What can I say about the last few days we were all together in New Zealand? For starters we finally managed to have our first decent climbing experiences since Paynes Ford; all in places I had not had the pleasure to visit on my previous trip. To our collective amazement, the day following our epic journey to Jardine and Hulk Hogan dawned partially sunny. After a little group discussion we decided to try climbing at an area known as the Rastus Boulders (a bit of a misnomer, the climbs are all bolted) high in the Remarkables, however, we had a contingency plan this time; if the rock was wet or it was raining we’d simply embark on one of the many hikes originating in the same general area, weather be damned. As it turns out, we arrived at Rastus to a bright, beautiful, blazing sun, dry rock, and stunning mountain vistas. Taking full advantage of our change in fortune we had a fantastic time climbing until the sun began to sink in the western sky ushering in a sharp drop of temperature and we became so cold we could no longer feel our fingers! We then rushed “home” to Kristin and Matt’s and somehow seven people (including four girls who had to wash and dry their hair) utilizing two bathrooms managed to take showers and get ready to go out for a night of partying and celebrating in exactly one hour! While admittedly untraditional, Kristin’s hen party was quite the good time beginning with dinner at Bombay Palace, followed by drinks at Dux de Lux (an appropriate choice being the site where Kristin and Matt originally met) complete with flashing “Bachelorette” sash and paraphernalia, followed by more merriment, drinking, games, bull riding and one mini-fight at Cowboys (a bar I swear they picked up straight out of Texas and dropped in Queenstown), and finally a night cap and conversation at the more relaxed Skye Bar.
The next big event was the harbinger of the trip in the first place, Kristin and Matt’s wedding. The morning was spent getting pampered by having our hair and make-up professionally done courtesy of Kristin (and after over a week and a half of roughing it this was a truly decadent experience). We finished getting ready on location at the stunningly beautiful Stoneridge Estate which overlooks a private vineyard and Lake Hayes in a phenomenal mountain setting. Kristin looked gorgeous and was every inch the dazzling bride. The ceremony was touching, with a simple elegance and poignancy. The reception was sensational - the venue terrific, the food delicious, and artfully prepared, and of course plenty of tasty beverages to get us all feeling festive, maybe a bit too festive in fact! I’ll admit, having not eaten since breakfast, the two glasses of champagne I consumed upon arrival at the reception landed a solid one-two punch to my sobriety and by the time dinner was served my memory goes a bit askew. The fragments I do remember, along with photographic evidence and eyewitness reports, lead me to conclude our little coterie was “that” table at the reception (Kristin later told me she had been worried about the table of Matt’s single guy friends being a bit unruly but it was her bridesmaids and climbing friends who took the proverbial cake for rowdy behavior)! I think she was thrilled at the impromptu pull-up competition we staged off the beams running above the dance floor…while people were dancing! It’s pretty safe to say we were all a bit on the boisterous side but had an overall fabulous time at an altogether awesome wedding!
On the final day of our trip together, after a delicious brunch at Tom's Place, we said a fond farewell to Matt and Jamie who were headed to Sydney, and Bill and I headed up Queenstown Hill for one last climbing hurrah. While at times very foggy, the weather held for us, even providing for some amazing views as the fog rolled down through the valleys with just the peaks of the mountains poking up through a sea of grey mist like a scene from a Tolkien novel. The climbing was fun but lowering from lead climbs and cleaning proved to be most interesting. There were no shuts or rings at the top of the climbs, just two additional standard bolts offset diagonally by about 8-10 inches placed over the top of the vertical wall on the slopey flat section of the cliff line, an arrangement that created a tremendous amount of rope drag. Additionally, we did not have any long runners to help alleviate the problem. On one occasion I literally got stuck while being lowered from a route I’d just led - I had to grab the wall and physically pull myself down until seven feet off the deck even this technique failed and Bill had to jump up, take hold of my legs, and pull with all his weight/strength to get me to the ground and off belay! Conversely, this rope drag issue also resulted in Bill’s first ever 5.11+ lead. I led the route initially with the intention of Bill cleaning; however, once lowered from the top and off belay we discovered that, again, it was impossible to pull the rope though. Since I’d hiked to the top of the cliff to fix this same problem on the previous two climbs it was now Bill’s turn, so up he hiked and after a very sketchy traverse to reach the “anchors” pulled the rope through and dropped it to the ground. Of course at this point all the draws were still up on the climb. While Bill hiked back down, me, being the considerate climbing partner that I am, stick-clipped the first draw since it was considerably high off the ground so that upon his return he found me waiting, rope in hand, ready for him to lead what I considered the best route of the day. Neglecting to tell me that he’d never, in fact, led 5.11, I was less than understanding when he seemed a bit flummoxed about the climb and said something along the lines of “Oh, I don’t know if I’m leading this one…..wait, all the gear is still in isn’t it….shit! Are you sure you don’t want to lead it again?” I proceeded to offer up a considerable amount of “gentle” encouragement and prodding until, with a minimal of swearing, Bill led his first 11 ever on the final day of our New Zealand adventure! Thus, even our climbing escapades ended on a high note and the following day I bid farewell to my fantastic New Zealand journey and to Kristin, Matt and Bill and continued my trip to the land down under. Next stop, Brisbane, Australia…
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