send me on my way.

I'm closing in on my final week in Te Anau (eeek!).  Six months seem like an eternity and the blink of an eye.  While I'll be genuinely sad to leave this new home, I am honestly looking forward to traveling around a bit and then settling in elsewhere for winter work.  Starting next week, Lyn and I will be embarking on a good two-week roadtrip around the South Island, ticking some more hiking goals off our list.  We'll start out with... 

Photo from The Big Outside.



the Rees-Dart Track, in Mt Aspiring National Park.



Photo from Atlas of Wonders.



and then maybe the Earnslaw Burn?



Photo from Alpine Fever, which is a really awesome website by the way.



Or Mueller Hut in Aoraki/Mt Cook National Park?



And then up to Nelson Lakes National Park and Angelus Hut. 

Photo from Barry and Jodie's Kiwi Adventure.

And then on to Taupo for me!  I'm heading there at the end of May to be with Cory for a couple weeks before we set out on a road trip of our own (destinations unknown) to slowly work our way back down to Lake Ohau, where we'll both be working for the winter at the ski fields there (me in the ticket office and Cory as a lifty)!  We're both really looking forward to finally living in the same place and being able to snowboard and explore a new area together.  Ever the Lord of the Rings geek, I've been rewatching each film and eyeballing the landscape around Twizel, the nearest town to Ohau.  Here's a teaser:


Photo from Dylan Cole Studio.

Now if only that giant white city was actually there, I'd think I'd died and gone to heaven.  Well, maybe I have anyway...let's not forget that I won't be far from the majestic Aoraki/Mt Cook, New Zealand's highest peak, and we all know I'm a sucker for mountains.  And the beautiful turquoise waters of Lake Ohau.  I think I can handle it.  So send me on my way.