ pie for lunch. We opted for the classic steak and cheese and it was quite yummy!

Tidbit of the day:

AJ Hackett (the founder of the NZ commercial bungy jumping) was first inspired to develop the bungy jump when he saw a video of the Oxford University Dangerous Sports Club. This club tried a few experimental jumps back in the late 70’s. The inspiration for the Oxford Club was the people of Vanuatu who had been throwing themselves from towers for centuries with nothing more than simple vines tied to their feet.