Safari .... OOA

That's it - we are officially 'out of adjectives' (OOA). We continued our adventures today not knowing really what we were doing (surprise). We had reserved a 'Dart River Safari'. The descriptions & information varied, depending on the literature you read. It turned into quite an adventure. A bus picked us at 7:15 this morning & then made several stops at hotels along the way for other 'adventurers and fun couples'. We left Queenstown for a 45 minute drive to Glenorchy. After introducing ourselves to each other we found we were among Californians and a recent transplant to NZ from Texas - a UT grad. Gotta love the enthusiasm of UT fans as several 'horns' in the bus went up!

We were on the first boat up the river & still wondering what we were getting into as we put on life vests & raincoats. The jet boat(with a 500cu in, 400hp V8 with a Holley quad) was about an hour long ride along the Dart river in the Mt. Aspiring National Park. We drove alongside towering mountains, gorgeous waterfalls and beautiful wilderness areas. Along the way we saw a cow on the banks giving birth - amazing!
The real adventure came when the driver turned his hand in a 'ring'. Doing donuts in a jetboat in the middle of a river....outstanding.
As everyone held on, he threw the boat into a spin. Really fun, really fast & at times, really wet!! The thrill seeking opportunities just never stop in Queenstown.

After our boat adventure, we took the 'land' part of our tour. A sedate walk of about 20 minutes long through ancient forests, unchanged for 80 million years. We heard stories about the area and its history - including the quest by early Maori for highly prized pounamu (jade greenstone). Interestingly, no ferns in this forest. Too dry they told us. Only 22 feet of rain per year. Let me repeat that ONLY 22 FEET of rain per year! Lots of moss covering everything. It looked like green carpet on the forest floor.

A couple of hare running through the forest ahead of us just added to the charm



Back on the bus we drove for a photo op to
Paradise (we just thought it was in Texas) and back to our starting point to change buses before making our way back to the various hotels.

Spending a few hours recharging before heading out to a local winery for an early dinner. We have been invited to watch a movie tonight with our hosts & friends of theirs. I had the task of providing a list of

movies I thought we'd like although they made sure to tell me they had veto power. Mike & Bill's good friends Ian and Jan joined us for the evening at the movies. Mike & Bill surprised us with a 30th anniversary cake and champagne. Then it was off to the Zephyr, the beautiful art deco movie theater complete with 3 sets of curtains, digital surround sound, popcorn, recliners, candy, you name it. Truly awesome. The Bourne Identity wasn't bad either.