Otago- New Zealand's playground

Camp Mark & Mandy- kitchen sink not included.

Mandy was psyched to get out on a mountain bike and back into her element after spending three days climbing, so after a leisurely morning we drove a short way out of Wanaka to an area with many mountain bike trails known as the Sticky Forest. Sticky Forest is a network of trails through a pine forest that was the location of an international competition several years ago, and the trails include large bank turns, hills and jumps (easily avoided by the timid- me). One of the trails even has a 360-degree turn, with the top of the turn passing over the end of the turn on a narrow bridge. Mandy and I had fun playing around in the Sticky Forest, riding for hours up, down and around the mountain biking playground.

Weekend plans were beginning to take shape for some whitewater kayaking near Queenstown with a friend of Mandy’s, but we decided to spend Friday near Wanaka once again, combining a ride up to the Aspiring hut with a hike continuing up the valley for views of Mt. Aspiring. As we drove up a long and bumpy dirt road I called the number of the local sheep station to get permission to ride our bikes on their property. Having negotiated the road and obtained permission we hopped on our bikes and headed up the meadow towards the Aspiring Hut. The six mile ride should have taken an hour or less, but the views were stunning and we were constantly stopping as ever more impressive peaks appeared around the bend or up side canyons. We also stopped to admire the local paddock denizens and their cute offspring.

Cruising along in the Aspiring Valley.

The locals were suspicious of the wheeled creatures.

Upon reaching the Aspiring Hut we dismounted our bikes and continued on foot. The trail above the hut seemed to be quite new and improved, and sure enough about two miles up the trail we met a man with his mini one-man backhoe. He was a nice kiwi who grinned silently when Mandy joked about drinking a beer from his cooler that was around the corner. He used to work 9-5 for “the man,” but like me had chosen in recent years to work for himself and was happier for it. Hiking a similar trail later in my trip, I wondered if he had a hand in building that one as well. I can see the ad now- “Have an old trail that needs a bit of spiffing up? Me and my Hoe-Pro 1000 are just what you are looking for! Dial 1-800-TRAIL-GUY”.

Soon we reached an open meadow with nice views of Mt. Aspiring and several other peaks. Since it was already 4pm we took just a short rest and a few photos, then headed back to the hut and hopped on the bikes for a speedy return to the car by 6pm.

Mt. Aspiring, background right of center.

The day had been hot and sunny, so I suggested a quick dip in the river before heading back to Wanaka. Mandy was all over that- briefly mentioning that Terry and other kiwis she knew thought she was crazy for wanting to swim in the rivers- I should have paid more attention to that comment! The river didn’t feel very cold to my feet, and so I jumped in for a swim. I decided later that my feet are not an appropriate instrument for determining the temperature of rivers in New Zealand- the water must have been less than 40 degrees Fahrenheit. Which brought to mind the old Bill Cosby skit about swimming in the Niagra river- “Hop right in, the water’s fine!” Mandy never was one to be left out of the action and so she jumped in as well, knowing full well how cold it would be.

Black Swans and a gosling.