Queensland is the recreation centre for New Zealand. There are plenty of other cool places to recreate but Queensland is must stop destination if you want to play. Also, it is very nice tourist town in itself. We experienced some of the adventures available there during the short time we were there.

I didn’t take a panorama of the city and setting but here is the still I took that gives and idea of the area. The mountains are just frictin beautiful.

You take a tram to the top of the mountain.

The luge ride is very popular. (Also, crazy folks take there bicycles to the top of the mountain and bike crazily to the bottom.)

Just a movie panarama of the Queenstown area.

Leaving Queenstown, we bussed out to this river for a jet boat ride. The drive was beautiful, down this winding canyon on a famous narrow dirt road, Skipper Canyon. The area was used to shoot some scenes in the Hobbit and Lord of the Rings movies.

The following is the most intense thing that I have ever done! Going 70 kmh (55 mph) down this river skimming close to obstacles, feeling close to death. Intense! The jet boat driver, black hat at the front left, owned the company and had been driving this river in the jet boats since he was 12 years old. It was awesome.

Same Jet Boat Ride from above.

In a nearby collection of mining paraphernalia, I found an original “Ball and Chain.” Much different the marriage Ball and Chain we are all used to (That is a joke).

We toured the vintage steamship TSS Earnslaw. It included a trip across the lake Wakatapiu, a few drinks, lunch at the Walker Peak BBQ, a sheep shearing show including trained sheep dog performance. Here are a few photos/movies from that excursion.

The Earnslaw is an actual working steamship. Of all things, they allow tourists, men (cause women generally aren’t interested, right?), to enter the engine room watching the actual operation during start, sailing and docking. There are three men operating all the valves as the captain signals with bells and ship speed indicators what he needs. I could not get enough of this, personally. On ship mate actually stocked the fires with shovel and sinew to keep the thing going. What a job.

Lunch destination, Walker Peak BBQ

Lynn and I cannot say enough about Queenstown. It is beautiful, the scenery is gorgeous, activities are many. You can helicopter ride, airplane tour, paraglide and many many more. Need more time there!