Gill's notes: QT. A beautiful day - perfect. Walked around park. Did washing $10! Drove to Arrowtown - pies v. good. Nice village. Walked along by the river - car drove right down the middle of river! Began to pack for Milford Sound. It's going to rain! After a morning of mooching about Queenstown we decided to head for Arrowtown. The plsce sprang-up in the 1860s as a gold rush town. I posted this on Facebook at the time - what more can you say. The place is a very pretty tour group trap.
Afterwards we took walk. I felt Facebook needed to know about that too.
Here's a few more photos:
The number of places around Queenstown geared-up to fleecing visitors one way or another is truly remarkable. For a smallish fee you can hire a spade and pan and go hunting for gold in the Arrow river.... I guess it could be fun if you had kids.
A kilometer or so up-stream from Arrowtown there is a stretch of shallows now famous (and marked on our road atlas) as the site of the 'Ford of Bruinen'. It is the location for one of the more dramatic moments in the first of the Lord of the Rings films when Arwen, daughter of the elfin king Elrond, outrides the Nazgul to save the injured Frodo. Aficionados must be a tad disappointed to learn that the spot is also a favourite place for 4x4 off-road safari trips which somewhat spoil the romantic connotations of the spot.
The path we took became somewhat vertiginous. Not good for Gill who suffers from vertigo. She was rewarded for her bravery with many interesting geological finds - to me they all looked like slate, but as Gill explained there are many varieties of the rock and she seemed mightily pleased with this particular example.
She also happened to be looking a somewhat gorgeous too...
QT. Am. Cloud - not sunny. Walked along lake. Coffee and brownie then brunch in cafe - OK. Drove to Glenorchy at head of lake - lovely view of snowy mnts. Nothing at Glenorchy - will develop. Beer at lake in evening.
As regards our accommodation, I've just re-discovered my FB. post about it, it contained a couple of interior shots as well as the delights of the wheelie bin patio. What made matters worse is that we had booked here for three nights. More generally, in every place we chose to linger for a few days something had went awry: Coromandel - rained cats and dogs; Kaiteriteri - cyclone Gita; here - Hotel Bunker. Perhaps the gloom is getting to me, I guess our days in Rotorua weren't all wet, Wellington too - it was pleasant......
One upside to the cruddy accommodation was it encouraged us to get out and about. For once it almost managed to stay dry for three days in a row and for longish spells it was actually warm and sunny.
Queenstown was the first place we had come across in New Zealand that had developed into a tourism hot-spot on a truly global scale. The town centre was heaving. Bright young things predominated, a mix of backpackers from Europe and the USA, hipsters, sporty types and hikers, a small but highly visible tribe of crusties being mindful on the lawns beside the lakefront. One girl had set-up a series of tightropes attached to the trees. She performed aerial acrobatics barefoot, her paisley Indian print yoga pants flapping in the breeze as sh cartwheeled in slow motion along the wire. In the middle of the pedestrianised main street a young man resembling the lead sing of an Antipodean Led Zeppelin tribute band was busking on an hippyfied upright piano. His style was hardly rock and roll, he played pieces by Ravel, Chopin and Debussy with skill and sensitivity - Radio Three standard on a beat-up instrument decorated with psychedelic flowers. The street music was eclectic, the most annoying had to be the young Scotsman playing 'the pipes' in full regalia.
Reflecting the place's essentially young vibe, the most celebrated eatery in Queenstown is a burger joint - Fergburger. Tripadvisor has ensured that there is a long queue outside of it from the moment it opens. We found another place for brunch nearer the lakefront. It was nothing special but offered appetising pub grub. We ended up chatting to our 'server'. She was from Munich halfway through a yearlong working holiday. Queenstown is very international, not just full of the 'West's' youth, there were many older tourists from all over South East Asia, China and Japan. At first I was confused when I overhead lots of conversations in Spanish. Then it dawned on me, the entire southeastern edge of the Pacific rim, from Tijuana to Cape Horn speaks Spanish.
However, Queenstown is more than a backpacker boom town. Its celebrated lakeside gardens were established in 1876, the town has a long history as a resort stretching back to the Victorian era, You sense Queenstown's more sedate past when TSS Earnshaw steams past, it has operated continuously since 1912.
We had promised ourselves a civilised coffee and cakes in the park's Edwardian style pavillion. Whenever we passed it never seemed to have a spare table. The park next to the town's 'day beach' was always busy and hazardous given the popularity of Segway tours. however the paths beyond there were quiet, overlooking Lake Wakatipu's 'Frankton Arm' with a view of 'The Remarkables' across the water.
However the paths beyond the tea rooms were quiet, overlooking Lake Wakatipu's 'Frankton Arm' with a view of 'The Remarkables' across the water. The same was true of the western end of the esplanade. Once you had walked past the piers selling lake trips ranging from the sedate steamship to high speed jet-boats, we more or less had the paths to ourselves.
As well as the walk beside the lake other paths headed uphill through the woods, towards the Queenstown Skyline upper station and beyond there to the lower slopes of the Ben Lomond nature reserve. Again it was uncrowded. Perhaps the area was just a little too far for a stroll but not challenging enough to constitute a hike. Whatever the reason our only companions were beautiful trees and spectacular fungi.
By mid-afternoon it had clouded over and the chilly breeze blowing down the lake discouraged relaxing by the shore. We decided to drive to the head of the lake at Glenorchy. It is a tiny settlement but well known as the starting point of some of the Southern Alps more challenging hikes such as the Routeburn Track.
More recently the mountains to the west have become famous as locations for Isengard and Lothlorien in the Lord of the Rings films. It is easy to see how the wild beauty of the area lent itself to the evocation of Middle Earth.
The asphalt runs out here, with a 4x4 you can drive a few miles further, then it's wilderness. In fact our next destination, Milford Sound, is only 30 miles west of here as the crow flies; because of the mountainous terrain we will have to make a 200 mile detour through Te Anau to reach the embarkation point for our Fjordland overnight cruise booked for the day after tomorrow.
Am. sun & cloud. Packed then drove up the Cardrona road to the Cardrona hotel. Fantastic views. Steep down to QT. Stopped at Hackets Bungee Jump on old bridge across gorge. Bought presents. Pm. Blue skies & lake. 22 degrees - lovely, walked pm. Room - basement bunker. There are two roads from Wanaka to Queenstown, our old friend highway 6 follows the valley of the Clutha, and another more minor road crosses the Crown Range. We chose the latter road because our elder daughter, Sarah recommended having lunch at the Cardrona Hotel. Its simple facade is reputed to be the most photographed building in New Zealand. I cannot vouch for that but it certainly was very busy, particularly with bikers. The wait for lunch was too long, however, we made a significant contribution to its reputation as the most photographed edifice, then drove on.
On the far side of the range the road squiggles steeply downwards into the Clutha Valley in a series of hairpins to rejoin highway 6. It's spectacular 'big country'. Ultimately we were heading for Queenstown 10 miles west along the main road, but we took a detour eastwards to visit the Karawau Gorge.
If the view from the suspension bridge looks vaguely familiar it probably because it is recognisable as the setting of the 'pillars of the king' scene in the 'Fellowship of the Ring' film, all that is missing now are the enormous statues, which I presume were never there anyway and edited in later using CGI.
These days Tolkien aficionados are vastly outnumbered by adrenaline junkies. The AJ Hackett Kawarau Bungy Centre was the worlds first commercial bungy jumping place and is regarded as a kind of Mecca for enthusiasts from all over the world.
In fact would-be leapers came in all shapes, sizes, nationalities and ages - clearly a must-do bucket list item for all kinds of people. Not us, however, we discovered we were enthusiastic members of a different group who had inadvertently discovered that as a spectator sport bungy jumping was curiously absorbing.
It was mid-afternoon by the time we got to Queenstown. By now this morning's wispy clouds had dissipated, under a clear blue sky the lake looked lovely and the temperature reached 22 degrees. It was scarcely believable that yesterday was sleety.
Queenstown proved to be lovely, our accommodation less so. In my quest to control the overall cost of the trip, when we booked things occasionally I became over zealous. The hotel website boasted of lake and garden views from every room but one. It was $15 cheaper so I booked that one.
It had all the charm of a nuclear bunker, opened directly onto the underground parking. Its 'patio area' consisted of a small round table and two chairs situated next to a row of wheelie bins. Still, we dined al fresco despite of it all!
Am. cloud. Walked to lake - very windy. Went to New World - bought sausages and burgers. Lunch at Appt. Walked to lake - trail to Eely Point. V. lovely but still windy. Talked to Finnish woman. Fast walk back - rain. Cooked in apt - open window for smells.
It is almost inevitable if you post pictures of South Is. on social media that someone, well actually quite a few people with tell you it reminds them of Scotland. I can understand that, it has lakes, mountains, scattered small communities and spectacular inlets. However, photography doesn't really give a sense of scale and aside from everything else, so far as geography goes, New Zealand's South Island is far grander than bonnie Scotland.. It is almost three times the area of Scotland but has a fifth of the population. Ben Nevis is a third of the height of Mount Cook and Loch Lomond a third of the size of Lake Te Anau. Not only is New Zealand more sparsely populated it is wilder and less touched by human habitation. Scotland was one of the later places in Europe to be inhabited by humans. There is no evidence of neanderthal settlement, the first evidence of modern humans found so far is on Islay, dating from the end of the last ice age, around 14,000 years ago. The first Polynesian settlers reached New Zealand a mere 800 years ago and the first permanent European settlement was established at Kerkeri only in 1814. There is something primordial about the more remote places in New Zealand, the culture feels familiar but the landscape at times seems almost other worldly.
Faced with the unfamiliar I suppose it is a natural human reaction to seek parallels with something or somewhere that reminds you of home. As much as I might be sceptical of Wanaka's Caledonian credentials I found myself falling into the same trap. After wandering around the compact centre full of outdoor clothing stores, adventure sports equipment shops and places promising an adrenaline packed experience pitched at well-honed fellow tourists - I posted that Wanaka was 'Ambleside on steroids'. Of course it isn't, but there is something about social media that almost demands a pithy, yet facile response.
Civilisation! A bank machine, a cafe and a cold beer...
After perusing a few menus we found nothing to tempt us so headed off to the New World supermarket to restock on wine and buy a few ingredients. Though the motel looked basic from the outside it had a well equipped kitchen. Not all do, so when we get the opportunity to self cater it is a good way to save a bit. New Zealand is not quite so eye watering in terms of the cost of things as Australia, but is probably a little bit more pricey than the UK, and we are shoestring tourists - 'old backpackers' as Gill put it.
In one respect New Zealand is like home. The weather is very unpredictable. We arrived in Wanaka in sunshine. The next morning it was colder and blustery, still the path by the lake was lovely with a great view towards the mountains at the head of the lake.
After lunch the weather closed in, blustery became squally. The lake assumed a more sublime aspect, the mountains wreathed in cloud, the water pewter-grey. We fell into conversation with a Finnish woman from Turku who was on holiday here with her teenage daughters. They were only down under for a fortnight, mixing a week in Australia with a week here. It's a long way to fly for such a short time. I suppose the Scandinavian winter gloom tempts people to take desperate measures.
Our conversation was cut short by a sudden sharp shower, rain mixed with sleet. We scurried for shelter under the trees. The Finnish family continued their lakeside walk. I was reminded of an article I once read about primary schools in Finland. They insist the children have at least two half hour periods of outside play every day, whatever the weather. When questioned about this the teacher explained that in Finland there was no such thing as 'bad weather' only inappropriate clothing.
Fox Gl. - Wanaka. Am. cloud. Amazing journey along southwest coast. Fantastic trees & plants. Haast for lunch - picnic. Then over pass. Landscape changes from lush tree ferns to dryer rocky mountains with grass by the road. Many places to stop & take photos. Waterfalls and Lake Hawea - V. blue. Studio Appt. at Wanaka, OK. Talked to 2CV6 people from Belgium. Went for beer in town. Lovely evening.
My take on the same journey:
In fact neither of our 'notes in the moment' do justice to the journey down the west coast and over Haast Pass, it has to count as one of the best drives on the planet. Directly south of Fox Glacier Highway 6 heads away from the sea and snakes its way through the coastal hills a few miles inland.
across the Karangarua river
The route alternates between skirting through the foothills of the Cook Massif or following the shore where the coastal plain allows. We pulled off the highway and took a walk along a remote beach. It was covered in driftwood, well drift logs really, chunky bits of tree trunk. An information board mentioned most of them had floated across on the prevailing current from Tasmania, over 1000 miles to the west.
The coast road becomes even more spectacular as you approach the Haast river; Highway 6 snakes across the densely wooded headlands high above the southern ocean. There are very few places where it is safe to park. At Knights Point Lookout there is a small rest stop where can pause to appreciate the expanse of the ocean. By this point you are further south than Tasmania, if you sailed directly westwards from here you would pass to the south of Australia and the Cape of Good Hope, the first land you would reach would be a southern province of Argentina, over 10,000 miles distant.
As for Haast itself, it is little more than a scattered settlement of cottages and farms with a permanent population of less than 300. Adventure tourism has put it on the map, but other than campgrounds there are few facilities.
A chuck wagon was on hand in the car park to serve the occupants of the campervan gathered there. Whitebait fritters are the local speciality. I was not tempted, a fry-up of small fry may be delicious but personally I felt a bit queasy at the prospect.
From here highway 6 leaves the coast, following the valley of the river Haast inland. The route follows an ancient Maori track linking the central plains of the Otago with the west coast. It is challenging terrain; the metalled road was only completed in 1965.
Where we could we stopped to take photos of the mountains and waterfalls. The hills are covered in beech forest which continue the whole way to the watershed. On the eastern side the road follows the course of the river Makarora which feeds Lake Wanaka.
At first the lake looked dark and foreboding but the clouds lifted and by the time we had crossed 'The Neck' and Lake Hawea came into view the sun came out and the water shimmered bright blue.
Our plan was to stop in Wanaka for two nights before heading for Queenstown. I needed a break from driving. The west coast route from Kaiteri to here was almost 500 miles, we have covered it in three days. Is it the most spectacular road trip we have ever taken? Probably, though our journey through north Queensland and the trip from Las Vegas to L.A. through Death Valley were equally epic; however the mix of coastal scenery, snowy mountains and unique ancient forests here on the South Island probably tips it towards being the best ever drive, and we had more to come.
It was great to get to the motel. There is always something surprising about New Zealand, one thing we did not expect to see in the car park was a row of 'deux chevaux'.
The Australian branch of the owners club had arranged a rally in New Zealand. One couple were from Belgium, they had shipped their beloved 2cv all the way from home - the trip was a retirement present to themselves. And we thought we were intrepid!
