South Island time to kill - Lord Of the Rings places requested.

[jbauer]

Darryn1, I don't believe jbauer will have time for the luxury of the route you suggest. He only has 48 hours ,from mid-day on 25th April to Mid-day on 27th April, to get from East Cape to Bluff. However us Southerners will set him out on the more scenic parts of the South Island for the trip north.

Ha. Yeah, I'm planning to slum around on the South Island AFTER the Southern Cross frenzy is over...

Thanks all for all the advice here! I will be a busy boy...

- Jon

[BarryG]

Take your rock shoes and go to Castle Hill - it's a brilliant bouldering place. I have no idea whether it was in LOTR tho'.

Cheers
Barry

[Monolith NZ]

there is a book you can buy called something like LOTR locations in new zealand, written by a called called Ian something.....

[peasea]

I've toured the South Island a few times and my partner and I love it so much we're moving there (from Auckland) late this year, possibly early next. In my humble opinion you'd be best to just get off the ferry and ride. It really doesn't matter where you go, you won't be disappointed. Allow plenty of time and take your wets, the West Coast is especially damp on a regular basis. Try to stay in the smaller towns, the locals are generally very friendly and the food is great. Lakes, glaciers, plains etc, all good. If you're keen on getting off the beaten track; St Bathans is a must. Other than that, just ride and enjoy.

When you get here........welcome to NZ.

[jbauer]

Thanks all! Great help!

Leaving tomorrow!!!

- Jon

[SDU]

Have a safe trip & enjoy the country.
If you do the trip to Akaroa (not far from Christchurch) do it on a weekday for less traffic, also if you want some company let the ChCh locals know when you are going.

[RedKLR650]

I'm the "San Franciscan in New Zealand" and am planning to ride the Southern Cross with some of y'all in about a month. When the rally is over, I plan to chill in the South Island for a while and soak it in.

I've never been to the South Island before (do you capitalize it when you write it?) and am looking for suggestions of great places - that I can plug into my GPS, if possible, of MUST GO TO places. So I admit, I'm a big movie buff, and I loved the Lord Of the Rings - would LOVE to visit some key spots that are relevant. I also loved "The Worlds Fastest Indian" and would visit any relevant spots (a museum?) based around Bert Munro (corrected - thanks Maximusdemeritus!) and his life...

Thanks in advance for any suggestions you can give me!

- Jon

Hi Jon,

Good to catch up with you on the SX ( always seemed to be at fuel / pie stops :-) get in touch if you're near South Canterbury as I could take you up to Mt Potts where the village of Edoras was constructed on Mt Sunday - either PM me or text / ph on 0274 342 372

Cheers, Stu

[scumdog]

If you still want to have a look around the 'deep-south' just PM myself or Jantar (and we can both provide a place to stay) and we'll give you pointers on good rides/places to see.