F ori 18th,
Drove to Akaora ( Small french flavoured town, french tried to invade,but english were already there, but small colony settled. Landscape very much the same as France, so produce is same). Drive from Christchurch approx 1hr. Passed this cute Library, on the way, it looks like the perfect English country cottage!
Family view from hillside, looking down to Akaora Harbor.
Akaora Harbor. Beautiful town set amongst the mountains.
Sat 19th
Packed and set out to Methven. Derek has been communicating with George (Owner), he wants a pilot to fly for the summer ( Dec to Apr). As luck would have it, the flight for the day was delayed due to low clouds, so a couple of people cancelled. When we arrived, they were ready to fly, and as they were light we got to fly.
Our flight went above the clouds, with just the tops of mountains poking out. Great flight, had coffee with George and discussed possibilities of flying next year. Then made our way to Queenstown.
Our first night camping, at this beautiful campsite. Great setting, but lots of biting sandflies.
Sun 20th
Queenstown is a touristy town, with lots of shops advertising Bungy jumping, skydiving etc.. Drove on to Milford Sound approx3 hrs.

This is Franz Josef Glacier, parked car and walked 40 mins to glaciers edge. Didn't realize you could get so close to the Glacier. If you got a guide, you can actually hike up the Glacier.
At the mouth of the Glacier, you can see the layers splitting apart. There are warnings about sudden ice drops.
Beautiful lake Takapo.
Christopher actually went into the freezing waters of Lake Takapo.
Camping just outside Queenstown, our first experience camping as a family.
Walked down to the lake to wash the dishes and this is our view! Took a long time to wash them, keep getting distracted.
Shopping malls at Queenstown. Nice town but a tourist town.
Queenstown harbor where all the boat rides leave from.
One of our walks around Milford Sound.
Another hike, with views like this it doesn't matter how long the hike is.
Believe it or not, this is how Michelle slept. She preferred the car to the tent.
A.J. Hacketts Bungy jumps are at this bridge, which is the home of the first bungy jump in Queenstown. People are lining up to jump at this spot. Couldn't get the kids to jump, even though they said they were up for it, they decided not to.
Stopped at this lake for lunch. Drove across from west coast to east coast heading back to Christchurch.
Driving back, we passed Maruia Hot Springs. This is just like a Japanese Onsen. After camping for 3 night, we needed to soak! Stank of Sulphur, but was soooo relaxing. Arrived back at Leos place, so we could do some Christmas shopping tomorrow.