Another big catch up

Friday

There are so many hikes to view points around lake Wanaka We chose to walk up Rocky Mountain. The walk was described as moderate which was fair apart from the sheer rocky scrambles we had to do. I was glad it was  a loop walk as I would have been sliding down those on my backside. The scenery was spectacular and the views from the top were immense. The descent wasn’t as tricky and again we were distracted by the scenery. Considering the car park was rammed there were stretches of time when we were all alone. I did stop to help a woman up a tricky rocky bit of he path, her partner was pushing her bum …no help at all! 

Found an amazing coffee shop/ ice cream parlour called Patagonia.. had to sample the ice cream …so good and a very  generous scoop. Eating out has been tricky for decent veg food but the lunches, and treats have been great and cheaper than in the uk

Paul has finally got fed up with the big beard look ( thankfully!) and went to a barber who has shaved his beard and his head… made him look like a convict…should last a couple of weeks!

Spent the afternoon and early evening at the lakeside…it was so hot I actually immersed myself in the water, lounging on the soft sand banks. Paul went off for a proper swim. 

Watched the sun go down on our last night back at camp…so beautiful..

Diamond lake on the way up 

Feeling good 

A bit of a scrabble at times 

From the top 

Earned that ice cream 

Cooling off 

Saturday 

Up and away in good time and then back again as we forgot our fridge provisions. Heading west  to the rainy side. A great trip through the mountains,,, lots of single lane bridges and narrow, windy roads but all in good condition. We stopped at Roaring Billy waterfall for lunch and a walk, but the bugs were biting despite insect repellent so we had a quick picnic then left! The weather along the way was dynamic to say the least, sunshine and intermittent heavy showers

Arrived at our Motel in Fox Glacier just after 3. So strange to be inside, I had to open all the windows and doors to let the air in. Did a load of washing (£2 for wash and tumble dry) . Had a walk and got caught in the rain so dived into the church…a pretty little wooden building. Loved its simplicity. The Wi-Fi was excellent so got some photos uploaded and general admin done. 

Went out for dinner at the Saloon! The Greek salad was delicious. Paul was a little perturbed by the bill, but we soon realised he’d been charged $113 for an alcohol free beer!! 

Bridge on the main highway - looks safe enough 

The air was very moist 

Good food 

Sunday

Drove to Franz Joseph and walked through the rainforest up towards the glacier. Again it was great to have the binoculars as we could see the structure and spread of the glacier and all the small waterfalls around. We were so lucky with the weather too. Had a delicious coffee and cake in the cafe before getting back on the road. 

Drove to Hokitika… beautiful scenery along the way, following the coast of the Tasman sea towards the end of the journey. Hokitika is a quaint little town with s9me interesting buildings, we particularly liked the Regent Theatre; a well preserved art deco building dating from the the 1930s and still used for films,live shows and theatre productions. The beach is amazing … full of driftwood which people propped together.

After the town we drove to the Hokitika Gorge for a walk. It was a beautiful spot, but quite a challenging walk with various bridges to cross. The suspension bridge was very long, rather bouncy and was swinging slightly over a 25 metre drop into the water. 

We later drove to Jackson and set up camp. We saw glow worms at the edge of the forest on the campsite. 

West coast highway 

Wood gnome

First siting of the Franz Josef Glacier 

Raine’s new beau

The Tasman sea at Hokitika

The beach at Hokitika was covered in driftwood which people put into sculptures 

Hokitika gorge 

On the very wobbly suspension bridge 

Camp at Jacksons. Not seen, hundreds of biting sand flies 

Monday

Luckily there are some walks from the campsite so we didn’t have to use the car today. We walked up to a waterfall and, later, down to the river. I bought some Wi-Fi to catch up with some admin and to plan the Australian leg of the journey. We had hoped to travel from Brisbane to Cairns by car, but having watched the reports of the flooding near Townsville and spoken to my cousin who lives there, we have decided to stay in south Queensland. Some of the coast road between Townsville and Cairns has been washed away so we would have had to travel inland which would add hours onto the journey. Spent time changing flights and car hire etc. Now we have a new plan!

Lots of these birds, Weka around the campsite 

Tuesday

Drove to Arthur’s Pass village today. Stopped on the way to look back at the viaduct and the winding road we’d travelled.. quite spectacular! Whilst stopped we were visited by a few Kea… also known as mountain parrots. They were hopping on and off the car, pecking at the wipers etc. .they are such beautiful colours up close. 

Had a hike up (including 150 steps) a mountain to a waterfall viewpoint. It was magnificent …well worth  the effort. Then a little stroll through the forest. 

Drove further on to the edge of the national park …it’s all very beautiful.  Stopped later at the very busy cafe, where we helped clear the tables before ordering our drinks. I think they were a bit  short staffed. It’s boiling this afternoon (28 degrees) so we’ve been reading in the sunshine. 

View from the highest point on Arthur’s Pass

And the other way 

The Kea or mountain parrot are so naughty and very bold 

Beautiful view from our hike 

Devil’s Punchbowl waterfall 

Saw a few trains on the railway. All the ones we saw were hauling coal from the mines to the ports for export.