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New Zealand, Part 1

Travelling the South Island by 4x4

By Greg Annandale

April 14^th, 2019

February 2019; my wife and I spent 8 days touring the southern half of New Zealand's South Island. We had the use of a very handsome Land Rover Discovery provided by our friend James at Intrepid Rentals, complete with snorkel and roof tent, so we were keen to get off the tarmac where possible and explore some of the many gravel and mud tracks criss-crossing the island.

Armed with some of James' immense knowledge of the area (along with his map of unpaved routes), we started off in Queenstown and crammed as much as we could into the short amount of time that we had.

(see part 2 of the photo story)

Queenstown

The views from Queenstown are pretty spectacular, as are those from the road up to Glenorchy.

Moke Lake

A particularly peaceful campsite tucked away in the valleys above Queenstown and Lake Wakatipu.

South to Curio Bay

A day of cruising through farmland down to the south coast.

Old Dunstan Road

One of the most historic roads in the region; high up, exposed and dotted with some incredible rock formations, Old Dunstan saw particular use during the 1800s for access to gold fields.

Alexandra

The hottest, driest and coldest town in New Zealand, Alexandra is particularly distinct from the rainforests of the Catlins National Park to its South, the almost perpetually wet Fiordland National Park to its West and the snowy peaks of Mount Aspiring National Park to its North - all within a 150km radius.