Arrowtown, Aeroplanes and Gin

Howdy Neighbour and I went for a trip down Memory Lane - well, the Arrow River, anyway. We started the day with a hearty pastry overdose at Provisions Cafe.

Howdy Neighbour with the 'world-famous-in-Arrowtown' sticky buns

I miss this place., and I miss that face.

After a long day of walking, talking and eating ice-cream, it was clearly time for bubbles and more talking.

The Wee Red Hen

Trouble? Us? Surely not...

Flying back to Wellington, the views from the plane are outstanding.

My house is down there

Aoraki Mt Cook and Lake Pukaki

Godley River and Lake Tekapo

Islands through the clouds in Queen Charlotte Sound Totaranui

And back in Canberra for a gin tasting evening with friends. We sampled 17 varieties of gin, with and without tonic. We didn't know which they were as we took notes, and then their labels were revealed at the end, allowing us to see which had been our favourites. It's always good to find you like a gin that isn't outrageously expensive (Opihr; approx $60 for 700ml) or slightly more pricey (Copperwave from Hunter Distillery; approx $70 for 500ml).

Gin selection below fabulous artwork by Louise Numina

Some of the garnishes

Gindelle with some of the best

Gindelle and Calamity Sue

Different styles of note-taking

Tekapo Anniversary

For our 10-year wedding anniversary, we went back to the place where we got engaged: Tekapo. There is still something stunningly picturesque about the ridges of mountains and the achingly clear waters. Him Outdoors had called in a favour and we stayed in the Peppers Blue Water Resort at Lake Tekapo.

A delightful touch was the fresh-baked loaf awaiting us with cheese and chocolate, and the Nespresso machine complete with instructions and little sachets of coffee.

We headed out on an Earth and Sky star-gazing tour which took us up to the observatory on Mt John. We looked through telescopes at cellestial clusters and drank mugs of hot chocolate while peering at Saturn's rings. I saw many shooting stars and the pillars of light, which are part of the Aurora Australis and blew my mind contemplating the number of stars and the distances between them in various nebulae and constellations.

We came home to our cosy accommodation for a rest in the enormous bed - it's a double king or some such; I reckon even Chester would have a hard time trying to push us both out of that!

The next morning we were off for a walk up Mt John - the views as spectacular as always. This time we sat at the cafe at the top for a ginger beer and some quiet contemplation.

After our walk we went ice-skating at Tekapo Springs and then soaked in the hot pools. These are shaped like the lakes in the region: Tekapo; Ohau; and Pukaki and the temperatures range from 36 to 40 degrees.

Back at our room we had a bottle of Veuve Cliquot we had been saving for a special occasion (and this was pretty special!) and then went to dinner at the restaurant where I had high country salmon while Him Outdoors tucked into venison. Delicious!

The next day we went walking along the Lake Tekapo Peninsula Walk which provides more glorious views and turquoise-coloured lakes.

A short side trip brought us to Lake Alexandrina. This is a jewel of a lake; fringed with modest baches it looks like the perfect spot for kayaking, fishing or simply admiring the reflections of the mountains.

30: Pictures from a plane

Here some images taken from the window of the plane on a flight between Queenstown and Wellington. The first set of mountains are the Inland and Seaward Kaikouras, separated by the Clarence River.

Lake Coleridge



 

Havelock Glacier

 

Godley Glacier



The Cass River and Lake Tekapo

Lake Pukaki

Hawea

Wanaka

Motatapu Valley

 

The Crown Range



Arrowtown



Reflection in Kawarau Gorge