Hey, everyone! I’ve just returned back to Queenstown after a week in Rakiura/Stewart Island. Rakiura translates to “Glowing Skies” – so named after sightings of the aurora by Māori folk. I’ll give the disclaimer now that I didn’t see the aurora… but that wasn’t my main purpose. The objective? Aotearoa New Zealand’s national bird – the KIWI.

Chicago to Rakiura/Stewart Island

I made a whole separate blog post about my 48 hour journey from Chicago back to Queenstown, but I wanted to mention a couple of other things about my time in the states before I get to the Rakiura portion.

On my final evening with my parents, we drove to the Warren Dunes which is a bit of a tradition with us. My parents have been going to the dunes for something like fifty years which is pretty crazy to think about. On the drive in, I spotted what looked like a bald eagle in the tree. I told my parents and we ended up turning the car around to get a better view of it. It sat perched on a tree, deeper in the woods. I was skeptical that it was a bald eagle after all and didn’t have my zoom camera with me… but it was definitely a bald eagle. I actually found out that Michigan is home to more bald eagles than any other state. Neat! At one point, another bald eagle flew over. It was an interesting parting gift from the states, considering the bald eagle is our nation’s bird. My dad said he’d never seen one before so I was glad I spotted it.

I also wanted to mention that I was able to acknowledge a lot of cool wildlife in Michigan while home. From crows and starlings to finches and cardinals, squirrels, chipmunks, bald eagles, deer, and sandhill cranes… my parents are blessed to witness a lot of wildlife near their home.

I wasn’t feeling sad to be leaving in the same way I had when I first left for Australia and also Aotearoa New Zealand. I think it’s because I knew what I was going back to, instead of entering some Unknown Country I’ve Never Been to Before. That fear certainly heightens the senses. This time, I felt comfortable that I was returning to something familiar. Although, of course it was tough to leave my family.

And a final mention about my major delay and overnight in Houston… I think it was the gods taking their payment for giving me clear skies on Eclipse Day haha. Lastly – when I finally got on the plane from Houston to Auckland, I started watching Paris in Love and as I was skipping through it to get to the last scene I’d watched, the first thing Paris said was, “I don’t want to chance getting stuck there overnight” while talking about a flight she had to take. OH, what a coincidence.

But, yes… I made it back to Queenstown in time to make the 5.15pm ferry to Rakiura/Stewart Island.

Bluff to Oban

Before arriving in Bluff, I was planning on parking at the ferry parking lot, which was something like $20/day. The town had so much free parking on the street, though. I saw a sign for the police station and decided to go ask them if I could just park on the street for a few days. The officer was really nice and said it wasn’t a problem – so that saved me over $100. Yahoo!

The final leg of my commute from Chicago to Rakiura was an hour ferry ride from Bluff to Rakiura. I thought it would be super cruisy… but boy, was it scary. The ferry was quite small and the waves… were quite large. I got so freaked out, I had to close my eyes and listen to my music full blast to get my mind off the crazy waves we were constantly crashing through.

But then I was in Oban – population: 400!

Commence the Kiwi Spotting

After settling in at the hostel and getting food at basically the only restaurant/pub in town, I decided to go check out the rugby field. The only problem was that I had NO IDEA where it was. I had tried to look it up on GoogleMaps prior to arrival, but to no avail. The rugby field (Traill Park) was supposed to be a great place for kiwi spotting. After seeing a map at the hostel, I found out the rugby field was only a five minute walk from the hostel. Perfect!

I was struck by just how many people were out and about looking for kiwi. They all had red headtorches on. You’re not supposed to use regular lights when going kiwi spotting because they’re sensitive to light and it spooks them. So, there were maybe a dozen people at the rugby field, walking along the circumference, shining red lights into the surrounding bush. For some reason, I thought I’d be the only person out looking for kiwi haha. NOPE!

Also worth noting (and I might have mentioned before) that kiwi are thought to be heading towards blindness in terms of evolution. They have very poor eyesight but incredible smell and hearing.

A few times, I heard rustling near the edge of the bush, but wasn’t seeing any kiwi. After a while, I decided to head back into town – but first, I walked down the ten minute long Fuschia Walk, looking for kiwi all along. As I exited the trail, I saw a group of people standing around. Someone held up their finger in a “shh” motion and pointed to something. And sure enough… there was a kiwi – feeding in the grass.

How funny to observe these unique birds. Kiwi beaks are so long. The beak was maybe six inches and with one quick motion, it would constantly submerge its beak into the ground. It was cool to hear the sound of it tearing through the grass. The bird would occasionally make a sort of “snorting” sound, too. Oh, and also – they make the craziest calls. If interested, absolutely check out this video. It’s a really cool noise and actually kind of scary when they’re close. The noise is extremely loud and kind of jarring.

Our group was able to quietly watch the kiwi for probably twenty minutes, which was a perfect observation period. It then walked back up to the bush and I returned to the hostel for the night. It had been a long, long journey from America and I was ready to get some sleep. And yet, despite how exhausted I was, it was hard for me to fall asleep after the excitement of seeing my first and maybe only kiwi bird in the wild. Yahoo!

Seeing a kiwi was my main purpose of going to Rakiura, so I’m really glad it worked out. Majority of New Zealanders have never seen a kiwi in the wild, so to have the privilege of having seen one in the wild is something I’ll never, ever forget. Thanks, universe!

Ulva Island

I woke up around 5.30am the next morning. My sleep schedule was a little out of whack. Part of me was still on the US timezone. I decided to walk around, looking for kiwi again until the sun rose. Once it rose, I grabbed something to eat from Four Square and then decided to hire a water taxi to Ulva Island – perhaps the best chance someone has of seeing a kiwi during the daytime.

The boat ride over was pretty rocky, but only about six minutes long. As I got off the boat, the skipper cautioned me about sea lions – that they may be on the beaches or even in the bush. Noted!

The thing that’s special about Ulva Island is that it is actually a predator-free island. Due to conservation efforts and pest control, they’ve managed to eradicate all the invasive animals – possums, rats, stoats, and deer. It’s a relatively small island but it is a big win for Aotearoa New Zealand. There is an initiative called Predator Free 2050, which aims to eradicate all the invasive species on Aotearoa. I have my fingers crossed for them!

Due to Ulva Island being predator-free and without any human inhabitants, it’s a great way to get a feel for what life on Aotearoa was like before human settlement. Ulva Island is a haven for birdlife. I had read a lot of TripAdvisor reviews about the island and was expecting a LOT of birds – but there were times I would go a while without seeing a bird.

Still, I was really excited to get a crappy photograph of a red-crowned parakeet.

I saw plenty of fantails, South Island robins, and a kākā flying overhead at one point. I wasn’t incredibly overwhelmed by the birdlife, but the scenery was gorgeous. So, so many ferns and mossy trees and mushrooms. A total rainforest. Ulva Island apparently has “ancient” podocarp forests that date back to when Aotearoa was part of the supercontinent Gondwana. Crazy.

Maybe twenty minutes in, I heard a VERY loud sort of growling noise. It honestly sounded like a dinosaur. I was like, “wait… have I accidentally stumbled upon Jurrasic Park?” I’m not joking. I tried to run through the list of animals that lived on Ulva Island, but NONE of them would be making a noise like this. A few minutes later, I ran into a group of ecologists monitoring the foliage. They explained they were doing a ten day expedition on the island to… I don’t even know. Monitor things, I guess? I can’t remember what the guy told me haha. Surely, they were the ones that had played the dinosaur noise. I should have asked.

I took the West End trail down to West End Beach, where a sea lion slept at the edge of the bush.

Later, I walked the Boulder Beach track.

Each time I’d exited the forest and got to a beach, it started to rain. After a quick look, I quickly cowered to the safety of the trees again haha.

It doesn’t take long to walk along all the trails at Ulva Island. If walking quickly, it can be done in maybe an hour and a half. However, I stayed from 9am until just before 1pm. Since I’d been walking since 5.30am, my feet were starting to hurt near the end of my time on the island. Instead of feverishly looking for daytime kiwi, I sat down on a bench for a while haha.

I returned to Rakiura and before sunset, went down to the wharf to look for little blue penguins. There was apparently a colony of penguins at the island that are right at the edge of town. I saw a couple and snapped a crappy picture. Very cute!

I was expecting there to be more but I only saw four. It was cool to see them swim up to the edge of the water and disappear behind some boulders. Where is their home?!

Māori Beach

Rakiura/Stewart Island is known for its incredible walking tracks. There is one track called the Rakiura Track which is part of Aotearoa’s Top Ten Great Walks. It is a three day tramping track that is supposedly very muddy. While I wasn’t planning on doing the entire walk, I wanted to walk at least a portion of it.

One morning, I walked from the main town of Oban to Lee Bay, the start of the Rakiura Track. Along the way, I passed a few beautiful beaches and lots of trees. I saw a bellbird along the way, too!

It took about an hour and a half to get to Lee Bay (honestly, I should have just hitchhiked there since it was a road the whole way). All I wanted to do was eat my veggie pie and sit down before continuing on the hike. Unfortunately, sandflies had another plan for me. The second I sat down on a bench, they started biting me. Those bastards are something else, I tell you. They are basically the daytime equivalent of mosquitoes. So awful and my skin itches for days afterwards.

Anyway.

While I really wanted to walk to Port Williams Hut (the first leg of the Rakiura Track), it would lead for an eight hour hiking day. I decided to cut it short at Māori Beach, which was just fine. It still would be a six hour day. I saw a lot of cool terrain along the way. The hike hugs along the ocean, so there are often really nice views. The track runs through the forest almost the whole time, too, so there was lots of shade to block out the sun. Just lovely!

There was also a bridge that crossed over some sand on my way to the beach. On the way back, it was flooded with water from the high tide.

Above left shows low tide, above right is high tide.

Once I was headed back to Oban, I passed Lee Bay and Horseshoe Bay and then decided to stick out my thumb. What would be another hour of walking would just be a ten minute car ride. Luckily, the first person that passed picked me up. I think his name was Archibald or something wild haha. Thanks, whatever your name is!

In the evening, I looked out for penguins again. While waiting for the sun to go down and the penguins to come up, I saw what I believe is a fairy tern searching for food next to the wharf. At points, it dove down into the water to try and snatch a fish or two!

i then ate some food, and then went kiwi spotting. No luck and lots of hours walking around in the rain. The whole week I was in Rakiura, there was rain. It would be very on and off. The best way to escape it was to be on trails in the bush, where the trees protected me from getting too wet. I had my rain jacket so my clothes were fine, but my shoes were another story. They are so trashed now haha.

A Failed Tour

The next day, I was meant to return to Ulva Island on a guided tour. I had reached out to a New Zealand tour company and asked if they offered any industry rates. They ended up giving me a discounted ferry ride to/from Rakiura, and a free guided tour to Ulva which was normally $110. Okay, not only did I save on that tour, but also the parking in Bluff??? Love it.

While waiting to board the boat, I was surprised to spot an albatross flying off in the distance. If you’ll remember, I was very excited about seeing southern royal albatross in Dunedin over Christmastime. While I really wanted a close-up photo, I wasn’t able to get one. I pulled out my camera and started taking some pics of this guy. It was a white-capped albatross soaring not far from town. It landed in the water maybe thirty feet away. I was really excited and hoped that the boat would pass it by so I could get some better pictures.

And then, before boarding the boat, one of the guides spotted a penguin swimming near the boat! It would bop up to the surface, then dive under in search of fish. Very cute!

We then boarded the boat and after leaving the jetty, one of the guides (spotting my camera) told me there was an albatross just off to the right. I was ecstatic and was able to get photos I could have only hoped for. The white-capped albatross (mollymawks) are so funny looking because they look really… angry. The markings around their eyes give them a permanent scowl. I was amazed by just how white the feathers on their head were. Like a perfect snow. I think it helps that on other areas of their body, they have a softer white and even an ashy color. It makes the white pop that much more on their head.

At one point, I lowered the camera from my face and was shocked by how close we were to the giant bird. It was honestly massive. While mollymawks/white-capped albatross aren’t the largest of albatross, they still have an impressive wingspan of 6-8 feet. Southern royals have up to 12 feet wingspan. Insane!

Another day, I saw the mollymawks again. There were six of them that landed in the water at the edge of Oban. I was finally able to get a good shot of an albatross flying. Yay!

And also a VERY angry seagull barking at the albatross. Albatross didn’t care.

We drove out to sea and towards Ulva Island. We passed some historical buildings along the edge of the island. There was an albatross behind the boat for some time.

And then… just as we were ready to dock at the jetty, the skipper announced he wasn’t able to pull in. Looking at his gauges, the wind was too strong and they legally weren’t allowed to stop there. This meant we had to cancel the tour. WHAT?

While slightly bummed, I couldn’t be that mad. The tour was free for me, and actually I wanted to go on another hike instead anyway. So, we turned back. I didn’t end up rebooking because I decided I’d rather return to Ulva Island without a tour so I could stay on the island for longer and do what I wanted.

For me, despite the failed tour, I was just thrilled to get such a close-up experience of the mollymawk! Incredible.

Raroa & Golden Bay Track

After the tour that never happened, I walked to the edge of Traill Park to go on a short hike I’d been meaning to check out for a while. Raroa. It was only a twenty minute hike or so, but it actually was maybe my favorite hike on the whole island. I don’t know what it was… it just was really special to me.

Oh. Maybe, it’s because immediately upon entering, there was a South Island kākā perched on a branch, chewing bark off the trees???

I watched it for some time, snapping pictures. While I’ve seen kākā before on Aotearoa, I’ve never seen one close enough to get a decent picture. Finally!

A few moments later, another kākā arrived. The two squawked at each other. My original kākā ruffled up its feathers. It was NOT happy to have this other guy here, invading its turf. The two kākā climbed higher up in the canopy and I continued the walk. It was such a nicely maintained track, going up and down through the rainforest. I decided it would be a good spot to look for kiwi in the evening.

After Raroa, I continued on to the Golden Bay track, which was maybe an hour and a half to get from the head of the trail back to Oban. Golden Bay was a little more challenging in terms of inclines, but it wasn’t too bad at all. All of the tracks in Rakiura were relatively easy – some of them were just LONG. I was never really huffing and puffing, aside from maybe walking up steep streets in town at night looking for kiwi.

Once I’d finished hiking, I returned to the hostel to chill out. My MO most days was – wake up, get some groceries for my hike, go hiking, go back to hostel to watch Dawson’s Creek and relax for a few hours, shower, eat dinner, go kiwi spotting.

After dinner, I went looking for kiwi. I walked around town, hoping I’d be able to see one under a streetlight where I’d be able to get a good picture (as opposed to a crappy picture under red light) but no luck.

Since I’d enjoyed the Raroa trail so much earlier in the day, I returned to look for kiwi around 8.30pm. It was raining and no one else was out. Just before I reached the end of the track, my torch had spotted the fuzzy butt of a kiwi running away from me. DAMN! It had retreated deeper into the bush where I couldn’t see it. (Note to Mom & Dad – you asked me what animal reminds me of Gizmo? KIWI. They have the same butts.)

While the encounter was fleeting, I was really happy I got to spot a kiwi ON MY OWN. Even though I was seriously grateful I got to observe one for so long my first night in Rakiura, I really, really hoped that I’d be able to see one by myself. And I did!

I stopped back at the hostel to chill out, and to enter my sighting into the hostel’s Kiwi Spotting Book.

And yet, something told me to set an alarm for 12.30am and return to Raroa. When my alarm went off, I REALLY didn’t want to get up, but I did anyway.

A little bit further along the track than the first time, I held my breath as I saw the butt of a kiwi on the trail maybe six feet in front of me. It was standing on the stump of a fallen tree, looking for food. It waddled down the tree and walked closer to me. And then closer. And closer. Until it actually had its beak just on the edge of my shoes. It gave each of my shoes a whiff, said to itself “those stink,” and took a few steps away from me. It looked back in the direction of my shoes, then ran off into the bush. While I had read of people’s experiences having kiwi come up to their shoes, I was honestly gob smacked to have had the experience myself. Such an intimate, memorable experience that I will forever be grateful to have had. Amazing!!! (Also, please note the kiwi may look small in the images but they are actually pretty big. The one below is like the size of a chicken haha.)

What a night. That was officially my last time spotting a kiwi, but hey… three encounters in six nights is not bad at all. Many people go to Rakiura hoping to see a kiwi and don’t get the opportunity. I’m really grateful I had the privilege of observing them, and for a decent amount of time.

If I am to return to Rakiura in the future, I think I’d like to take things a step further and actually switch my sleep schedule to be sleeping during the day, awake during the night. Apparently, kiwi are most active and closer to town at like 4am… but I just couldn’t do it. I wanted to hike during the day, too, damn it! It also was sometimes a little boring to be by myself kiwi spotting. It would’ve been nice to have some company instead of just walking around and around and around by myself for hours at night. I couldn’t listen to music, either, because I needed to make sure I could hear for any rustling in the bush.

And lastly… one thing that was pretty cool about the 12.30am kiwi experience, and that I only realized in hindsight, is that was actually my 12 year anniversary of being sober (in Aotearoa time zone anyway). A gift from the universe???

Rakiura Track to Kaipipi Bay

With only two full days left in Rakiura, I decided to head back to the Rakiura Track, but this time from the other end of the trail.

While the hike to Māori Beach was really easy and hardly had any mud at all, the track from Oban to Mason’s Hut was… VERY muddy. Almost immediately, I was having to hop over puddles and then pools of mud stretching the whole length of the path. I can’t believe that during the six hour hike, I never got my shoes as dirty as during my Green Lake Hut experience. But I’m grateful for that haha.

The walk to Mason’s Hut was going to be about 4.5 hours and I wasn’t up for the whole thing – I decided to go to Kaipipi Bay and then a little bit further. Most people start the Rakiura Track in Lee Bay and finish from the way I was entering this round. It was neat to see a lot of people along the way, wrapping up their three day hike. Some people that passed had mud almost to the top of their gum boots, which were halfway up their leg. No, thanks!

While it was a beautiful hike, it was honestly so, so muddy. It was like playing a game of hopscotch trying to avoid getting muddy. On the way back, I nearly gave up, but I am proud to say my shoes managed to stay somewhat mud-free.

Return to Ulva

On my final day on Rakiura, I decided I needed to return to Ulva Island and spend as much time as I could hoping to see a kiwi in the daytime. I so, so, SO wanted a picture of one with my nice camera – but I was pushing it. No such luck haha. This is maybe me being superstitious or thinking I have a Bargaining God, but it’s kind of like back when I really wanted to see a frilled-neck lizard. While I really wanted to see an ADULT frilly (and one with its frills out) I never got to. But what I did get was to see like six baby frillies, which in many ways is actually cuter. This is the same. I got some super special moments with the kiwi, but I wasn’t able to get a photograph of one during the day, which is admittedly extremely rare anyway.

So, I spent five hours walking around, hoping to see one but to no avail. However, I did finally understand why Ulva Island is regarded as such a great bird-watching place. I was slightly discouraged on my first visit because I was expecting birds would be all over the island, at every step. On my final visit, I realized there are pockets of birds. A whole slew of birds took over the patch of forest I was walking in. They came in like a tornado, a whole bunch of yellow heads and some red-headed parakeets, even some South Island robins. It was pretty cool to see so many birds come through the area and then retreat further into the bush, making their way to their next feeding grounds.

I was on Ulva from 8am to 1pm and afterwards, I rested at the hostel and watched Dawson’s Creek.

In the evening, I went to the restaurant to get dinner. Just before leaving, I heard Topaz by The B-52’s playing – a song that will always and forever remind me of moving to Perth, Australia. It was a cool moment because I’ve never heard that on the radio before. It was a nice sendoff from Rakiura, since it was my final night in town.

Afterwards, I spent a few hours walking around, hoping for one final sighting of a kiwi but no such luck. While slightly discouraged, I returned to my hostel dorm, glad I was able to have the few experiences that I had. Imagine the only one I’d seen was the split second of a butt running away from me? Imagine I’d seen no kiwi? I had twenty minutes my first night, and a few more minutes where one actually came up and smelled my shoes. Very, very special. “Seeing a kiwi is almost a spiritual experience,” I once read – and I kinda feel the same!

I woke up at 7am the next morning to catch the ferry back to Bluff. It was much less bumpy than the initial ride, which I was thankful for. Goldie got me back to Queenstown, and today was my first day back to work.

I had such a wonderful time in Rakiura. While I’d like to be back again, I’m not positive I will. The ferry rides are $110 each way and there is so, so much else to see in Aotearoa. We’ll see. I’d love to see my kiwi again, but if not… I’ll cherish the experiences I had.

Soberversary

As of April 26th, I celebrated 12 years sober.

Earlier [the other day], while walking the Rakiura Track in Aotearoa New Zealand, I took a quiet moment of reflection.

I looked at the lush greenery around me and thought a number of things to myself. The most obvious – look where I am now. Look what I’ve seen and what I’ve done.

The people I’ve met, the new interests I’ve taken to over the years, the growth I’ve made as an artist.

I had such a narrow view of the world, of life, as a teenager. I hope my view continues to broaden, as it has been.

I think it’s safe to say I’ve changed enormously in the past twelve years.

I’m not angry like I was.
I’m not sad like I was.
I’m still anxious, but not like I was.

I’m a better friend, a better son.

I learned to love myself.

Not everything’s perfect all the time, but life isn’t really supposed to be, is it?

My mom told me she saw a psychic many years ago and in terms of my life, she told my mom I’m meant “to experience.” The good, the bad – all of it. While I’m not necessarily sold on psychics, she certainly got that bit right.

My dad says I tend to be lucky – like with spotting wildlife I want to see, or having clear skies with my family during the solar eclipse. But I think the luckiest thing in my life has been that I got the chance to keep living. Not everyone from my past survived. And there was a point back then where I didn’t even want to. It was grim.

I wouldn’t say I’m the perfect AA-goer. I attend meetings about once a week. Some people I talk to are surprised I still go that often and maybe some people reading this might think I should go more haha. I go for a lot of reasons, but above all, it is necessary for me to remind myself of where things were. They are nowhere near that anymore… and yet, with some bad decisions, I could be right back there in the blink of an eye.

I don’t think about using anymore. I haven’t for a long time. It just isn’t an option. The life I’ve been given has been so much more rewarding than the life I lead before. I don’t think there is a single thing that could happen to me that would make me want to use. That’s pretty cool.

I’m so grateful to be sober! I’m so grateful to have a loving and supportive family – blood & chosen.

Miscellaneous

One thing of note is that while out kiwi hunting some nights, I would be startled to see… deer! It’s funny to shine your light on such a big creature when looking out for something much tinier. I think I must have seen seven deer while on the island.

My trip to Rakiura (and the states as well) was kind of funny to me because in a way, it is like a Vacation Inside A Vacation. Being in Aotearoa is a vacation in itself… and then I’m going on vacation to Rakiura?

Some days at the hostel were driving me crazy because there were a bunch of kids screaming and running around in the earlier hours of the morning. School holidays were going on in New Zealand, so they were a bit insufferable. I also had a snoring roommate one night which was awful, but luckily he was only there for an evening.

One day, I went to the Visitor Center and saw a taxidermy kākāpō. I likely won’t get the opportunity to see one in real life since there are only something like 250 left in existence and they are all heavily protected by the Department of Conservation. Still, wasn’t expecting to see this guy at the Rakiura Visitor Center! They used to be the most common bird in all of Aotearoa. (They are also the heaviest parrots in the world.)

Finally – I was a bit of a bad boy. On my second night on Rakiura, I walked over to the airstrip to go kiwi spotting. I’d heard the “edge of the airstrip” is a good spot to see them… so I walked along the road towards the airstrip, even though there was a sign that said No Entry. I thought to myself, “well, that’s probably like a Government Thing, and the locals don’t even really care? Because why would people put that online if so?” Sure enough, a cop pulled me over and asked me what I thought I was doing haha. I was like “mmmmmm, looking for kiwi?” He then asked where I heard that it was a good spot for them, and I told him Reddit. He made a note about Reddit but thankfully he didn’t give me a fine. Thank you, nice Oban Police Officer! I’m still scratching my head as to where people are talking about when they say the edge of the airstrip – because I know for a fact there are some tours that take you there. Maybe they have special permission or something?

Art of the Week

I don’t have any art to share this week because I didn’t bring my sketchpad to Rakiura with me, but I do have something really fun planned for next week! What I do have is some new images uploaded to my RedBubble site, if anyone is interested in ordering some stickers or magnets!

Reflections

I’d like to take a moment to mention that I have been blogging basically every week for over a year and a half at this point – save for a brief break while I was home from mid August to mid October. I initially wasn’t sure if I wanted to make that commitment prior to Australia, but I’m so glad I have. While I don’t often go back and read old posts, it will be pretty amazing to recall all the vivid memories in my later years. Even now, I’ll occasionally read the post from my first week in Australia, or my first post from Aotearoa. I like to read those things to see how I was feeling, what my expectations and hopes were – and to compare things to how it turned out.

While in Rakiura, I made a list of some other weekend trips I’m interested in doing in the future, but I think I’m going to take it easy for a weekend or two and settle back into life in Queenstown. I’ll be volunteering at Kiwi Park this Saturday and I’m looking forward to sharing my kiwi experiences with the gang!

Until next time – I’m sending you all my love! x