I think we flew on that plane last time we were here !
Well, today was a pretty stunning scenery day – and we had perfect weather for it. It was very cold overnight and we woke to frost on the ground – and on the car ! After breakfast and packing up ready to go, we went for a quick walk so I could finally find my way – Neil Anderson Way ! Although the street sign seems to point in no particularly meaningful direction, it actually heads down to Lake Tekapo, along the waters edge and then back up to the main road. It was named after the local mayor, another Neil Anderson, who passed away in 2018 and who had been instrumental in securing the waterfront of the lake as public lands.
We then setoff for our first stop of the day, the Church on the Lake. We had stopped here when we visited in 2001 and on that occasion nearly got blown away in the wind. From here, not far along the road our next stop was at the Mt John Summit. It is just above Lake Tekapo and is New Zealand’s premier astronomical research observatory. It is operated by the University of Canterbury and there are 5 large telescopes on the mountain. We arrived at the front gate to the road up the mountain a little before opening time at 10am and there was already a queue. At the top the views are spectacular.
Heading off again toward our stop for the night at Mt Cook, we made a few stops along the way to take in the stunning scenery. We stopped at a few spots along Lake Pukaki and at the Punatahu Visitor Centre. I know it has been said many times however pictures can often not convey what is in front of you !
Our drive eventually bought us to Mt Cook. The temperature was about 4 degrees and we were amazed at the amount of snow on the ground when we arrived. We stopped in at the visitor centre, had a quick snack for lunch and then headed off to do a couple of walks. First we did the starting section of the Hooker Valley Track. It took us to a suspension bridge – about an hour there and back – as the track is being repaired beyond that point. With the recent snow, the track was quite wet and even slippery where the snow on the ground had become icy.
From here we drove around to the Tasman Glacier and Lake walk. The lake has formed as the glacier has retreated and despite being the largest glacier in New Zealand has retreated substantially since the 1990’s. The walk from the carpark to the overlook is quite steep but on what looks like fairly recently constructed steps – we were pretty puffed by the time we made it to the top however the views were worth it.
After heading back down, we made our way to the Hermitage to check in. We have a lovely room on level 6 which looks out to Mt Cook and we just sat at our window for a while taking in the stunning view. We then headed to the bar for a couple of well earned drinks, sitting in the picture window looking up at Mt Cook. Then for dinner we walked down to the Mt Cook Lodge and Motel area where we had a casual dinner in the Chamois Bar & Grill – you guessed it, sitting at the window looking out up to Mt Cook as the sun set on the surrounding mountains.
We were so lucky with the weather today, quite cold but with little wind and sunny, clear skies – couldn’t have asked for better !
