Rockin in Wanaka

that glorious view of lake wanaka i was talkin about

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So Wanaka is often compared to queenstown as a slightly less touristy, but just as adventurey stop in the southlands. Smaller, quainter but buzzing in its own way all the same. When the bus pulled up to the lakefront in Wanaka, which is exactly where the town sits, I couldn’t help feel drawn in by the place. It was a perfectly clear view and the snow-capped mountains could be seen like a theatre-set backdrop, encapsulating the scene across the shimmering lake. all this amidst the blue skies with the sun-shining wildly onto the whole scene. it may sound ridiculously contrived but I am honestly recounting this place. And it did feel perfectly dreamlike, hence the description. Unfortunately my hostel was set back from the lake so no view…and though not that far from the center of town (nothing is in a place this small) it was far enough to inspire an immediate dump-out of my pack upon arrival to my new hostel dorm room. “right..what goes and what stays?!” and just like that I packed up a sack of unnecessary crap I’d been toting around for much too long and went to splurge in the post-office and send my burdensome loot across the seas. most normal people might trash unwanted clothing…but if you know me…I treasure my t-shirts like gold. So there they went, along with notebooks, cd’s, and an odd souvenir or two. Ahhh…much better. So let me reiterate the underlying message: travel lightly! Right. Wanaka! Another cute little town…again, a bit like a ski/surf town…good vibes and a beautiful setting. Great just watching people in and around the lake…everyone up and about.

you may have seen these pictures already...but i had to show 'em off on the blog! enjoy for a second time around : )

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But the main event here for me, the excitement I experienced involved slinging myself over rock faces (ropes attached of course), jumping off rocks, sliding down rocks (like an all-natural water-slide), and scrambling over yet more massive rocks! The title to all this fun is “canyoning” and let me tell you…it’s damn fun. once I heard of this possible excursion I signed on immediately (thank you bro’s and sis in-laws for the b-day gifts!!) and was off the next day bumping along an “unsealed road” which is of course paved by loose rock and pebbles and requires a bit of jumbling for all passengers. i love that in new zealand they often refer to their roads as “sealed” because there are still so many dirt/stone roads around. Distracted by the incredible view of Mt. Aspiring in the distance and the gorgeous day that it was, the guides pointed out the canyon on the side of the mountain that we would soon be sloshing around in…and all I could see was a tiny line of trees that would go completely unnoticed to anyone really. that’s it?? a tiny little random tree line?? from the outside let me tell you…it is nothing exciting…in fact…it’s an insignificant speck among the mountainous valley. But once we hiked up the side of this mountain (you must first go up to come down of course. to much the dismay of the less-active in the group) and tucked in the canyon, we were introduced to a completely different world…hidden within this unsuspecting line of trees was an incredible work of nature…and as the guides explained…the only way to experience such a place is to go canyoning (of course they have to sell it but heh…how right they are). We fully covered ourselves in neoprene, strapped on a helmet, a harness, and were quickly on our way to looking like pros. Of course it was solely that: an illusion…we did a couple of training bits before hitting the first abseil (like rappelling…i.e. the going-down bit of a mountain climb)…and when it was my turn I thought…what, now? Right now? I’m not even ready? I don’t know what I’m doing! I can’t really go over that cliff, stand perpendicular to the rock face and walk down with water spilling down my face! Of course I did, and of course I slipped and smacked into the rock (hence helmets and tons of padding…was just getting in touch with nature of course…a bit too literally), and of course the look of panic on my face immediately disappeared when I jumped into the pool of water below and was replaced by a massive smile. Rush of the first descent! And that’s what it’s all about…pushing beyond your comfort zone…once you’ve done it...you crave the feeling…adrenaline addiction? It’s healthy. I promise. Do things you’d never think of before. Like going head-first down a tiny, crooked shoot with water gushing down, only half-happy to know you’ll be spit out the other end into a pool, of yet more water…again…head and face first. Haha…can I do it again?! One of the head-first encounters basically is just a sheer little cliff…so you shimmy yourself like a seal, stomach first, along the rock…until gravity takes over…and you go hurdling straight-down the rockface and then, shwoop, rock no more…and you go plunking in the water. And plunking is better than smacking…ow. Nah…so awesome. I could go on forever about each and every moment of this day cause it was just so unique and so cool and so much earthy fun! But I’ll spare you the high-school sounding excitement (sooo neato!) and give just a couple more little adventures of the day (sorry mum) (and I thought this would be the short blog…I’m trying). One abseil was right next to a waterfall and all the way down you could see the rainbows created by the sun coming through all the mist of the falls. What a day. And some of the slides were so fast that you’d be put you on a safety line so before you go flying out of control, into a sharp rock and such, the guide would tug you back…and eventually you get to the end of the safety line and go flying into the pool below. One of my favorites was a falls that was so steep you couldn’t actually go down using your feet…so we abseiled about 10 feet down, then had to turn around, sit on our bums, and from there it’s like a vertical water-slide, and you control the speed by your rope….so everyone pretty much went soaring down…and I took a weird turn and ended up right IN the falls at the end...was so cool. a natural waterslide…straight down! At the end of the day we were introduced to a little surprise…the flying fox. this is a pulley-line that spans across the canyon. We came into the canyon on one side and came out on the other…how else were we going to get across?? heh. Once I was hooked in, I just took a big leap and flew across “wooo”ing the whole while…what fun. canyoning was the main event at this stop, besides a little day walk along Lake Wanaka and I’m sure you’re not really too interested in my meals, and sleep cycles so I’ll let you get back to your emails.