August 23 - September 2 - Joel T. arrived and we headed south to ski! Drove Arthur's Pass, beautiful wide open glacier carved valley where you see the most northern glaciers of the South Island. We marveled at the Otira Rock Shelter and the Reid Falls Aqueduct and thought of solutions for Little Cottonwood Canyon traffic issues. Arrived at Craigieburn Ski Field, got settled into our bunk room we shared with One Perfect Stranger, Brendan. Examined, viewed the video, and discussed at length The Nutcracker, the rope tow way to the top of the mountain. Plan B - skin up. Click the link to see how to use. Mark and Joel did great! But after the first day Mark stopped encouraging Karen to try it as there was the very real possibility of her injuring shoulders, hands, knees - she was not going to ruin this ski vacation! After two great days of skinning, skiing for Mark and Joel, ready to go to Mt. Cook/Aoraki (Aoraki is the name of a person in the mythology of the Ngāi Tahu (South Island Māori) tribe. The word is said to be a compound of ao (“world, daytime, cloud”) + raki, a southern variant of rangi (“day, sky, weather”). Arrived to rainy, stratus cloud conditions. Aoraki was not to be seen. After a good night sleep, without our former bunkmate Brendan, and a very extensive breakfast buffet, Mark and Joel checked in with David, their guide for Aoraki. Hopefully lift off at 1 pm. Karen left them and drove to Wanaka for a hiking, yoga, Cardrona skiing vacation. She hiked Roy's Peak and took early morning pictures of That Wanaka Tree, skied the blues at Cardrona (less than a yard of base), and found a lovely yoga studio - The Body Garage. Back at Aoraki, sadly, they didn't take off that day as the stratus clouds continue to hover. They spent the night at the Unwin Lodge. This is a special place only for guides and their clients. Next day, bluebird! 8:30 am helicopter ride to the Tasman Glacier and 30 minute skin to the Kelman Hut. See picture notes. They had beautiful skiing! Friday, they were flown back. Karen had returned to Mt. Cook Village the day before to walk the wonderful tracks all around Mt. Cook. After a celebratory evening in Geraldine, home of Barker's and Cafe Verde, Joel was on his way from Christchurch to the North Island. We drove the 6 hours back to Nelson via Lewis Pass.
Pictures below for August 5-18 - We had stayed twice at The Old Slaughterhouse on the west coast (April & January). Susannah, the owner, asked Karen if she would "lodge, dog, cat sit" in winter when the lodge was closed so she could visit her parents in Europe. We drove down August 5 (3 hours away). Mark stayed the weekend and Susannah showed Karen the ropes for taking care of the lodge and furry loved ones. The lodge is run on its own hydroelectricity system using Dean's Creek on the property, and four solar panels. The lodge itself is accessed by a 10 minute walking track that gains 100 meters in elevation. It has a beautiful location above the Tasman Sea. Mark went back to Nelson to work. Susannah left for Europe. Karen walked, read, snuggled with Georgie, had all animals on the bed at night, picked mussels and kept warm by stoking the wood burner. Mark came for the weekend and we walked, picked more mussels, and snuggled with Georgie. It was a great time for Karen to once again contemplate Maslow's Theory of Human Motivation and wonder if she had finally reached the pinnacle level of Self-Actualization. After two weeks of reading, swimming, yoga, and relaxing, she took the bus back to Nelson feeling success that all was well with The Old Slaughterhouse.
Pictures below for August 5-18 - We had stayed twice at The Old Slaughterhouse on the west coast (April & January). Susannah, the owner, asked Karen if she would "lodge, dog, cat sit" in winter when the lodge was closed so she could visit her parents in Europe. We drove down August 5 (3 hours away). Mark stayed the weekend and Susannah showed Karen the ropes for taking care of the lodge and furry loved ones. The lodge is run on its own hydroelectricity system using Dean's Creek on the property, and four solar panels. The lodge itself is accessed by a 10 minute walking track that gains 100 meters in elevation. It has a beautiful location above the Tasman Sea. Mark went back to Nelson to work. Susannah left for Europe. Karen walked, read, snuggled with Georgie, had all animals on the bed at night, picked mussels and kept warm by stoking the wood burner. Mark came for the weekend and we walked, picked more mussels, and snuggled with Georgie. It was a great time for Karen to once again contemplate Maslow's Theory of Human Motivation and wonder if she had finally reached the pinnacle level of Self-Actualization. After two weeks of reading, swimming, yoga, and relaxing, she took the bus back to Nelson feeling success that all was well with The Old Slaughterhouse.