* The Southern Dip from the CamperVan

(from the desk of Serena) Let's see... Last time I wrote it was from East to West. Now we're on West to East, via the South. We spent Saturday night camped in Queenstown. As Terry was writing the last post, we also saw Jason and Robin in the internet cafe. They were with us on our blackwater caving adventure. We then ran into them at the check-in for Fox Glacier. (They went on a different tour.) After Terry got done writing the post, the five of us went out to a bar together. Then Terry, Rachel, and I wandered around town for a bit.

Sunday morning started with a jet-boating trip. Justin, you'll be jealous. A jetboat sucks water in through on onboard propeller and shoots it out the back. They actually have two propellers, and that's how they turn. Also, once they get up on the water, they only need four inches to keep going. Our driver took us within inches of canyon walls. We also did 360 degree spins within a boat length at top speed - the only time that we got slightly wet on the journey. Sunday afternoon we split up. Terry went off-roading on a Lord of the Rings tour, while Rachel and I took a steamboat ride to a farm where we went horseback riding. Unfortunately we didn't get to do much riding - mostly sitting on the horses following our guide. But the scenery was gorgeous! (As if anything here isn't!) We also got to see a sheepdog at work bringing in sheep and a sheep-shearing demonstration. We met up with Terry at the camper about 6 pm and left for Manapouri, the gateway to Doubtful Sound.

Monday morning after calling a happy birthday wish to my mom, we got on a cruise to Doubtful Sound, which is actually the second largest fjord in New Zealand - larger than Milford Sound. It was an extensive tour during the eight hours - we took a boat ride across Laka Manapouri, switched to a motorcoach for an hour's drive across the mountains, and then got onto another cruiser to enjoy Doubtful Sound. History note: Doubtful Sound was originally named Doubtful Harbour by Captain Cook. As he sailed pass he declined to go in for fear that he would have unfavorable winds and be unable to make it out again. There are two islands that block the entrance to the Sound from most of the waves and breakers from the sea. Really, there are no words to describe the beauty we saw. There is no way to reach Doubtful Sound by vehicle without crossing Lake Manapouri, so we were the only ones out there. There was a time when the captain cut the engines and we got to spend a few minutes just listening to the nature around us.

On arriving back to shore we had dinner and then made our way Southeast to Invercargill. We were unable to meet up with the other group during our one night stay. This morning we got up and hit the road, after stopping at a pharmacy to get Rachel some medicine. Hopefully she can get over this cold soon so she can go scuba diving! She crashed in the back today while Terry drove us from Invercargill along the Southern Scenic Route to Dunedin. We stopped for some amazing views of the Ocean. At Curio Bay we saw the fossils of a 180-million year old forest (Think Jurassic Period). Repeated volcanic eruptions fossilized the tree stumps and some fallen logs which were buried by the sedintary rock. The remains can only be seen at low tide, which we were fortunate enough to be there for. All the Ocean views we saw were spectacular. The water was such a beautiful, pure blue-green. Rachel wants to live in the valleys of snow-capped mountains, but my home would be on a hill overlooking the ocean, so clear that you can tell the depths by the ocean color. Hopefully we'll get pictures up soon.

I hope you all are doing well!

Serena, Rachel, and Terry