Friday 28th December - Glenorchy

Last time we visited the Queenstown area we went to Glenorchy on a rather dreary day and found it uninspiring. However, we did remember the drive along Lake Wakatipu to be stunning so we decided to revisit this trip. The sun was out, it was warm but fresh and all was set for a good day along the lake.

Quite frankly we had forgotten how good the views along the lake are; it was simply magnificent! At almost every corner there was another great view and all the while the perspective was changing. Glenorchy looked very different this time, the views were quite brilliant and we found a lovely spot by the lake to pull in with the trusty campervan and enjoy an excellent salad for lunch. Difficult to describe how good the place was but I hope the photos at least do it justice.

After lunch we travelled along the unsurfaced road to Paradise by Diamond Lake and parallel to the Dart river where lots of adrenalin junkies were jet boating through the rapids. Paradise would appear to be a “one house town” but definitely not one horse as there were many stables of ready saddled horses waiting for riders to arrive. The house at Paradise was very grand and Ray said it reminded him of the western from long ago – Bonanza. Around this area we entered the Mount Aspiring National Park. The mountain itself is known as the New Zealand Matterhorn and we were treated to spectacular views of it from all angles. Certainly quite similar to the Matterhorn from some angles but surrounded by other peaks so not quite so prominent as its Swiss counterpart.

Not content with this excursion along dirt tracks, the Leader of the Opposition decided we should now go along a further unsurfaced road to Kinloch which is at the north west side of the lake opposite Glenorchy. We arrived here to find a small camp site with beautiful views over the lake and a very nice cafe where in true English manner we consumed tea and cakes.

Originally we had planned to eat out in Queenstown that evening ( a curry had even been mentioned and suitable Indian restaurants had already been located in case of emergency!). However, as we approached Queenstown we both felt that a BBQ at the camp site would be more appropriate so after a brief stop at the supermarket to reprovision we settled down to chicken, sausages, asparagus and hash browns all courtesy of the built in BBQ. Another excellent day!