Country Article / Postcards
The Awesome Foursome
Date: 05/10/2004Dear Reader,
Arcing around Lake Wakatipu, Queenstown is set amongst the stunning scenery of New Zealand's Southern Alps, an attractive alpine resort with a twelve-month season. During Kiwi winter (summer in the northern hemisphere), the mountains of Coronet Peak and the Remarkables range are a magnet for skiers and snowboarders.
But Queenstown is also one of the world's adventure capitals. This is where madmen--and women--come to indulge in all kinds of thrill therapy.
"A trip to Queenstown is all about personal challenge and pushing the limits." Maybe so--but I'm not pushing MY limits through something called the Awesome Foursome. It starts with the Nevis Highwire--the chance to bungy jump 134 meters into a canyon. (Even reading about it makes me feel sick and giddy.) If you survive the jump, you then jet-boat at high speeds through the Shotover River canyons, helicopter through more canyons, then raft some scary-sounding rapids. I can think of far more pleasurable ways to spend NZ$455 (US$280).
Sky-diving...hang-gliding...canyon swings...and bungy jumps at several locations. Almost every other store on Shotover Street is an agency specializing in ways to put yourself through all kinds of bodily horrors. Thankfully it's not obligatory to sign up for the Queenstown assault catalog. There are lots of gentler pursuits: tons of easy walks, lake boat trips, horse riding, vineyard visits, golf, and day excursions into Fjordland with its towering mountains and glacial lakes.
Steenie Harvey
Roving Editor, International Living
P.S. Real estate prices here are fairly formidable. Advertised as "great for a first home", the most inexpensive three-bedroom house that I could see was NZ$320,000 (US$200,000). A two-bedroom waterfront apartment with unobstructed views of Queenstown Bay is on the market for NZ$1.1 million (US$680,000) through Locations Agency (41 Shotover Street; website: http://www.locations.co.nz/).
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