# New Zealand photos



## BlueberryChick (May 12, 2008)

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me, at Walter Peak Farm
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Horseback riding
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Sheep Shearing at Walter Peak Farm
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Dart River boat ride
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William Rees-founder of Quesnstown, NZ


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## Wind in Her Hair (Jul 18, 2002)

wow! What an awesome trip! You even get to do fiber-related fun stuff!


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## featherbottoms (May 28, 2005)

Was this just a vacation to NZ? (just curious as we are tentatively planning a trip to Australia and NZ toward the end of this year)

Why did you pick that particular farm to visit? Did you bring back fleece or fiber?

Did you visit Mordor?


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## weever (Oct 1, 2006)

I'd like to know, too. I've got a daughter who wants to do an internship on a NZ sheep station. But we have no contacts...


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## BlueberryChick (May 12, 2008)

It was mostly vacation. My husband had some business meetings (he actually missed the main one because we were delayed getting there), but we had lots of free time to do other things. I wish we had had time to rent a car and explore more of the island. It was just too far to head to Ashburton and the Ashford factory.

The Walter Peak farm is a pretty big tourist place for the Lake Wakatipu area. We had a great barbecue buffet there (well, "barbecue" in the sense of grilled meat, not pulled pork with sauce). They even served sheep's milk ice cream!

We did see some of the Lord of the Rings sites. The Dart River jet boat tour included a four-wheel drive excursion to some of the areas. Lots of things have been filmed in an area called Paradise, including LOTR, Willow, Wolverine and the mountains were even used for Coors beer, much to the embarrassment of their CEO.

I hope you get to go, featherbottoms! The country is gorgeous. I brought back merino/possum blend yarns as well as merino fiber for spinning. The possums they have there are not like ours at all. They are kind of cute, but they are an introduced species and have become invasive. The fiber is an attempt to do something useful with them. The fiber is very soft and the hairs are hollow. They are very warm and can absorb a lot of moisture without feeling wet.

Weever, how exciting for your daughter! We went horseback riding at Moonlight Farm and the girls who took us riding were both from Scotland. I don't know about internships, but I'm sure you can find something. There are loads of sheep farms.


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## featherbottoms (May 28, 2005)

It sounds like you had a wonderful time.

Thank you for the pictures. Your enthusiasm about the places your visited may just be contagious .


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## Marchwind (May 10, 2002)

Thank you for sharing BBChick. I'm so glad you got to go and have some fun.


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## Kasota (Nov 25, 2013)

Thank you so for sharing the pictures! What a great opportunity to see a bit more of this beautiful world! 

Do you have more pictures you could share? We need more pictures. lol!!


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## hotzcatz (Oct 16, 2007)

Great pictures, BBChick! I like the statue of the guy with his sheep, it seems so NZ.

Were there lots of yarn and fiber shops? Lots of wool things for sale? Tasty lamb cutlets and stew?

Is your daughter interning for sheep or for vet work, Weever? One of the folks at quilting group just got back from a NZ veterinary internship not that long ago. I could ask her about sheepish places if you'd like.


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## weever (Oct 1, 2006)

hotcatz, I'd love it if you'd ask. She's an animal science major, but doesn't want to go on for vet training. She wants to farm. And she loves sheep.


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## Marchwind (May 10, 2002)

Weever I bet if you contact the NZ department of Ag or sheep or whatever they have they may have a list of places that offer internships. Would MSU have any contacts for her, has she asked?


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## PNP Katahdins (Oct 28, 2008)

Thanks for the pix of the Lake Wakatipu area! I have always wanted to take a long vacation there. My favorite author is Essie Summers, who wrote a lot of books about the South Island including Paradise and Queenstown.

Paul's uncle sent us this video link called "A Pilot's View: Queenstown NZ." http://www.chonday.com/Videos/pilotnewzdalnd1 

The sub-caption is, "Sometimes what a pilot sees in a day, people won't see in their lifetimes. New Zealand has some truly amazing scenery."

Peg


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## BlueberryChick (May 12, 2008)

hotzcatz said:


> Great pictures, BBChick!  I like the statue of the guy with his sheep, it seems so NZ.
> 
> Were there lots of yarn and fiber shops? Lots of wool things for sale? Tasty lamb cutlets and stew?


Amazingly, hotzcatz, there is only one yarn shop in Queenstown! It was very nice, with lots of possum/merino blend yarn as well as merino fiber for spinning. I stocked up (well, as much as I could afford). 

There were lots of shops advertising merino wool products-- sweaters, scarves, mittens, gloves, socks--you name it.

We did have lamb included with several meals. I'm not a huge fan of lamb, but my mother's voice was in my head telling me to take a "manner's bite". I did and was surprised to find that it was better than I remembered. Maybe my taste buds are changing.


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## Kasota (Nov 25, 2013)

> my mother's voice was in my head telling me to take a "manner's bite".


This makes me smile. My son once told me he was going to do something that he knew he shouldn't do and he heard my voice in his head saying, "Matthew Ryan, God will not bless you for that." LOL!!!!


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