Mountain Flying Class with FlyInn New Zealand

This part of the trip was a combination of mountain flying and grass strip operations for me, and flightseeing for both of us. There were two "free time" days built in, both for aircraft maintenance and in case of bad weather. Since we did not have any weather issues, we were able to visit other areas by car on those days as well.

Day 1 (January 7th): the Southern Alps

the Southern Alps

Day 2 (January 8th): grass farm airstrips

Grass farm airstrips

Day 3 (January 9th): Fiordlands, Big Bay, and Mount Aspiring (Tititea) National Park:

Fiordlands, Big Bay, and Mount Aspiring

We took a day off from flying on January 10th while the other Cessna, ZK-TRS, was in for its hundred-hour inspection, and drove north from Wanaka through Haast Pass to Fox Glacier and back.

Day 4 (January 11th): the Westlands

The Westlands

Day 5 (January 12th): Croydon Aircraft Company to Dunedin via the Catlins

The Catlins

Day 6 (January 13th): Dunedin, Otago Peninsula wildlife cruise, and return to Wanaka

Otago Peninsula

Day 7 (January 14th): Northeast coast: Wanaka to Rangiora, past Kaikoura, to Omaka, and finally to Nelson

Northeast Coast

Day 8 (January 16th): The northern Coast: Nelson to Karamea, to Hokitika, over the Southern Alps, and back to Wanaka, plus my Tiger Moth flight

North Coast

Day 9 (January 17th): Final day, drive around Lindis Pass for a picnic lunch, and then a final flight from Wanaka back to Queenstown via Mount Aspiring and the Dart River

Return to Queenstown

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Last modified 16 February 2025