And so we come to the last week in New Zealand; I now have just 6 nights left, and in 7 nights time I'll be bunking down in Sydney, Australia. There is a strange dichotomy about this; it doesn't seem like five minutes since I boarded the train at Norwich station, but some of the things I've done seem ages ago. Isn't time and how we experience it a strange thing?
This morning I packed away and loaded the car again. Checked out at 09:00, I had a coffee before leaving the hotel and heading for somewhere local first, and the Ultimate Remarkables Viewpoint. A few kilometres on the state highway, and then a turn off, but after a few hundred metres a barrier across the road and access granted on payment only. I do wish that there was some prior warning about this; again I turned back to the main road after entering the next destination into the Satnav.
The next stop was somewhere I saw from a distance on the full day Lord of the Rings tour; it was AJ Hackett, the first commercial bungee company on the Kawarau Suspension Bridge. I pulled into the car park, and into their facility where they had a viewing area where I went to watch a jump; definitely not for me this! There was a T-shirt for sale with a cartoon chicken and the legend 'I nearly bungy jumped' which made me chuckle ...... 'nearly' isn't a work that was applicable in any way whatsoever! Still, I did get some video footage to share.
I then backtracked a little; rather than the state highway to Wanaka, I decided that I was going to take the back roads through the Crown Ranges. Up a very steep and winding road with lots of switchbacks (it's the first time I've seen a suggested cornering speed of 15kph) and to a couple of scenic viewpoints, one that looked all the way back to Queenstown.
I then continued along the road to the small town of Cardrona; an old goldrush town where fortunes were turned round with the delivery of a sealed road and development of a ski resort in the early 1980's. At this ski resort they have mountain carting; a three wheeled cart that goes down gravel tracks aided only by gravity. I was keen to give this a go, so turned off the road to follow a gravel road 22km to the resort in the hills, only to be thwarted with a sign saying it was all closed and there was no public access.
By now I was only about 20 minutes from Wanaka where I am spending the next two nights, and it was still before noon. I figured that I may as well go and explore a bit before I checked in, and see if I could make some plans for tomorrow.
First stop was at Waterfall Creek Track; a half mile of gravel road bought me to a lakeside car park where I stopped for a short while to enjoy the lake view with the mountains of the southern alps and Mount Aspiring National Park providing the spectacular backdrop. I looked for the track and mention of a waterfall, but couldn't find anything, so departed for the next stop.
As well as being a lakeside mountain retreat, Wanaka is particularly famous for one thing; 'That Wanaka Tree'. Just offshore there is a lone tree that grows out of the lake, positioned to be beautifully framed by the mountains behind. I'd spotted this on the way to Waterfall Creek Track, so pulled into the car park, where I was immediately set upon by sandflies. A very rapid application of insect repellent, but I was a touch too slow as a couple managed to get my legs.
Then down the beach, and a small crowd had congregated on the beach by the tree. As I approached there was one person stood next to the tree because his personal shot was obviously more important that the people patiently waiting to get their shots, but the crowd had dispersed by the time I reached the spot. I was able to get a variety of fantastic shots. This is one of the places that I'd imagined myself when planning the trip, and in real life it didn't disappoint.
I then drove along the shorefront of Wanaka and found a car park space at the marina, and a 10 minute return walk to the lakefront. I had spotted a sign for a road to Mount Aspiring National Park, so I nipped into the tourist information office to ask about that; it's about 60km of gravel roads and so isn't recommended .... but they do have a jetboat trip about 50km up the river that way which had some fantastic views and takes 4 hours, but is almost $300 (£150), so that seems a bit too pricey for me.
My original plan for here had been to do a guided hike of the Rob Roy Glacier, but the suspension bridge is damaged and unsafe so that was unfortunately a non starter. There are other hikes that would interest me if my legs were fitter, but I think trying them may be foolhardy. I'll have to see what the weather is like tomorrow, and make a plan then.
At 14:30 I returned to the car and found my lodging for the next couple of nights; I'm staying only 10 minutes from the shorefront bars and restaurants, so went and found myself a very nice Beef and Guinness Pie dinner before returning to base for a cup of tea or two and sharing the events of my day.
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