Hokitika to Queenstown

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January 30, 2014

Today we traveled from Hokitika to Queenstown. Long day with about 5 hours on the road, in addition to stops at the Franz Josef Glacier and the Fox Glacier. We walked in for a closer look at Franz Josef but not all the way to Fox. It is very interesting to see how far these glaciers have retreated since they were first photographed in 1867 and even in the past few years.

This was a very interesting drive and unbelievable scenery all the way. Down the coast, over a couple of mountain passes and past some huge lakes in the mountains. ( Lake Wanaka and Lake Hawea ) There appears to be little to no development around these beautiful lakes.

Finished the trip with a very interesting, to say the least, trip from Wanaka to Queenstown. This is a little over an hour drive through a very twisty, bendy, curvy road and finishing with a very steep, switch back road from the summit down to the valley near Queenstown. Not too sure the navigator enjoyed it as much as the driver. Would have been more fun in the Audi.

As you would expect, we saw some of the extent of the sheep, and cattle ( dairy and beef ) business in N Z. Obviously a big part of the economy here. Besides the money earned from the sheep business it is still a great source of “off-color” and Baaaaaad jokes and stories to keep the tourist, and locals, amused. Obviously there are a lot more sheep than people in N Z.

Spent a little time in Queenstown this evening. This is a very commercial tourist city with lots of restaurants, hotels, etc. Queenstown sits on about the middle of Lake Wakatipu. For those who have visited British Columbia, Queenstown has a similar feel to Kelowna. We will return to Queenstown for a little closer look later.



Off tomorrow to Milford sound via Te Anau. Looking forward to this part of the adventure.

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