This morning we woke to bright clear blue skies which was amazing. We immediately checked over towards Mount Cook to see if we could see the top and it was standing tall, bright white and clearly visible. Before I even had my breakfast I was out there with the camera snapping pictures since I do not trust the weather in this area and did not want to have clouds move in while I was eating. They didn't fortunately.
We had decided that today we would be hiking the Red Tarns trail which is only a 2 hour return hike but climbs up 500 meters. The tarns are read because of the plant that grows in the water has a red leaf. The booklet indicated that these tarns provide for fantastic reflective pools for Mount Cook and other surrounding mountains. Of course that only occurs BEFORE the growth takes over and covers the top of the water.
To get to the trailhead we had to drive back to the Mount Cook Village which is about 20 kms. Once we got there it was easy to find the trailhead – almost. We found the car park easily but there was some confusion about which trail off lead to the Red Tarns hike and which went to the Bush Track. But with some problem solving skills at full force we were able to get it sorted out. Now I should mention that the trail only took us 45 minutes to get to the top (all 500 meters) BUT it really was like climbing non-stop stairs. We had steps for 99% of the trail and the steps were random heights and widths. This is a guarantee to provide for tired knees and legs. However the views at the top were worth the effort.
We could have continued to climb up further to a ridge line behind the tarns, but honestly we were not all that interested. With the views of Mount Cook standing out against the blue skies, the many different glaciers facing us on the mountains around we had enough to enjoy and appreciate. I was concerned for Wes’ knee which had bothered him on a couple of hikes, but he had no problems today. My one ankle that has been giving me problems did swell a bit and was sore, but not to the pont of stopping us from hiking.
We headed back down the road pass Lake Pukaki stopping on numerous occasions to take more pictures of Mount Cook. It was hard to cut down the pictures to the few that I am able to include on this blog but I wanted to share the beautiful sights we enjoyed.
We headed on our way with at stop at Mount John. This mount is described as a pimple in the middle of the dry planes between mountains. At the top (which is about 300 meters high) is an observatory and a fantastic 360 degree view of Lake Tekapo. We stopped and again I went crazy with my camera but promised only to include a few pictures. From our vantage point we could see the mountain range, the top of Mount Cook, two lakes and various rivers. There was a hike around and down from Mount John but we opted to continue to travel rather than take 3 hours for a hike at this point. And we had already done a substantial hike today.
We drove through country that reminded us a lot of the Fraser Valley – flat agricultural land with mountains in the distance on many sides. Once again we are amazed at the similarities between BC and the southern island of New Zealand.
We finally arrived at Methven which had not distinction other than it was a certain distance between Mount Cook and Christchurch for a day that started with a hike. However, we have learned that this is a ski community and somewhere around us is a ski hill (wrong season remember) and we may explore tomorrow.
We met a couple here who have been exploring the Mount Sommers area where a lot of Lord of The Rings was filmed and they are speaking highly of the area. Unfortunately it involves driving on about 40 km of gravel road (one way) and neither of are too keen on that. We will see what we feel like in the morning. So far we have only a few more days left.
A couple of notes, we were informed of a speeding ticket today which we have paid online. It was for an area in Kumara but we are really surprised since we have been really careful about speeds and staying within. I suspect it was one of those small towns what really does not look like a town as you drive through and we missed a speed limit sign. Well, such is life.
Another thing was the cell service here is really strange. I am working in the middle of a lawn area because anywhere else the signal gets lost. Not sure why, but it is chilly at night when the sun goes down and the evening dew starts to decent. So I am signing off now.
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