Tuesday - January 14, 2014 Tekipo

TUESDAY – JANUARY 14, 2014

BOTTOM LINE:

Left Queenstown and drove to Tekipo

BACK STORY:

Our planned time of departure from the Nomad’s Hostel in Queenstown was a 9:30am.  As we all stowed our luggage in the storage bins under the bus, Bruce noticed that one of the rear tires had a deep flap of rubber on the sidewall, which was hanging off.  He brought it to the driver’s attention, who called into the main office.  Good news/Bad news…

Nomad Hostel, Queenstown

  

Good news: the tire would be replaced.  Bad news: we would be delayed in leaving while it was replaced.

We were told that he would be back within an hour.  Unfortunately the size tire needed for the bus was not in Queensland nor was the person that was certified to install it.  Each came from different towns. By the time the job was complete and the bus circled back to pick us up it was nearly 1pm.  No worries!  We were safe and on the road.

The drive was absolutely gorgeous.  It was a clear sunny day and we had excellent views of the backside of the snow capped mountains that we had see from the west coast of New Zealand.  Mt Tasmin and Mt Cook stood in regal brilliance.

The road meandered through farmland filled with sheep stations.  Merino sheep imported from Spain are raised in this area.  The wool is of high quality and high price.  The fibers are thinner than human hair making it very soft and lightweight while providing very good insulation.

Moreno sheep grazing

Dogs are used to herd the sheep.  They are bred and trained as either “hitting eye” or barkers.  Hitting eye means that the dogs watch for hand signals from their owners and know steer the sheep by looking and running with the herd. Barking is simply herding the sheep by barking at them.

As we rounded a curve there was a herd of sheep on the side of the road being herded without any sound.  It was incredible to see, as there were no fences between the herd and our bus and the single dog (without any human) kept the sheep safe and in line. A well-trained dog is worth a lot of money.  The dogs live for their job and do their job well.

Our road took us up over Lindis Pass, which was lined with every imaginable color of wild lupine.  Pinks, purples, lilac, white and yellows dotted the edge of the road.  The driver said that they were noxious and invasive and not good for the farming community. It’s funny how we buy seeds to grow them for cut flowers in California.

Lupine border on road

Once we cleared the pass and made it down into a lake basin, we stopped at a vista point.  A beautiful aqua colored Lake Pukaki made for a wonderful contrast with the mountains.  The aqua color of the water was from glacial flour and very natural.

 

Lake Pukaki

Mt Cook is the highest peak in New Zealand and stands 3,753meters above sea level.  The native Maori’s call the mountain “AORAKI,” which means cloud piercer.

 

Mt Tasmin & Mt Cook

As we got close to our destination of Tekipo our driver pointed out a number of observatories up on a hill.  The mountain basin is known as an astronomical area.  Every effort is made to keep the air clean and clear for stargazing.  The area is referred to as Dark Sky Reserve where every effort is made at night to turn lights off or at a minimum have all lights shine down word.  Serious stargazers are trying to get the first rating with the UN as a World Heritage Sky Park.

 

Hilltop observatory

After checking into Scenic Resort Hostel, we headed down to the Lake Tekipo.

The water was clear and absent of the glacial flour.  Near the water’s edge I found an adult zipline.  No one was around so I tried it out…five times, laughing the entire length.  I’m just a kid at heart!

The town of Tekipo is very small.  A small grocery, one gas station, a souvenir shop and four cafes line the one street.  The Church of the Good Shepherd sits on the edge of the lake and has been featured in a number of movies.

Church of the Good Shephard

A perch above

It was such a beautiful evening that we decided to eat outside at the restaurant next door to the hostel.  The food was good but with only two servers and one cook, the service was slow. As the evening air began cooling us off we decided to pay and go get another layer of clothes on.

Bruce had a star application on his phone and we were ready to see what the locals enjoyed so much.  When we came out of the hostel ready with flashlights in hand along with the phone, we realized we didn’t need a flashlight…there was a full moon!  With the light from the moon, the sky wasn’t as full of stars as I’m sure the locals enjoy regularly.

Before heading inside for the evening, I persuaded Bruce to walk with me down to the zipline…I wanted another ride.  He obliged and I took three more

rides by the light of a silvery moon over Lake Tekipo…and I laughed the entire time!