Thrillseeking in NZ's Adventure Capital.

Wednesday, October 22
South Island: Queenstown

We were up extra early the next morning in order to catch the shuttle into town for our early-morning jetboat ride down the Shotover River. We had to meet at The Station – the hub in Queenstown for all things adventure sports – in order to get bussed to the river (which, coincidentally, ran basically right past our hotel). It was a chilly, clear morning, and we were almost happy to receive our ridiculous raincoats and life vests before we boarded our boat.

A jetboat, in case you’re wondering, works almost like I’d expect a hover craft to work. It zips really fast down the river, skimming along the top of the water at ridiculous speeds. Our driver was fun and delivered a thrilling ride – 360-degree turns, taking curves at breakneck speed, and coming dangerously close to the Shotover Canyon walls. We were definitely glad that we had paid a little extra for the Shotover Jet – it was well worth it. And, to top it all off, the handrails on the boats were heated, which helped take a little of the bite out of the ride.

Following our exhilarating wake-up ride, we took some photos by the river, and then it was time for my helicopter ride. Jamie and Andrea walked back to the hotel, and were going to meet me back in town. I boarded another bus with three others, and we were driven up Coronet Peak. The mountain is used as one of Queenstown’s ski fields in the winter months, and also as a taking-off point for a lot of the helicopter tours that pan over the city.

Since I was by myself, I got to sit up front in the chopper, right in front of the control panel next to the pilot. Taking off was a lot different than I was expecting it to be. It’s not at all like taking off in a plane, where you can feel yourself being pushed back into your seat as it accelerates. Taking off in a helicopter feels almost like floating… you’re on the ground one second, and the next you’re hovering feet above it and banking toward the mountains. It’s a loud experience – we all had to wear earphones – but amazing all the same.

Our first stop was the Queenstown Gondola (where the girls and I had had our adventure the afternoon before) to drop one of the passengers off. Coming in to land was almost as fun as taking off; the pilot had a small little square of concrete to set the chopper down on.

After our quick stop, it was over Lake Wakatipu and into the Remarkables. We landed above where the winter ski fields are, at 1538 meters. There was still snow up there, and the city of Queenstown was nothing more than a tiny collection of dollhouses laid out at the foot of the mountains.

We stayed in the mountains for a short while, taking in the birds-eye view, and then headed back down to the Queenstown airport. We thanked our pilot, and then caught a shuttle back to The Station. Andrea and Jamie were already waiting for me there, checking out other exciting things to do. Drebo really wanted to go both parasailing and river surfing. I decided I could spare another $70 to do the parasailing with her, but she signed up for river surfing that afternoon by herself. (River surfing is basically what it sounds like… You get a boogie-board type thing, and float down a river of rapids. Not exactly my idea of a good time.)

We all headed down to the lake front in time for our parasailing. Andrea and I felt bad leaving Jamie out, but she assured us that she’d be back to do it with Adam in a few weeks. Plus, her being on the ground meant that she could be our photographer.

Andrea and I hopped the parasailing boat, which was manned by two younger kiwi guys and their excitable dog. They strapped Andrea and me into our harnesses, and before we knew it, we were going up, up, up into the clear sky above Lake Wakatipu beneath our large smiley face parachute. The sun rose higher in the sky as we were pulled along behind the boat, but it was still a chilly ride. There was one instance where we dipped so close to the water that I thought we were going in, which amused Andrea a bit. I still stand beside my fear – that water would have been freezing!

After we got back to the dock, we headed back into town to find some lunch. We decided on Winnie’s, possibly my favorite discovery in Queenstown. It’s a pizza place, essentially, but it’s set up like a ski lodge complete with retractable roof, and their pizza is thin-crusted, wood-fired, and delicious. We ordered a large “Americana” (basically a pepperoni pizza) and sat ourselves down right next to the fireplace. My fingers were numb after being above the river so long, and the heat felt amazing.

Andrea headed back to The Station after lunch in order to do her river surfing, and Jamie and I decided to make use of our free time and our last afternoon with our rental car. We ended up driving about half an hour to Arrowtown, a quaint little mining town that is famous for being just what it is.

The afternoon was sunny, and Jamie and I just walked the streets of Arrowtown, snapping photos and taking it all in. We stopped in a photography shop, and also Patagonia Chocolates to pick up a snack and a post-surfing treat for Andrea.

We drove back to Queenstown via a different road, which took us past Lake Hayes and eventually to the airport, where we had to turn in the rental car. Jamie and I hung around at the tiny airport until we could catch a bus back into town. Once we got there, we had some time to kill before Andrea was due to get back, so we took a stroll along the shore, where a lot of people had the same idea as us.

Queenstown has such a great, eclectic atmosphere, especially considering its tiny size. We saw a conglomeration of tourists – since they’re who really make Queenstown the resort town that it is – and didn’t mind fitting into that category ourselves for once. Sometimes, I have no shame in being a camera-toting tourist.

We met an exhausted Andrea back at The Station around 6, and decided we could all benefit from a relaxing night in after our various adventures. We settled on getting take-out from Fergburger (basically the most delicious burger place in the entire world), and catching the free shuttle back to our hotel to lounge around, share our stories, and watch TV.

Going to bed early in preparation for an early start the next morning was – needless to say – not a problem for us at all.