A Voyage to Queenstown

We are in Queenstown, New Zealand.  I will probably update this blog with a map, so that you can see where Queenstown is, but at this moment, I’m paying by the minute for internet access.

It’s hard to imagine something that would top the scenery of the drive between Christchurch and Queenstown.  First, we went through Lake Tekapo – a beautiful, green, glacier-fed lake about three hours from Christchurch.  We could have spent the whole four-day weekend there.  Instead, we just got a personal tour of the Mt. John Observatory and had some quality time in the hotsprings.

The Mt. John Observatory at Lake Tekapo.

Lake Tekapo

Then, we drove through the Canterbury plains and I kept waiting for Viggo Mortenson and a brigade of horsemen to come hunting down orcs in a Lord of the Rings battle scene.

Canterbury Plains with mountains from Mt. Cook national park in background.

Then, we got into Otago and hit Lindis Pass, where the girls wanted to stop and have a giant snow day.

Lindis Pass.  It had been snow-free up to a week before we drove over it.

And finally, Queenstown.  Queenstown is like the Angelina Jolie of landscapes.  You can’t take a bad photo of her, even if you try.

Here is what else you need to know about Queenstown.  It is the center of outdoor adrenaline-pumping in the South Island.  Jet boating, skiing, bungy jumping, zip lining, parasailing, and whatever else you might need to get your adrenaline fix is here.  And it has great nightlife, restaurants and more places to spend money than you would expect in kiwiland.  Would you like some Louis Vitton with your high-end merino-wool long underwear and locally sourced oysters, venison and caviar?

But otherwise, words just can’t do Queenstown the justice that photography can.  So rather than go on, I will just burn up my access minutes with a few photos.

View from the top of the Queenstown Gondola.

Looking at Lake Wakatipu from the beach in downtown Queenstown.

Looking into Queenstown from our hotel.

The Remarkables.  Any Lord of the Rings fans recognize the peak?