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Lake Tekapo: Indescribably blue-green glacier lake
Posted by daveb on February 24th, 2009
I shan’t bother to write about our stay in Methvan last night; whilst the local hot-air balloon company proclaims that it’s the best site in New Zealand from which to float skywards, we can’t yet confirm or deny this rumour as the weather on the morning of our potential flight was atrocious. So bad was the rain, that we assumed some pretty gymnastic positions to clear our belongings from the front car seats onto our ‘bed’ in the boot so that we could leave our campsite without getting anything (including ourselves) wet.
We were headed towards Lake Tekapo and Mount Cook, although we feared that we might not even get a glimpse at either because the rain, mist and fog were all-enveloping. Turn after turn, we saw nothing. Until, as if separated by an invisible shower curtain, we turned the final corner of the mountain pass to be met with warm sunshine, blue skies and an indescribably blue-green Lake Tekapo stretching out to the distant Southern Alps mountain range. We’re told that the extraordinary colour is caused by the water-borne rock particles scratched away from the mountains by the melting glacier water reacting with the ultra-violet rays of the sun.
The township of Lake Tekapo is little more than a row of gift shops, ‘flightseeing’ tour operators, cafes and the usual accommodation options lined along a single stretch of the lake. The other sides do not appear to be populated and so with your back turned against the shops one gets a fair sense of majestic wilderness out here. This kind of scenery is really ‘me’ — the photo at the top of this blog is one I took on a previous tour of the USA — after a short hike in Grand Teton National Park, I was rewarded with this beach/lake/tree/mountain view. Lake Tekapo provides a similar experience, but without having to invest any energy into hiking!
Claire adds — there is a lovely and much photographed tiny little church there too which you must see if you go. Behind the altar is a big window which has amazing views of the lake and mountains.
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Comment from Beno
Time: February 24, 2009, 12:48 pm
We remember Lake Tekapo well. Are the Lupins out in full force?
If you’re still there (and I guess you’re probably not), take a small detour up to the obervatory, just a couple of kilometers away. The views from the sumit are absolutely breathtaking – and they do a tasty latte too…;-)
Some of the walks in Mt Cook National Park are awesome too – if you’re there, try out the Hooker Valley glacial walk. ONe of my fondest memories of New Zealand…
All’s well here…keep safe!
Comment from Sarah B
Time: February 24, 2009, 2:35 pm
Wow! That colour is truly amazing. I know how difficult it is to usually capture vivid colour on camera. (Think I might nab a hi-res of the last image off you at some point in the future: it would nice printed on to canvas in my living room. Walls are still bare though indecision…)
All good here and still hoping to Skype you at some point. Mum and Dad arrive end of next week for some r&r and I have taken the week off to get some parental kwalitie-time. Beach here we come!
xxx
Comment from Chloe
Time: February 26, 2009, 9:06 pm
Wow! Didn’t realise you’d be in New Zealand already! I LOVED our time there (4 weeks of winter then 2 weeks of warm Spring once we reached North Island…). When we were at this lake (got photo through the church window…) there was nearly snow down to the Lake… and it certainly wasnt that colour!)
Had to buy some cheap wool shirts in Christchurch (made by NZ prisoners no less!!!) as it was SOOOO cold in Christchurch. It even snowed while we were there. And the room we were offered in the hostel didn’t have any heating in our room and the window didn’t shut properly… we were offered free bedding and an extra blanket to make up for it. Our 4 season sleeping bags as an extra extra blanket only just kept us warm (well… not 4 season anymore… they’d been travelling and had been ‘stuffed’n’squashed’ daily for nearly 6 months…).
My best highlights:
The whales at Kaikoura were fantastic.
Gold panning for a week near Hokitika (West Coast) – enough for the rings I’m currently wearing :o))))) and a bit for a ring on Chris’s hand too…
Walking along a 3 day hike in Abel Tasman Park in the north of South Island.
Hangliding from near Queenstown.
North Island:
Staying in a hostel in Rotorua (another touristy-money leaching place), and finding a 3rd person in bed with us in the middle of the night… Chris not realising… then us creeping out of bed, suddenly switching on the lights to find our next door neighbour, being a bit tipsy (ahem, well…… maybe a bit more than that!) had gone for a leak, then had come back to the WRONG door…. which we obviously had forgotten to lock… then snuggled up next to Chris. Cue much MUCH hilarity from this guy’s girlfriend the next day when we saw them at breakfast.
Skydiving from 6000m above Lake Taupo at sunset (That’s an easy 30sec of freefall… wheeeeeeeeee….
Renting our own car and driving from Auckland up to Bay of Islands and Cape Rienga (sp?) via lots of little lovely villages (sorry… ‘towns’)… Whangerei… etc etc.
Staying in some really funny and weird hostels (one with a dummy of a sailor looking out to see on the roof!)
Sadly only a one night stay in a LOVELY hostel (needed to be booked in advance to get the better rooms) which was on an organic tree farm… lots of wood and carvings and coloured glass windows with PILES of national geographic magazines everywhere. Somewhere near 90 mile beach I think. Also another fantastic and isolated place (when we visited!).
Nice vineyards… however all out of season when we were there. Cheap in the local supermarkets though… Mmmmmm!
Time to log off… rattled on long enough and some viewers may get bored (/jealous?!) of more reminiscences!
Comment from daveb
Time: March 1, 2009, 4:06 am
@Beno: What the hell is a Lupin? Yup, did some of the Hooker Valley walk — alone, as Squifter prefers supping O.J. to stretching her legs…
@Sarah B: I take your compliment on my photography with with thanks (you should see all the shots with wonky horizons that I delete…)
@Chloe: Since you took that photo through the church window, the clergyman has hung a ‘no photography sign’! Your story about the three-in-the-bed is hilarious!
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