Country Article / Postcards

I Found My Paradise in New Zealand

Date: 07/25/2007

Anyone who has seen Lord of the Rings knows that the beautiful scenery in those movies was shot on location in New Zealand. You may think the producers used a little Hollywood magic to make those shots more spectacular…but no, such awe-inspiring places do exist. This paradise is real and waiting to be explored.

We took a "funyak" (an inflatable type of canoe) through the glacier-fed Dart River which holds some of the renowned natural sets from the movie. For fans, think Middle Earth, Isengard, and the Battle of Amon Hen.

A 45-minute scenic drive from Queenstown along the shores of Lake Wakatipu brought us to the hamlet of Glenorchy, the departure point for our boat trip.

After an hour of spine-tingling weaving and skimming through the shallow braided river maze, we came to the point at which our return journey began…but this time without the captain.

We got on the funyaks, and from here on, it was down river adventure, spinning around, running aground, and hitting whirlpools. But we still had time for a quiet moment exploring the bluest of trout filled waters in the Rock Burn Chasm.

Lynda Smith
For International Living

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P.S. We used Dart River Safaris. We took the "Funyak Trip" but they also offer a "Safari Trip" (jet boats and ancient beech forests) and the "Wilderness Adventure" (pure jet boating).