Routeburn Track

Hello everyone!!

I suppose it is about time I update this blog since it's been a few months! I haven't really been up to anything too exciting other than writing papers and studying statistics and meanwhile I'm still seeing those patients with Osteoarthritis!

Anyway, I was finally able to get away for a weekend "tramp" this weekend over to the Routeburn Track which according to National Geographic is considered the 10th best hike in the WORLD!! I was joined by my friends Dan and Emily who helped push me along as we climbed these mountains!

We started off a a bit late on Friday evening meaning that we had to walk part of the first 2 hours in the DARK! Probably not smart considering some of the places we crossed are considered dangerous as avalanches can occur. Luckily, it's late summer so we didn't have too much risk. We arrived at our 48 bed bunk which was pretty nice and had some amazing views as it was located next to the Routeburn Falls. We then hiked the next day up to Harris Saddle along the mountain ridge and then down to Lake McKenzie hut. You'll see pictures of the lake below and that water is COLD!! Trust me! I know from personal experience!! ;). The next day we made it out of the track and back home!

Here is a bit about it according to the Deparment of Conservation of New Zealand!

The Routeburn Track traverses 32 kilometres of Mount Aspiring and Fiordland National Parks, part of Te Wāhipounamu – South West New Zealand World Heritage Area and is administered by the Department of Conservation on behalf of the New Zealand public.
Located in the southwest of the South Island the track extends between the head of Lake Wakatipu and S.H. 94, the Te Anau – Milford Road. The track passes through several avalanche paths colonised by ribbonwood, one of New Zealand’s few deciduous trees. Above the bushline between Lake Mackenzie and the Routeburn Falls are snow tussock grasslands, and herbfields with mountain buttercups, daisies, and ourisias. The Routeburn Track is one of New Zealand’s most popular tracks, with over 13,000 walkers completing the track each year.

Enjoy!

Day 1 Track

Lake McKenzie Rocks

Random Falls

Lake McKenzie


Routeburn Falls Hut


More Falls

Lake McKenzie and Emily Pass

Lake in the Mountains

River Valley

More of the Valley

OZ and New Zealand trip with Mom

Hey everybody!! It's definitely been awhile since my last blog as I was home for 3 weeks over Christmas and then my mom just came down for her first trip since I've been here and she stayed for about 2.5 weeks.

Christmas at home was great as I was able to see my new nephew Austin for the first time as he was born in October and this was my first time home since then. It was also great to have that time at home to be with friends and family.

But more on the "Down Under" trip. I met Mom in Cairns, Australia on January 15th. We were up there to see the Great Barrier Reef and I have a great picture of an enormous fish I saw while snorkeling up there. I'd love to go back there as I was only able to snorkel the one day and there was so much to see! I need to get my diving license!!

The following day we visited an aboriginal cultural center and a rainforest up near Carins. Threw and bought a boomerang even! :)

The following day we left for Syndey where we spent our first night dining at the Skytower Restaurant downtown Sydney. The next day was filled with a tour of the Sydney Opera house and then lunch on the harbour and lots of shopping! Mom and I were lucky that night as they have an "open air cinema" with recently released movies so we sat ouside on the harbour with th opera house and the sydney harbour bridge in the background as a screen rose and we watched a movie! It was really cool! The next morning mom and I woke up and went to the Taronga Syndey Zoo to see koalas, kangaroos, and tasmanian devils as well as other animals from all over the world. That night we had a harbour cruise with dinner and then a performance at the Syndey Opera House.

Then, we flew to Queenstown, New Zealand (mom's favorite). The first night we ate dinner at a fanstastic restaurant overlooking the city that can only be reached by Gondola, or possibly by goat or sheep! The next morning we boarded a bus and drove over to Milford Sound which is quite possibly one of the most beautiful sights in the world. The next day mom and I decided to take advantage of being in the adventure capital of the world as we did some white water rafting down grade 4 and 5 rapids! Mom LOVED it! Possibly the best part of her trip I think! We finished up that day with shopping and eating!

And last stop Christchurch but not before crossing the country by bus and stopping at Mt. Cook. In Christchurch we did a little shopping, visited the Antarctic Centre and also took a wildlife harbour cruise where we were able to see Hector Dolphin's (the world's smallest dolphin) and small blue penguins swimming in the water! It was really cool. We found out at the Antarctic Centre that 75% of the world's population flies to Antartica from Christchurch, NZ and there was even a US plane sitting outside.

Finally, mom came back to Dunedin with me to see where I live and what I'm up to. We did a horseback riding trip on the beach one day and saw a yellow eyed penguin standing on the beach alone. We also went out to the Albatross Colony and to some of the beautiful beaches here in Dunedin.

Well that pretty much covers the past 2 weeks. We had a great time and hopefully you enjoy some of the pictures from the trip. Not sure about my next adventure as of yet but am planning another "Great Walk" trip in May and possibly one before then.

I hope everyone is well!

love,
lexie

BIG FISH! GREAT BARRIER REEF!

WALLABY!

SYDNEY SKYLINE!

SYDNEY OPEN AIR CINEMA!

SYDNEY SKYTOWER RESTAURANT

OPERA HOUSE AND HARBOUR BRIDGE - SYDNEY

OPERA HOUSE

SYDNEY HARBOUR CRUISE DINNER
SYDNEY HARBOUR BRIDGE

LAZY KOALA!

MILFORD SOUND

HORSEBACK RIDING in DUNEDIN

ARAMOANA BEACH - DUNEDIN

Glacier Sea Kayaking - Mt. Cook

Well it was another weekend away and this time it took place in the west-central part of the Southern Island of New Zealand at Mt. Cook National Park. Mt. Cook is part of the Southern Alps and is the highest point in New Zealand standing just over 12,300 feet. Since they don't do Thanksgiving here and Turkey costs over $100 for a decent sized bird, some friends of mine and I decided to take a post "Thanksgiving holiday" to do some hiking and kayaking! This was our treat to ourselves!

Mt. Cook features gorgeous mountain ranges and there are over 70 named glaciers in this park. It's the neatest thing about New Zealand is one day you are walking on ice and in just a few hours you could be on a beach somewhere or in a rainforest climate! It's surreal!

Saturday we took a 4 hour hike out to one of the glacier lakes and later a small trip to another glacier lake where we were able to see several icebergs floating around having broken off from the main glacier. We were able to actually take kayaks into the water on one of these glacier lakes and were able to get within about 150 meters of the face of the glacier. It really is very active and you could hear and see rock falling off the glacier and small bits of ice coming up from under the water.

I'm attaching a few pictures from the weekend!
Hope you enjoy.

Kepler Track Y'all!!

Just to be clear, this is me getting my PhD! :)



So I was off to the Kepler Track this weekend! Another one of New Zealand's "Great Walks" which basically consists of unbelievable views and several days of hiking or "tramping" as it is known throughout New Zealand.


The Kepler Track is a 69 km or about 43 mile circular path that walks through part of the Fiordland National Park in the South West of the South Island of New Zealand.


Once again listed as an "easy" tramping track, I want to murder the guy or girl who rates these things because I walked 43 MILES in 4 days and up and down 1500 meters or nearly 4000 FEET!! It was NOT easy! :) I thought the bones in my feet nearly broken and by the time we reached the car, almost every muscle in my lower body collapsed!


Basically, the entire area was carved by glaciers from the ice age carving through the mountains and forming the lakes and valleys. Lots of ferns and beech forest cover the area and then there is the Alpine section where you traverse across the top of the mountain for some amazing views. You'll see!


So Day 1 took us about 4.5 hours to complete. You start by walking along Lake Te Anau through mountain and forest beech and then you CLIMB for 2 hours passing through limestone and eventually climb out of the tree line and hike to Luxmore Hut for the evening. It was starting to get windy that day so by the time we reached the hut, in another 2 hours we were sitting amidst a snow storm! Glad we made it to the hut early and actually the snow made for AMAZING views the following day!

Walking out of the tree line

Track to Luxmore Hut

River through Mountains

Luxmore Hut (not a bad location!)

Headlamp heading to the caves!

On Day 2 we hiked from the Luxmore Hut to the Iris Burn Hut but not before climbing to the peak of Mt. Luxmore. We then followed the Forest Burn Saddle and ridge system for about 2 hours before then descending again to the Iris Burn shelter.

Luxmore Hut Morning After!

WOW!!

Te Anau Lake

Day 2 Track through Luxmore Mountain

Summit of Mount Luxmore

Alpine Ridge Trail!

Iris Burn Hut

Day 3 we hiked out of the Iris Burn Hut through the forest, pass a gorge and alongside a river before reaching our 3rd Hut, Moturau Hut, which sat lakeside to Lake Manapouri with yet more great views.

River Fun!

The Great Slip (1984) - Rainfall collapsed the mountain and formed this valley

River opening to Lake Manapouri

Moturau Hut

Enjoying my PhD on Lake Manapouri!

Lake Manapouri Sunset

Day 4 ended by walking through beech forest and wetland to Rainbow Reach and finally out to the carpark (parking lot) :)

Rainbow Reach