Sunday, July 24, 2011

Key Summit

We took the road in from Te Anau toward Milford Sound and parked the car in the car park at the divide.  The climb up through the bush was snow packed and several tree’s had fallen across the track making the progress a little slow. Clearing the bush line we came out to a spectacular snowy mountain landscape. We stopped for lunch after an hour and a half and after a short break made it up to Key Summit.  The 360 degree views of the surrounding mountains and lakes were well worth the climb. What an amazing place all made more impressive as we had been lucky enough to pick a clear sunny day with little wind.  Thank goodness we went yesterday as today is bitterly cold here with snow and sleet showers all day.

Wednesday, July 20, 2011

Sunday drive


What with all the rain we’ve had, getting DREEEM out and about is not possible due to the wet land between us and the road so our adventures are car based for the winter. This last weekend we took a drive to see Lake Mavora which is off the Lumsden to Te Anau road.  Of course we had just had a week of sleet and hail and so it came as no surprise to see progressively more and more snow as we travelled north and higher in altitude.  However, we weren’t expecting to have to turn back within the last kilometre of reaching the shore. The snow was too deep for the woggie car to navigate. It was however a beautiful day and we were impressed with a local Invercargill family, Mum, Dad and 3 kids who were towing and at times winching their caravan in to the lake edge, through the snow and past fallen trees, to spend the school holidays away from the crowds. They had taken two 4x4 vehicles, one with a trailer and a winch and the other towing the caravan in.

We went on to Te Anau to get photo’s for Sue of the Lake Te Anau with snowy mountains in the background only to find the town in the gloom of cloud, fog and smog from all the chimeys puffing away trying to keep the locals warm.

We headed south through Manapouri and on to Lake Monowai which was in the sun and so managed to get a few photo's which I'll load here as the vodem allows. As we drove in to Lake Monwai we had that "we've been here before" feeling and figured that it must have been at least 16 years ago when we hired a camper van for a tour down here. Of course those trips are always fast and you see so much that unless there are lots of photo's you tend to forget much of it.  Never the less, it was very pretty as you can see in the photo and as it was getting late in the day we didn't stay long.  

Next weekend we're off tramping.....watch out for more photo's.