West Coast paradise
July 28, 2007 on 11:55 pm | In Snowboarding |
We have been in Wanaka since the start of July and were feeling a bit burnt out waiting for more snow to fall so we decided to take a trip to the West coast of New Zealand, a trip we have been looking forward to since we arrived. Like the west coast of Scotland the Westland of the South Island of New Zealand is well known for remote sandy beaches, stunning sea to mountian views and ancient mythology. I was curious to explore and compare as the West coast of Scotland, sepecially from Ullapool north is one of my favourite parts of Scotland.
It is a 2 hour drive from Wanaka to the West, similar to the drive time from Aviemore to say, Loch Inver. The drive takes you through some stunning scenery, along the side of Lake Hawea and then the far end of Lake Wanaka which is around 30 miles long. From the end of Lake Wanaka the road takes you through the Gates of Haast, a mountain pass which winds it’s way through the Haast mountains and meets the Haast river in the valley below on the way to the sea. To reach the interior lakes from the sea the native Maori used the rivers, often carrying their canoes over ridges to go from one river to the next as the land from the Gates of Haast to the sea is thick with rain forest full of dense jungle like vegetation.
It is easy to see why the fern is the national flower of New Zealand, as there are various types of fern everywhere here. From the very small to large, palm tree like ferns, the rain forest is full of them. I came accross an interesting tale concerning our very own Scottish Thistle while I was researching some of the mythology connected to Westland as it is known. Apparently a bold Scottish settler took some thistle seeds to New Zealand with him. His intentions were two fold as he thought this native flower would ward off home sickness but also deter any barefoot prowlers from entering his house at night when he slept. There are now Scottish Thistles all over New Zealand and the Maori name for them is exactly the same as the one for a Scotsman. Maybe they found the original seetlers a bit prickly! Maori healers boil the stems and roots of thistles and use the sap from this process to help heal cuts and wounds. I have yet to research if Scots healers do the same.
If the fern is the New Zealand thistle then the sand fly is up there with midgies in terms of annoying little west coast blighters go. When we got to Haast Beach, a very beautiful, long sandy beach, within ten mins we were inundated by swarms of biting black beasties. Sand flies are slightly larger than midgies but not as big as mosquitoes. Their bite is not so sore at first but later develops into an itchy lump. They were so irritating we wondered why no one had warned us about them and when we asked on our return why nobody had said anything we were met with a few “oh, yeah, we forgot to tell you about the sand flies.” Perhaps this happens a lot to tourists in Scotland too.
From Haast we headed up to Fox Glacier and Franz Joseph Glacier, both only a short distance from the coast and very beautiful. The snowy peaks were sharply contrasted by the bright green of the surrounding jungle. It was strange to see thich frost crystals on the evergreen ferns, the green and white an unusual combination in nature.
We saw a similar green and white combination when we took a walk to Munro Beach to try and find some penguins. We didn’t find any but we did find some beautiful green stone often next to the purest white quartz rock. The walk to Munroe beach took us through thich rain forest and gave us a feel for the inpenetrability of the jungle here. It is easy to see why the Maori poeple prefered to travel by water.
From Munro Beach it was time to travel back eastwards and back to the Mount Aspiring National Park. Coming back through the Gates of Haast the landscape changes from jungle to moorland, or tussock, as it is known here, a bit like when you leave the wooded areas around Ullapool to cross the heather moorland on the way back to the Cairngorm National Park. No wonder I feel quite at home here.
Lesley McKenna
http://www.chunkyknit.com
Professional snowboarder, film maker and ambassador for Visitscotland. All sorts of outdoor sports from skiing to mountain biking and now mixes her time on the Snowboard World Cup Tour with time in Scotland doing these sports.
