Hello All,

I slept pretty well that night and woke up at around 7:30 and had breakfast with Anderson. It was kinda sad to be losing a friend, but I knew it had to happen so I got over it quickly. I made it to the bus stop a good 10 minutes early and waited for the bus.

This bus was operated by a different company than InterCity who I had been using, so it was a little smaller. The ride was pleasant and smooth with views of small towns, lots of sheep and cattle, and rolling hills. It gets more flat the further south you go.

I arrived in Invercargil and was dropped off near the iSite and Museum. I walked the short distance to the Hostel, a beautiful restored Victorian home, dropped my bags, and asked for some information about the area. I then proceeded back to the iSite and Museum. I discovered the cheapest way to get to Stewart was to fly. I had the travel agent lady call and she told me to call the company after 6:00 PM that night.

I then explored the museum which was very poor compared to the other NZ standards. It didn’t take too long to go through the entirety of the museum because it was poorly laid out and fairly uninteresting. I then headed to the city which is something out of the 1950’s with the city center. This city was definitely NOT designed for tourists. I checked some of the local second hand shops, ate some delicious Noodles with Chicken, and generally explored. I then went to Pak n save to stock up on food for backpacking. I returned to the hostel, prepared my food, cleaned up, arranged my flight for the morning, and went to bed.

I got up early the next morning, made breakfast (3 Pieces of toast sandwich with nutella! YUM!) and walked the 5K to the airport. It was $12 for the shuttle and I figured the exercise was good. It took about 45 minutes and because I left early I got there in plenty of time. I was fortunate as the Hostel stored my extra stuff for free so my pack was a light 17 kilos. The plane was a small 10 seater and it was packed. We set off for the short flight across the straight. We landed without complications and were shuttled to the main village Oban.

There it was raining and I walked to the DoC office, paid for the huts, dropped off my tents, picked up a map, and set off. The beginning of the trail was on paved roads and I picked up a 4k side trail to observation Point.

I am just going to summarize my time on Stewart Island. For three days the wind blew, I got rained and hailed on, and was cold/soaked for a lot of the time. It was good fun and the walk was interesting. It was mostly boardwalk and what wasn’t was just mud. The views were less than impressive because of the weather and the fact that the track was mainly a bushwalk. The huts were very nice and I met some nice people and did some wonderful reflecting and redrafted my mission statement. Although now I can’t seem to find it. The rain on Stewart Island was wicked when combined with the wind it often blew sideways. I dreaded coming to unprotected spots because of the immense amount of rain I got pelted with. The winds were blowing consistently 40-70 kph with gusts up to 150 kph. It was wicked!

On the second night, it was a smaller group in the hut and it was a lot of fun. We even got to play spoons! Overall it was well worth it, but I am not sure it is really a “Great Walk.” Maybe more of a Mud and Bush Walk.

Upon arriving back in town, I checked in with the DoC, picked up my tent from storage, checked in on the flights of the island, and then went to a wonderful little Fish n Chips place. I had never eaten Fish and Chips before so it was a good change. The fish was good and the chips were excellent. I then explored what little of the town there was and basically just killed time before my flight back.

While waiting for the flight I met some Americans. It was a family, the older son was studying abroad and the parents were visiting. We then boarded a shuttle (there were 2 planes full of people leaving) and headed to the airstrip. The wind was quite strong and our shuttle parked at the end of the airstrip. This was a unique experience watching the small planes buzz in right above us and attempt to land. The first landing went astray due to some wicked cross winds, and he had to abort. The second plane was more fortunate but it was still quite crazy.

On my first flight over, I saw that you could sit right next to the pilot so I wanted to do that. I got in the seat, and had to put my foot in the middle of the rudder controls so as not to mess with them. It was a wonderful viewpoint, well worth the $55. The flight bank was amazing and we banked fairly hard to make the approach back to the mainland. The landing was quite easy.

I collected my bag and hitched a ride with a local back to the Hostel where my stuff was stored. I soon found out that they nor any other backpackers or hotel in the city had a room available for under $150 a night. That is over a weeks worth of accommodation! I decided then with my tent to sleep in the park. Queen’s park was a large park so I figured there would be plenty of space. I found a spot near the wooden fence that formed a corner and set up my tent. I knew the winds would be wicked so I used an extra secure setup. After getting set-up, I collected my most valuable things and set off to get some dinner.

I decided on a Kebab place, ate dinner and desert and then returned to my tent. It was about 9:00 PM so it was about time to go to bed. I did worry there was a chance of being robbed or found by the cops, but due to the cold, wind, and occasional rain I didn’t think it was too terrible.

I didn’t sleep too well, but it sufficed. It wasn’t really sleep but a series of naps. I was warm but I still woke up a lot. The next morning at about 9 AM I packed up and checked in to the hostel. I wanted to feel clean and human again and I had a wonderful shit, shower, and shave. Tired of my long hair, I then set out for a barber shop found one and got about 80% of my hair cut off.

I then explored the town, bought some food and a book, and basically just took it easy for the day. I then took a quick nap, read, and explored some more. I wrote some final postcards, cooked dinner at the hostel, talked with some people and went to bed.

I woke up on Sunday morning early (5:00 AM) Made my Nutella Breakfast and set-out for the airport. I checked in and my flights went easy.

I arrived back at Wellington Sunday morning at around 9:30 and took a bus to my flat!

All the best!

-Mathias