Lake Tekapo - Plenty of Fresh Air

A couple of hours after we left Methven, the rain had cleared and we arrived at Lake Tekapo in glorious sunshine. The view from the village, and indeed our hostel living room window, was simply stunning - pretty pink and purple lupins growing wild on the banks of the sparkling turquoise lake, flanked by rolling green hills and framed by snow-capped mountains on the horizon. As they say over here - 'Awesome!'

A Friendly Pony

It was such a nice day, we decided to waste no time in getting outside - we're quickly learning that you have to make the most of good weather here because it may not last too long! After a quick look around the village, we headed off on one of the walking trails up 'Cowan's Hill'. Climbing through the forest, we paused for an impromptu pine cone fight. Although no winner was declared, I still have the bruises to prove that Dan was the slightly stronger competitor!

A Typical NZ Scene

Forty minutes later, we were standing on top of the hill marvelling at a spectacular 360 degree view. Once we'd obtained the requisite photos, we continued following the track which led us gradually back down the hill through a series of fields. Suddenly we both caught sight of a large bird flying towards us. Looking skyward I followed the progress of the bird as it flew right over our heads...or at least so I thought. As I turned my head anticipating watching it fly back into the distance, the bird had completely disappeared from view. Realization quickly dawned on me that I was being engulfed by the shadow of the bird and it was in fact diving down straight for my head - panicking, (I'm afraid I must admit to whining like a two year old) as Dan (luckily with a little more presence of mind) yelled at it and flailed his arms trying to frighten it off. The bird grudgingly retreated into a nearby tree, however not for long - the evil looking magpie came back for another go - under Dan's instructions I threw off my sunglasses while Dan shouted at it. We reckon it must have been attracted by the glint off my sunglasses and was trying to get hold of them.

Lupins By the Lake

The remainder of our walk passed without incident although I kept pretty close to Dan and panicked every time a bird (even a little sparrow) flew within 20m of me! Once we reached the bottom of the hill we came across a field full of horses. Despite our last equine experience, we enjoyed petting the friendly beasts, who interestingly became a lot less friendly when they realised that we didn't have any food with us!

Before heading back to the hostel (we were in no real rush to return as we had to sleep in a dorm room) we decided to have a go on the crazy golf course located on the banks of Tekapo. The course was really well designed with each of the 18 holes representing a specific aspect of New Zealand and in particular the local area. As you might expect competition was fierce the whole way round and a certain member of the party only just managed to keep his temper in check after sending the ball right off the course on the fifteenth. The tension continued to build...reaching a climax as we teed up on the eighteenth neck and neck! Modesty prevents me from dwelling too long on the final result -suffice it to say that it was Dan buying the drinks in the club house!! Oh yes - I've also been instructed to mention that Dan got a hole in one on an 'extremely testing' par three.

Sunset Over Tekapo

The following morning we were up earlier than we had been throughout most of the trip. I'm quite sure that this was due to the fact that we were sharing a dorm room and it was absolutely freezing! After moving our bags in to a double room (the only one in the hostel), we felt much more at home and headed out to take advantage of another sunny day. This time we walked in the opposite direction, away from the village and climbed Mount John on the shore of Lake Tekapo. The hike upwards through the dense forest was hard work and we were both pretty breathless by the time we reached the summit - but once again it was well worth the effort. We had passed a local man on the way up, who was out walking his dog, and he told us how we could identify Mount Cook (the highest mountain in the southern hemisphere and our next destination). Following his instructions we duly pinpointed the huge mountain miles away in the distance.

View From Cowan Hill

The walk back down to the village took us along the shore of Tekapo and passed several herds of sheep. Dan also pointed out a Karearea - a New Zealand falcon - which glided overhead as I leapt for cover! Three and half hours later we had completed the round trip and were both in need of refreshment. After a late lunch, we spent the rest of the afternoon updating our travelogue.

We ate at the Observatory Cafe that evening and watched the colours changing over the mountains as the shadows grew increasingly longer. Still keen to drink in more of the view and to appreciate the peace and tranquillity of Lake Tekapo, we sat outside the hostel as the sun sank lower and lower, finally disappearing behind the mountains. The gluhwein we had bought earlier that day kept us insulated from the cold as day turned into night and we gazed up at the star strewn sky. (I must apologise - I've just read this through and realise that I'm beginning to sound just like Dan!!)