Feb 14, 2023 Lake Tekapo, Twizel, Lake Putaki, & Mt Cook,NZ

Happy Valentine's Day from Downunder. A few interesting facts about the 2 islands of NZ. The South Island has many spectacular fresh water lakes and is less populated. Two thirds of NZ's population live on the North Island. The South island is in a drought and the North Island is experiencing unprecedented flooding & just had Cyclone Gabriel blow through. The South Island is more mountainous & has glaciers. 

Today, we had lots of places to stop and visit. We headed south out of Christchurch and our first stop was Lake Tekapo. The lake water was an amazing azure in contrast to the surrounding barren mountains. The picturesque old stone Church of the Good Shepherd sits along the shoreline.  We stretched our legs, snapped some pics and moved west to Lake Putaki. Another beautiful clear aqua blue body of water surrounded by mountains & glaciers. 

Our final destination for the day was Mt Cook National Park. The drive in was impressive with high mountains and glaciers and low clouds along the mountain tops. We checked into the Hermitage Hotel situated at the base of Mt Cook. The lobby was stunning with expansive windows affording a sweeping view of Mt Cook & the glaciers. Wonderfully, our rooms were all adjacent to each other & we shared a big patio with the same awesome view. We put our hiking shoes on and took a 3.6 mile tramp to Kea Point Lookout. From that closer perspective, we could see the many waterfalls caused from the glacier melt. For a V-Day celebration, we dined in the main dining room which was serving a special Valentine's Day buffet. We thought the view couldn't get any better until morning when all the clouds had cleared and we could see the entire mountain in all of its glory. Mt Cook in all her majesty against the clear blue sky.