Running in New Zealand
I have had a few particularly memorable runs around New Zealand, mainly for their beauty and the sense of freedom I get. The Wellington waterfront along Oriental Parade provides an excellently flat few miles, with views of Somes Island and the city which has become my current home.
One day back in March, I spent a very pleasant afternoon scaling Queenstown Hill on New Zealand's South Island. Standing 907m tall (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Queenstown_Hill), this turned out to be a pretty tough ascent. I began in Queenstown itself, making my way up a street so steep that it had a staircase for a pavement before joining the equally steep 'time-walk' trail. The path took me up through dense forest, which provided some welcome shade from a sunny day, before opening out onto the exposed hilltop. Although it had taken considerable effort to get up here, the views were incredible. After a short but brutal slope up to the summit of Queenstown hill, I was rewarded with a panoramic view of Queenstown, Lake Wakatipu, The Remarkables, Ben Lomond and back inland across the rugged valleys. A brief 10 minute rest at the top and I was on my way back down the hill, arriving into Queenstown surprisingly quickly, almost not quite believed I had just run up the mountain looming over the town.
Another of my favourite running routes was in the town of Franz Josef, home to the mighty Franz Josef Glacier. Just running along the streets of this remote town is beautiful enough, with the mountains and glacier clearly visible. My run however, took me along a quiet trail which snaked above a river through the forest. Although not quite on a par with the Queenstown hill, the track was undulating including a fair few steps in the hillside. To me, this trail felt very remote and I decided to head back when I was confronted with a large deer blocking my path! A nice enough trail, the main draw of this run was most definitely the sight of the sunlight glistening on the glacier on my return to the town, followed by a relaxing visit to the nearby hot pools to recover.
It seems that for many visitors to New Zealand, having a go at one of the 'Great Walk' trails is a major item to tick off the bucket list. There are nine of these walks dotted around the country, one being in the stunning Abel Tasman National Park at the top of the South Island (http://www.doc.govt.nz/parks-and-recreation/things-to-do/walking-and-tramping/great-walks/map/). Conveniently, the walk begins just metres away from the campsite I was staying at, so I decided to give it a go, while running, of course. The slightly undulating trail snakes along the coast, giving excellent views of the Tasman Bay, where seals can often be spotted. A fairly easy little trail run, this is a great way to see the first section of the Abel Tasman Great Walk.
One sunny afternoon, after living there for several weeks, I decided to explore a bit of the Aro Valley and stumbled across the Polhill Reserve and the trail that winds through it. Walking the loop track the first time, it felt very far removed from the capital city very quickly with thick forests and hills...and amazing views of Wellington city and harbour, it became obvious where they take the photos you see on postcards from! I decided that the track would make a good running trail and a few days later I tried it out. With a steep start, the track undulates, twists and turns through the hills but isn't particularly technical. The major danger here was the constant threat of being run over by a mountain bike as the track is multi-use in both directions; it is difficult to keep your eyes on the track at times, with the brilliant views of the city, but after a few near misses with the edge of the path and bikes, it was a necessity! Rather than completing the entire loop, I ran it as an out-and-back course instead, which totalled about 10km with the homewards direction feeling much easier. I was surprised to find such a good trail run virtually on my doorstep!
