Yes it has been a while!

Hey folks! It pleased me to see 6 of you looked at my blog yesterday to see if I've done anything. Or one of you six times. Cuuuuuuuuute! Well... here's a cheeky little summink to soak up your time and make your day feel a little more full! And I bet the rain's lead so many of you to the computer huh. Did for me! It's odd: I got back from Fiordland yesterday, being the wettest part of the country by a long shot and besides a light shower down there, this is the first rain I've seen in weeks! Typical Auckland... Always welcomes me back with rain.

What was I doing in Fiordland I ask as if you were asking? Tramping! Trekking! Hiking! Walking! Take your pick. I went with the whanau plus a couple of the rents' Palmy friends for 12 days. From our base in Te Anau we did the Milford Track, Milf for short, and then the Kepler Track, both 4 day/3 night tramps, both stunning. The Milf was amazing. You catch a ferry 1 hour up to the end of Lake Te Anau (biggest lake volume-wise in NZ) so that where you start is already well and truly in the wild. You then walk up a beautiful valley besides rivers and streams for 2 days, tucked in between incredibly, impassibly steep peaks on both sides. Patches of snow still resisting summer up the top of the peaks were melting so that waterfalls were commonplace. Combine all this with sunny blue skies everyday, birds who sang and called to us constantly, and even came to check us out from time to time, and the amazing New Zealand bush, for me it was truly a picture of heaven. Only sand flies and snorers in the huts could dampen the experience a little. On the third day, a steep climb brought us up to a ridge between the two valleys we'd walk through, and the views from the top made the climb worth it. A panorama of magnificent peaks. Absolutely breath taking! Along the way I loved meeting people. It was cool how our group of 40 bonded over the trip, as we bumped into each other along the walks or prepared our meals together in the huts. Tramping's such a great way to meet interesting people. I'm so keen for more!

Kepler was quite a different track. We could start this one from our cabin in Te Anau. The first day was a climb up from Lake Te Anau through native bush to Luxmore Hut. The second day was pretty much all walking alone a thin ridge, high on the mountains looking out over Fiordland's peaks which carry on into the horizon. It was awesome seeing it from a different perspective, above the bush line. The third and fourth day were both very easy, just following rivers down relatively flat valleys. Nice just for thinking and talking and listening. That's the beauty of tamping for me - just having space to think as you walk to a nice rhythm. After 10 minutes of walking it's like you zone out and enter another world. Very ponderous. I like it. I'm seriously considering walking Te Araroa next year. That's the length of NZ walkway which they've almost finished creating. Dad reckons it'd take 6 months. I'm keen as punch. If anyone wishes to join me and anytime, anywhere, join me! Not definite yet, but seriously considering it.

Anyway, we'd all better get on with something else now. Maybe write your Christmas Wish List or something! Haha. I hope y'all are having as good holidays as I am :)