NELSON/KAHURANGI NATIONAL PARK, 13 May 2024
This journey has ticked a lot of firsts for me.
I’ve been to Aotearoa. I’ve been inside Wētā Workshop.
And now…I’ve been in a helicopter… over a mountain range.
I think if there’s one scene most people know or remember from The Fellowship of the Ring, it’s the scene where the crows (Crebain from Dunland for those of us who never went outside as a kid) spy on the Fellowship while they camp on a rocky outcrop.
That outcrop lies 3000ft up a mountain in the Kahurangi National Park, and the only available way to get there is the land on it or next to it. So, we were assigned our flying groups, and early in the morning, McKenzie, Joseph, myself, Mike (known as “Bare-foot Michael” after his proclivity for walking literally everywhere on this tour other than hiking, barefoot. Would love to see him try and attempt the “Viggo Kick”) and Angela all rode out the Nelson Airfield. Our Tour Guide Josh gave us all a big smile and off we went, with McKenzie given the front seat, which she very graciously also claimed on the way back too.
The weightlessness when taking off was very surreal, but that was nothing compared to suddenly passing toward and over the mountain ranges of Kahurangi. It stole all our words, the flights was almost silent were it not for our pilot telling us facts about it.
This is one of the few times that my words simply will not do it justice in the way photos will. So, here:
We landed on the outcrop just to the right of the location in the film and explored. Mike, in true form, ran off and went climbing alone. The rest of us took hundreds of photos and recreated many characters and moments. We matched up shots as much as we could and just had an utter ball!
It’s was a 30-minute journey and 30-minute location time before the journey back. We took some group shots and tried our best not to trip and fall to our deaths. Luckily, no one was that bad. McKenzie may not get cast as the next Spider-Man, but it was still blast.
It was similar to Hobbiton in many ways. It was so special to see something so truly iconic, made real. I don’t think any of us weren’t beaming on our flight back to Nelson.
Back in Nelson, we had a free afternoon. Jon, who hadn’t gone on a flight, had already had his talk at the Ringmaker’s (more on that in a moment), but McKenzie, Joe, and I had nothing to do for several hours, so we spoke to Josh and he gave us a great recommendation, hike to the Middle of Middle-Earth (otherwise known as the geographical centre of Aotearoa New Zealand).
Now…directions are important when you don’t live in the country you’re in. Strangers that we were, we followed Josh’s directions. “Follow the road that snakes around the back of the cathedral”, so we did… and then 20 minutes later, imagine our surprise to find ourselves on the other end of Nelson’s centre and had now added another 20 minutes to the foot of the hike. Good one. Top notch directions there. At least, we managed to find it, via a path that lead past a school, a brook, a bridge that took us on a U-Turn and several houses.
So, basically locals, we began the hike. I think it’s fair to say that when something tells you it’s a 20 minute hike to the top of the hill, that’s not indicative of a short, breezy time, so much as a steep uphill struggle that leaves you clawing at the path. Which is precisely what we did. In fairness though, we laughed our way up and only rested twice. The views at the top were genuinely wonderful (albeit a little overshadowed by a ride over a f*ckin mountain range in a helicopter) and by the time we got back to the hotel it was time for our visit to Jens Hansen – the makers of the (insert reference here because Warner Bros. despise anyone making any cent or penny that they can’t claim, despite having hired them to create said thing) Ring.
Halfdan Hansen, son of Jens (who sadly passed away in 1999 and never got to see his Ring creation on-screen), is arguably the coolest guy of this entire tour. The 5th Beatle at least. He gave us a great talk about how the various jewels and rings were created and followed it with an in-depth talk about how, as a business, they have managed to find their way to creating both official rings and “inspired” rings that fans can cherish knowing they really are of top-shelf artisanal quality.
We then got to take a picture with one of the “XL Rings” that were used for two key shots, the reflection of the arguing Council of Elrond in Rivendell, and the ring that lands in the snow on the hike up Caradhras, picked up by Boromir.
Two key shots. One insanely large ring.
The talks on this tour have been so wonderfully insightful. I’m really grateful for them and it just adds to the lore of this journey and the trilogy too.
Lastly, the six of us grabbed a beautiful burger dinner (with a phenomenal tofu burger) with Josh, our guide, who was refreshingly sincere, funny and “off-the-clock” with us. Josh and I have hit it off since we met in Auckland and it’s a nice way to view the tour knowing you’ve become friends with their staff too. This is the furthest thing from a “hollow” holiday tour.
The luck truly continues.
What a day!
– Jake,
15 May 2024
P.S. Jon is also writing about his version of events over on his Tumblr page, Misplaced Midlanders! Check it out!
The Long Expected Journey 