Captain’s Log: Dunedin to Twizel/Mt Cook, Day 39-41

Hi All,

There were a few spots to check out on our way to Twizel….so we got an early start….John wanted to leave by 8:00….Kathy said no way and we left at 8:45….but it all worked out in the end!!

First up was the Moeraki boulders. These are large spherical shaped boulders scattered along the beach. Supposedly these were formed starting as a pebble. We saw similar spherical shaped boulders in southern Mexico and they were supposedly formed by a volcano spitting out lava and then shaped to a sphere as it fell to earth. Kathy and I think the Pod people left them as seeds:)))))

Next was the town of Omarau….we had heard about this town from a lady we met wine tasting. Wow….what a find and a well kept secret….it was not listed in our Moon guide book…go figure. First up was a whiskey tasting at New Zealand Whiskey…..now you’re talking, enough wine and local beers:)))) Two partners bought up the last 400 barrels from a Dunedin distillery, which had been closed for some years. Now, this area was settled primarily by Scots so one would think they’d know how to make whiskey…but, in fact, this distillery was started in the late 1800’s by a Presbyterian that knew nothing about making whiskey!! What a treat….we had a flight of 5….2 single malt, 2 cask (60+% alcohol that you cut with water to your taste) and one blend. We liked both the single malts and of course, walked away with a few bottles:)))

Next up was lunch to sober up…still a 2 hour drive to go….then a great walk around town. A fantastic display of the local white limestone and late 19th century architecture….we were sorry we didn’t get to spend more time there!!

Weather: It was partly cloudy as we left Dunedin and then the sun came out in Omarau, then started to cloud up as we drove into the mountains. It stayed cloudy until the next day and as we drove up to Mt Cook, about 40 miles away the sun started to burn off the clouds and for the next 1 1/2 days we had perfect weather….hardly any clouds and picture-perfect blue skies. Then as we left today for Christchurch it became dark, rainy and windy…yuck!!! But, we felt very fortunate Mother Nature was at her best while we were at Mt Cook!!!

We very much enjoyed our stay in Twizel and hiking around Mt Cook. We got in two wonderful days and pretty easy hiking and saw both the Tasman and Hooker valleys and various glaciers. We even had time to tour the Sir Edmund Hillary Alpine Museum. I have always been fascinated with the mountaineers that climbed Mt Everest. We were just in time to see a movie about Hillary’s life and the Mt Everest climb….Sir Hillary had a very impressive life….we did not know he took some tractors across Antarctica 2 years after climbing Everest!!

Stats:
Traveled: 200 miles today; 2400 miles total
Hotel: Matuka lodge….wow, what a find. We wanted to stay at the Hermitage Lodge at Mt Cook but it was booked so we found this luxury B&B that could not have been better. Jo and Pete were such great hosts…..hot gourmet breakfast every morning, cold beers after hiking followed by some tasty local wines….and they were just fun to sit around and talk with….they had been sheep farmers before semi retiring and running this 4 bedroom B&B. Pete did confirm that there is no money in the wool off the sheep…we had been hearing that before….synthetics rule the market and with oil being down then it is even harder on the sheep farmer….all the money is in the meat/lambs…..go figure…..and, a lot of sheep farmers are turning to dairy…..more $$$$$!!!!
Wrong Turns: hmmm, back to our ways, 2 today, total 9…..I had to have a nice chat with the navigator and GG:)))) [Editor’s note: Oh please!]
Turned into wrong lane: steady at 3!!!
One-Way Bridges: yikes, 16 one way to Mt Cook, total of 48 for the 3 days; now 218 total!!!
Food: Jo’s breakfast each day…Outstanding!!!!

We are now in Christchurch and will be here for 2 nights…..it’s still cold, windy and raining so a popcorn and movie night for sure!!! And, more laundry for Kathy!! [Editor’s note: Perhaps we should have nice chat about that! 🙂 ]

Hope all is well!!

John

PS: Oh joy, Customs has released our container and now we ship 3/22 to arrive 4/5….means we get the good 5-7 days later…..about 2 1/2 weeks later than we wanted but hopefully we can get it all unpacked, projects completed and still make our May 1 head north date….will be tight!!!