Lake Ohau Lodge Twizel

We've been busy since grape-picking so will now try to bring you up to date with what we've been up to! We headed back to Arthur's Pass for some more bouldering at Castlehill which was good and we had a laugh in the middle of the night when I heard some funny noises outside the tent and bravely poked my head out whilst Pete slept away happily, only to see a Kea, a NZ parrot making off with Pete's shoe! I rescued the shoe though and Pete was none the wiser till the morning ...

Mt Cook - Twizel 68km, 21.5km/hr (including 1.5km of walking). Today was kinda up & down and for once it wasn't just the road: Glass half empty - My bed was really noisy Glass half full - I didn't oversleep despite forgetting my alarm clock. Glass half full - My first aid kit is now on plaster lighter & I know I'm not a hemophiliac. Glass half empty - I cut my leg on my bike in the wind, it bled ...

... looking forward, nothing really needed to be said, it was felt! Returning to the motorbike Dad took some photos and we left heading towards Cromwell. It was an easy run up to Twizel. This was where we stayed the night and it was our launch pad to Mt Cook. We arrived at Mt Cook around 4pm, albeit through some strong winds attacking our bike. Let the pictures do the talking........ Thankfully the weather was kind to us!

Journal pour lundi le 16 fevrier 2009 C'est pas que je veux vous écoeurer avec mes bobos mais si ca continue je n'aurai plus de plombage dans la bouche... Nuit de cul encore. Mais au réveil la c'est pas la même chose. Pas un nuage, une clarté rare, je vois le Mont Cook et j'en suis a 50 km. Le choix du site a fait toute une différence. En route vers Mont Cook Village, je rencontre.... Des moutons qui promène leurs chiens... Ca ...

... to be surprising. There trust though, will not be misplaced but it may take a few days they'll get there stuff back, that sort of faith I'd hate to let down. One day I suspect everyone in New Zealand will lock there doors, no one will give strangers a lifts and every cup of tea will only be served after a waiver is signed to say that you know its hot, luckily though not yet and I get the impression that most folk here are quiet happy about this, I know I am.

... my Goodness! the place whre i spent the night, the views, the hotel, the lake, the bath, the people, the food and the tranquility!!! the most beautiful place i have ever ever seen! Lake ohau lodge at he shores of lake ohau with mountains in the background. it didnt get completely dark outside until after eleven and the sunrise started 4 hours later. the best possible first day of a trip with more than 30 strangers!

We found a camp site 20km outside of the main Mount Cook settlement which was also more within our budget. We arrived in the late afternoon and decided to just settle and take a bit of rest time. Thankfully this place had a very comfortable TV room, but better still, the view of the mountain from the window was just breath taking. At sunset, around 10pm, the top of the mountain glowed red, allowing us one of our best pictures yet - almost certainly heading for the wall at home ...

We got picked up at 8am to go to Twizel. Lorna was not in good shape! She even struggled to sleep on the bus! We arrived in Twizel at about 11am. This is your classic backstreet, redneck, inbred town. There is definitely some inter-family activity going off here! The place we were stopping at, 'High Country Lodge & Backpackers' was really nice though and the views were exceptional. Also, it was virtually empty so we nearly had the entire place to ourselves - nice! It was a ...

Today we headed off to a small place called Makarora. On the way we stopped off at Lake Matheson which is also known as the mirror lake. From here you can get a photo of the lake with a perfect reflection of the mountains in it. It was a little windy today so the lake wasn't really still enough but there was still some great views. Next we had a break at Knights Point where there were magnificent views over the bays of the west coast. With it being a ...

... looked quite swish – apart from the dated remote wing that we boys were put in due to the rest of the lodge being full. It was the most basic accommodation of the trip, with dodgy locks, meagre toilets and showers and not even a power point in the whole building for me to plug my shaver into. After seeing the rooms the girls got, ‘Ohau’ would they have survived in ours I wonder.

Tonight saw the National Rugby League ...