New Zealand South – 1996/97

The South Island is wilder, less populated, and more difficult to access. The fieldwork area for my thesis was located in the Remarkables, a mountain chain near Queenstown, and on the South Island I also experienced my best adventures of the journey: the Kepler Track between Te Anau and Lake Manapouri, the remote Dusky Track in Fiordlands, the Rees Track and Cascade Saddle Route to Mount Aspiring, and the challenging traverse of the Southern Alps from Mount Cook Village over the Copeland Pass to the West Coast. Past the great glaciers and other attractions like the Pancake Rocks I traveled to Nelson, where a leisurely day on the Able Tasman Track was a fitting finish of those eventful weeks.

After six months I extended my stay by working for another three months as a “visiting scientist” at the Institute for Geological and Nuclear Sciences in Dunedin. This included two months “far out” in the field, using helicopter, jeep etc. – but that is yet another story…