After waking up by the lake, we packed our camping gear away. We waved goodbye to the friendly camp site supervisor who was fishing from his small boat and set out to Twizel.
We passed the pretty lake Pukaki, with its crystal clear blue water and some great mountain scenery. We also called into a little shop selling salmon. This area has many canals as part of a hydro electricity scheme where there are lots of salmon ...
Twizel was a small town and today they were hosting the 2014 Maardi cup. The Maardi cup is a huge secondary school rowing contest for the whole of New Zealand. We headed to the lake to watch the finals and it was packed! We overheard conversations in the visitors centre regarding accommodation... booked, booked, booked. Not just in Twizel but in the surrounding area up to around 100km!
We sat back and watched the excitement of the races unfold and ate our picnic down by the lake.
After we had had our rowing fix we started heading out of town towards Mt Cook. There was a small DOC 'scenic' camp that we were aiming for. We called in at the visitors centre on the way past to ask a few questions and there was also a Sir Edmund Hilary centre there too. The visitors centre was packed with information and beautiful displays relating to the history of mountaineering in the area.
Eventually, we arrived in the campsite and it became obvious why it was referred to as scenic! With a backdrop of mountain vistas, it really was amazing!
We passed the pretty lake Pukaki, with its crystal clear blue water and some great mountain scenery. We also called into a little shop selling salmon. This area has many canals as part of a hydro electricity scheme where there are lots of salmon ...
Twizel was a small town and today they were hosting the 2014 Maardi cup. The Maardi cup is a huge secondary school rowing contest for the whole of New Zealand. We headed to the lake to watch the finals and it was packed! We overheard conversations in the visitors centre regarding accommodation... booked, booked, booked. Not just in Twizel but in the surrounding area up to around 100km!
We sat back and watched the excitement of the races unfold and ate our picnic down by the lake.
After we had had our rowing fix we started heading out of town towards Mt Cook. There was a small DOC 'scenic' camp that we were aiming for. We called in at the visitors centre on the way past to ask a few questions and there was also a Sir Edmund Hilary centre there too. The visitors centre was packed with information and beautiful displays relating to the history of mountaineering in the area.
Eventually, we arrived in the campsite and it became obvious why it was referred to as scenic! With a backdrop of mountain vistas, it really was amazing!
