Mt Cook
Hooray, now on to the good stuff! We made it along some pretty windy roads, always heading towards the west coast, until we got to Mount Cook, NZ's highest peak. We had hoped we might be able to do some climbing there, but although the roads were open, the mountain is more or less shut now for safety reasons.
It's amazing though!
I think that's a phrase you will read very often in my NZ accounts. You can't believe how stunning the scenery is. Just your surroundings are so natural and wild and open and 'pure', it's astounding. You can drive through beautiful landscapes and not see anyone for miles on end.
It's true what they say, there are LOTS of sheep. I really like them. They are all a bit different - some are shaggier, some are woolier, some are shorn, some are lazy and some just are. I wonder if they complain to each other about the number of other sheep around...
Anyway! We got to Mount Cook (or Ma Cock as the locals seem to pronounce it - I was quite taken aback first time I got asked about whether I'd seen 'ma cock') via Lake Tekapo and Lake Pukaki which are both amazingly beautiful, clear, deep and perfect mirrors reflecting the trees and mountains surrounding them.
Once we got to Mt Cook, we went on a walk in the area (there are loads!) and had a look around at the glaciers and the snow everywhere. It sure was chilly! On our way back to Twizel where we planned to stay the night, we realised we were also slowly but surely running out of fuel.
Normally, that's not much of a problem, but in the middle of the mountain wilderness in NZ with no reception on the mobile and bugger-all around, it can be a tad uncomfortable. The distances in km are not that far, but all the roads are very windy and you have to be so careful to not go dropping off some cliff, you have to take it easy all the way.
We just about made it to Twizel where we found the world's best petrol station. Well, it was that, because it had petrol and we needed it... spent the night in a rest area near there, too which was good and cheap! In the morning, Phil made friends with a horse.
It's amazing though!
I think that's a phrase you will read very often in my NZ accounts. You can't believe how stunning the scenery is. Just your surroundings are so natural and wild and open and 'pure', it's astounding. You can drive through beautiful landscapes and not see anyone for miles on end.
It's true what they say, there are LOTS of sheep. I really like them. They are all a bit different - some are shaggier, some are woolier, some are shorn, some are lazy and some just are. I wonder if they complain to each other about the number of other sheep around...
Anyway! We got to Mount Cook (or Ma Cock as the locals seem to pronounce it - I was quite taken aback first time I got asked about whether I'd seen 'ma cock') via Lake Tekapo and Lake Pukaki which are both amazingly beautiful, clear, deep and perfect mirrors reflecting the trees and mountains surrounding them.
Once we got to Mt Cook, we went on a walk in the area (there are loads!) and had a look around at the glaciers and the snow everywhere. It sure was chilly! On our way back to Twizel where we planned to stay the night, we realised we were also slowly but surely running out of fuel.
Normally, that's not much of a problem, but in the middle of the mountain wilderness in NZ with no reception on the mobile and bugger-all around, it can be a tad uncomfortable. The distances in km are not that far, but all the roads are very windy and you have to be so careful to not go dropping off some cliff, you have to take it easy all the way.
We just about made it to Twizel where we found the world's best petrol station. Well, it was that, because it had petrol and we needed it... spent the night in a rest area near there, too which was good and cheap! In the morning, Phil made friends with a horse.
posted by Phil and Tanja @ 11:37 PM
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