January 2024 - Kelsey stayed until January 7. New Year’s Eve was spent with our great friends Kay and Ben at their bach (New Zealand holiday house) on Jackett Island. We swam in the sea, celebrated the New Year, played Scrabble, and ate a lot! New Year’s Day we drove to Nelson Lakes where we met our friends, Sali and Hamish. They took us boating on Lake Rotoiti, walked to Whiskey Falls- Kelsey and Hamish dunked. We spent the night at their family cabin and went water skiing the next day - super fun!!
Finally back in Nelson. Truly one of our favorite things about Nelson is the summer! Kelsey left on the 7th and fast on her heels, our friends Georgia and John came to New Zealand! Before Kelsey left we swam in the sea, and swam in the Thursday night race series. Mark and Karen traveled to Wanaka via Twizel to meet Georgia and John. Mark and Karen rode The Lake Dunstan Trail - a 60 km round trip "Great Ride." Spectacular scenery and bike path built along the rock ledge of Lake Dunstan.
First, we all walked a ways up Roy’s Peak - not getting to the top as we started in the afternoon, but enough vertical for us all to experience the shin issues as it is steep. Next day, we all walked up the Mt. Aspiring trail, said goodbye to John and Mark who continued upward on their quest to summit Mt. Aspiring, the second highest peak in New Zealand. Karen and Georgia walked back to have three days on their own walking the Diamond Lake track, wine tasting at Aitkin’s Folley and Paddon’s Paddock wineries, biking the iconic Queenstown to Arrowtown track, and walking the beautiful Clutha River. Mark and John successfully summited and had lots of stories! Great job them! We said goodbye to these two, they continued on, and we went on to Hokitika in anticipation of biking The Old Ghost Road with our good friends from Nelson… but, the weather had other ideas! It poured rain all the way to Hokitika! We drove through waterfalls! Rivers were raging! The road closed just minutes after we arrived in Hokitika! A bottle of champagne to celebrate our anniversary, a walk on the Wild West Coast beach, and we were tuckered out! Next day, on to Reefton, and the Reefton Gin Distillery. We tasted, sampled, bought (all the things they want you to do!) The next day, with The Old Ghost Road trip called off due to the weather forecast, we still did a day ride on TOGR, making it up 25 km to the ridge, beautiful! Looking forward to our postponed ride that will hopefully happen mid April! Home in Nelson for a few weeks, one Thursday night swim, then off to the North Island for most of February.
Finally back in Nelson. Truly one of our favorite things about Nelson is the summer! Kelsey left on the 7th and fast on her heels, our friends Georgia and John came to New Zealand! Before Kelsey left we swam in the sea, and swam in the Thursday night race series. Mark and Karen traveled to Wanaka via Twizel to meet Georgia and John. Mark and Karen rode The Lake Dunstan Trail - a 60 km round trip "Great Ride." Spectacular scenery and bike path built along the rock ledge of Lake Dunstan.
First, we all walked a ways up Roy’s Peak - not getting to the top as we started in the afternoon, but enough vertical for us all to experience the shin issues as it is steep. Next day, we all walked up the Mt. Aspiring trail, said goodbye to John and Mark who continued upward on their quest to summit Mt. Aspiring, the second highest peak in New Zealand. Karen and Georgia walked back to have three days on their own walking the Diamond Lake track, wine tasting at Aitkin’s Folley and Paddon’s Paddock wineries, biking the iconic Queenstown to Arrowtown track, and walking the beautiful Clutha River. Mark and John successfully summited and had lots of stories! Great job them! We said goodbye to these two, they continued on, and we went on to Hokitika in anticipation of biking The Old Ghost Road with our good friends from Nelson… but, the weather had other ideas! It poured rain all the way to Hokitika! We drove through waterfalls! Rivers were raging! The road closed just minutes after we arrived in Hokitika! A bottle of champagne to celebrate our anniversary, a walk on the Wild West Coast beach, and we were tuckered out! Next day, on to Reefton, and the Reefton Gin Distillery. We tasted, sampled, bought (all the things they want you to do!) The next day, with The Old Ghost Road trip called off due to the weather forecast, we still did a day ride on TOGR, making it up 25 km to the ridge, beautiful! Looking forward to our postponed ride that will hopefully happen mid April! Home in Nelson for a few weeks, one Thursday night swim, then off to the North Island for most of February.