Abel Tasman and Routeburn weather in late Nov and December

[jgsampso]

Hi,

I'll be visiting the South Island for two weeks starting late next week. I plan on backpacking in Abel Tasman and the Routeburn during my stay. I'm the pessimistic type and am expecting rain and more rain, especially on the Routeburn. My question is, am I being overly pessimistic by expecting so much rain? What are the conditions typically like during this time of the year? I've read to expect rain, and thus I'm prepared for almost nothing bu rain, yet I'd like to set a more optimistic frame of mind before setting out.

I've been watching the long range weather forecasts for Nelson and Queenstown, and they seem to be dominated by partly/mostly cloudy and some rain. I'm hoping, yet again pessimistic, that this pattern will continue for my stay.

Thanks
Jason

[netchicken]

I hope you can read this before you leave, but no you are not pesimistic

This summer is predicted to be wet especially down the bottom and on the west coast. Its to do with the El nino effect.

BTW you have got some wonderful tracks lined up, I think they are some of the best in NZ. You can never tell with rain here as being an island you get very changable weather. This morning for example we had a hail storm, sun and now rain, with snow down to 700m. Two days ago it was in the high 20's Celsius, and we were getting sunburned. Tommorow it could be hot again...

[jgsampso]

Thanks for the info. I actually had already left for NZ when you posted your response. Just a quick note that in the end, the weather turned out almost perfect. We got poured on in Franz Josef (what can you expect for a city that gets 5-7 meters of precipitation a year), but our Abel Tasman and Routeburn tracks were mostly sunny most of the time. We also had excellent weather at Mt Cook, and a sunny day for a day trip up the Hooker valley.

I've posted some of my favorite pics if anyone is interested. http://pbase.com/jgsampso/newzealand

I loved NZ so much, I want to get back asap. I'd even consider emmigrating if I could. The Kiwis are extremely friendly and I have nothing but positive things to say about the country!

Thanks
Jason