vnar

My husband and I are planning our first visit to the South Island...an earlier plan was canceled due to my back injury so we are planning a less arduous schedule this time around and keeping our fingers crossed.

We arrive in Christchurch on November 20 and at this time we have planned our rental car pick-up for the 22nd, to drive to Picton via Kaikourra.

On the 21st, our current options are a small group tour to Akaroa via the Summit Drive or the Tranzalpine to and fro.

Which of these options would offer more spectacular views at that time of year and is one clearly superior? Also, if the train should we go up to Arthur's Pass or all the way to Greymouth?

And is there a third better option for our 1.5 days in Christchurch? We can rent the car on day one if needed.

Thank you so much for thoughts!

Melnq8

They're both good, and entirely different from one another.

The trip across Arthur's Pass is very pretty, but much more so in a car than on the train, as the train spends a fair bit of time in tunnels.

It also gets a bit tedious when one takes it round trip, so personally, I'd only go as far as Arthur's Pass.

A third better option - perhaps rent that car and drive over Arthur's Pass to Greymouth yourself. As you approach the West Coast the landscape changes dramatically - from dry, alpine arid to lush green. Long day there and back though.

Or drive to Akaroa yourself - there are some very pretty bits that you won't see on a bus and some very nice walking tracks along the 'rim'. You could spend the night of Nov 21 in Akaora, then head up north from there.

Some photos of each to whet your appetite:

Akaroa/Banks Peninsula -

https://www.flickr.com/photos/melnq8...57647778224945

The first half of these photos are from the drive over Arthur's Pass (albeit on a beautiful day):

https://www.flickr.com/photos/melnq8...57647359975200

tasmangirl

Akaroa might be the most enjoyable if you have back trouble. You can stop and admire the views as you drive around Banks Peninsula.
A long car trip over Arthur's Pass would mean sitting most of the day in the car.

Thelittlestkiwi

I think Akaroa is a much nicer day trip and a small group tour is a great way to do it. There's loads of history in the area and I think a local guide would really make it an interesting day. Lots of beautiful views too.

Diamantina

Melnq8, did you visit Akaroa in September? I was wondering about the daffodils in your photos. We visited several years ago in August and it was as sunny as the time you visited. We were amazed to see a fruiting lemon tree. In winter on the South Island!

It's a lovely place.

vnar

Thank you all for your thoughts. Mel, your photos are beautiful and make it even harder to decide!

I think we are leaning towards the Akaroa tour at this point. I did write to the tour company and they said they would be flexible with the schedule and stops so we can enjoy the views and perhaps do one or two short walks on the rim.

Keeping our fingers crossed for a sunny blue day!

Thanks again!

Melnq8

<<Melnq8, did you visit Akaroa in September>>

Yep!

Diamantina

I'm looking forward to daffodil season and I've been meaning to revisit Akaroa—based on your photos, early September seems like a good time.

Melnq8

Diamantina -

We had a beautiful day and a totally crappy day while we were there. The purple flowers (Pride of Madeira?) were spectacular.

Diamantina

Melnq8,
I agree, "Pride of Madeira" (Echium candicans), are striking. After seeing so many in Dunedin, I asked a keen gardener friend about them. I guess they've become a pest, like many introduced species. But nonetheless nice to look at! They're considered invasive in California as well, but I never noticed them there. A related species, Echium vulgare, also known as "Viper's Bugloss," is considered a top-tier honey-bee plant. You might have seen the honey for sale on your travels through the country.

Melnq8

Interesting Diamantina. I know gorse is a huge problem in NZ (and it seems to get worse every time we visit), but I had no idea those beautiful purple blooms were a pest.

Diamantina

You're absolutely right about gorse. It's one of NZ's most notorious weeds, as it's highly tolerant, hard to get rid of, and its seeds spread easily and are long-lived. It's also a problem in Oregon and northern California.

Another major problem for NZ is wilding pines. They're removing them around places like Wanaka/Hawea and Queenstown/Wakitupu Basin, and replanting natives, which will take a while to grow.

Russell lupin is another weed with stunning blooms (and that has many defenders). Annual blooms in Mackenzie Country, especially around Lake Tekapo, are a major tourist attraction! (As I'm sure you know). Gorgeous photos here:
http://www.dangerous-business.com/20...g-new-zealand/
http://www.sisson.co.nz/blog/new-zea...lupin-flowers#
http://www.stuff.co.nz/business/farm...-invasive-weed

My favorite winter-spring bloom is fortunately the native kowhai, the unofficial national flower. At citizenship ceremonies in Dunedin, Napier, Rotorua (and probably many other places), new Kiwis are given a kowhai plant to symbolize the planting of new roots in their adopted country.

Melnq8

Wow, I had no idea that lupins were weeds either! They're so pretty.

Are wilding pines the ones they're killing en masse around Skippers Canyon? Surely any tree is better than a dead tree? I remember hearing that Canada geese are also viewed as a pest in NZ - this surprised me - do they pose some sort of threat?

Just occurred to me I could just Google, but since I've already typed all this...do you happen to know?

Diamantina

"Wow, I had no idea that lupins were weeds either!"
Yes, it's a bummer. You can see a list of other NZ weeds here:
http://www.weedbusters.org.nz/weed-i...ion/weed-list/
There are some gorgeous flowers on this list, including the California poppy and the Banana passionfruit.

According to the NZ Plant Conservation Network, "Over 30,000 introduced plant species occur in New Zealand, arriving here either deliberately or accidentally and many have adapted well to the New Zealand environment. Of these more than 2,500 have naturalised into the New Zealand environment meaning they have established and are reproducing in the wild. Of these naturalised species more than 300 plants have become environmental weeds meaning they impact detrimentally on the structure, functions or composition of New Zealand's indigenous plant communities, waterways and fauna."

"Are wilding pines the ones they're killing en masse around Skippers Canyon?"
Most likely. Wilding pines are hardy non-natives that squeeze out native plants and animals, drain water from catchments, and generally make the soil too acid for the regeneration of native forests. The first half of the 2010 article from NZ Geographic is interesting:
https://www.nzgeo.com/stories/wilding-pines/
More info on the DOC page:
http://www.doc.govt.nz/nature/pests-...ding-conifers/
Have a look at the three photos on this link of spreading wilding pines over 17 years. It's shocking.
http://www.odt.co.nz/opinion/opinion...ers-moral-duty

I guess the Canada geese are considered a pest by farmers because they eat grasses meant for livestock. They also leave droppings, which are messy and unsanitary.

Geese are tenacious. For the last year or so, the Dunedin community of Port Chalmers grappled with how to deal with a small gaggle of 8 greylag geese frequenting and leaving droppings in their sports field. They resolved to move them to Lake Waihola, rather than cull them, but efforts to catch them failed. Then a local farmer offered to home them, but, again, they couldn't be rounded up. Finally, about a month ago, they decided culling was the only option. So they killed 6 but 2 got away. They two geese later returned with two more geese! They were culled as well.
http://www.odt.co.nz/news/dunedin/39...ver-after-cull