Visit to South Island NZ---advice please (renting, school, live)
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
I am planning a trip to NZ solo maybe. I am particularly interested in the hiking on South Island.
I'd like some advice as to the best time climatewise/weatherwise to make the trip. I know our seasons are reversed from North America but am particularly interested in wet periods etc.
I would also appreciate any other advice that you might consider valuable for such a trip.
Go during the summer (NZ summer) - more daylight, and warmer. Weather is hit or miss - just go Jan. or Feb. to minimize your chance of rain. You can also wait out rainy periods - they generally won't last more than a couple days. You're going to Fiordland, right? Of course you are. Milford Track. But you can't go wrong anywhere on the South Island. Lucky you.
Location: The western periphery of Terra Australis
24,544 posts, read 56,060,466 times
Reputation: 11862
Expect cold, wet weather at any time of year. Bringing warm, water-proof clothing/ gear is ESSENTIAL, but if you're an experienced hiker you should be aware of this. Also a supply of food and water to last you a few days. Indeed it's not unusual for SNOW to fall in mid-summer at higher elevations in the South Island. As per usual, inform and record your treks at National park HQ if you're going alone (ideally try to find a buddy to go with) in case you get lost, injured.etc. Many highland trails will be closed in winter because of snow anyway.
Go during the summer (NZ summer) - more daylight, and warmer. Weather is hit or miss - just go Jan. or Feb. to minimize your chance of rain. You can also wait out rainy periods - they generally won't last more than a couple days. You're going to Fiordland, right? Of course you are. Milford Track. But you can't go wrong anywhere on the South Island. Lucky you.
February would be better than January as January is school holidays in both NZ and Australia.
It's very scenic but be careful and always let someone know where you will be as it's not a walk in the park so to speak, it can be quite wild in some places (not animals but terrain, weather, getting lost etc)
Hope you have a great time!
The south island is a crossroads of a huge variety of weather and the island of course is surrounded by the ocean. You can travel very short distances and be in completely different climate zones where hundreds of inches of rain come down and on the other side of the mountains hardly any at all. I would be prepared for anything. Winter of course is harder, along with the short days as well, especially the further south you go.
"Hiking" means a lot of different things to people. To some it's going for a mile or two walk, for others it means a 100 mile trek. Some of the terrain and weather is unforgiving and tourists perish with regular frequency time in the South Island mountains due to weather and falls. Any decent sized hikes you might take I would either go with a group, tour or ask locals, as well as being prepared equipment wise.
One thing I would be prepared for if you go on the western side of the mountains is that it's either raining or the bugs are out and the flies can get thick enough to practically carry you away.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
