Hurrying away as fast as possible from the icy winds and rain in Dunedin, we packed the car in record time and (after a stop in Maccie's to finalise our plans) we set off for Wānaka.
Note: I'll try my best to put the little squiggle above the 'a' in Wānaka, but sometimes this site just doesn't allow it.
Splitting the driving in half, we followed what we could of the sun until we got to a small orchard just before Roxburgh, stopping off at a small cafe - run by a very sweet woman who was more than happy to try and accomodate us as best she could (better than the Singaporean family that didn't understand much of what she said, anyway!).
After a coffee and hot chocolate (standard, by this point), we continued a little further along the road until we came to Roxburgh Hydro Dam completely by mistake.
Being the most British we have been so far, we sat in the car to eat our picnic sandwiches to avoid the roaring winds, only peeking out to take a few photos as the sun began to break through.
It was very impressive, and between it and the next dam down the river, they provide 10% of New Zealand's electricity, making it essential... and god-DAM impressive! (Sorry!)
The closer we got to Wānaka, the more we couldn't help but stop off a few times and take some more amazing pictures of the views... just picturing the Fellowship running alongside us yet again!
We made it to Albert Town campground for around half-past 3 in the afternoon and had a struggle setting up the tent in the wind, but it was nothing that the two of us couldn't manage together, despite our best efforts!
Being the gracious hosts that they are, Danni and Nick had invited us round for a BBQ that night, and we stopped off for some supplies before heading over and having one of the most relaxing and entertaining evenings so far!
It was so lovely to see them and the kids again, and we were more than happy to spend a while there, relaxing, recharging, and generally just enjoying being inside for the time-being!
Heading back to the campsite, we played a little more Shithead by phone light before we decided it was time to call it for the evening, happy that we'd finally made it this far, as well as catching up with everyone!
Thermals were necessary that night; temperatures got to around 3 degrees! But it was nothing we couldn't handle!
Highlights over the next few days include the fact that there may or may not have been a duck in our tent the following day (suspicious duck noises came from the porch before we had a chance to spy on it from through the mesh to the bedroom!), the purchasing of a solar-powered lantern from a Wānaka camping shop (absolutely essential), and the watching of people jumping off the nearby Albert Town bridge into the water on super-hot days!
The river is freezing cold all year round in Albert Town, but that doesn't stop people from using floaties all the way down, as well as jumping in every time the temperature gets above about 25c - which it does very often!
Despite our lack of charging abilties, we've managed to watch quite a few films, including 'Monty Python and the Holy Grail' (a classic, in our opinion), as well as 'Lock, Stop, and Two Smoking Barrels', as well as 'Snatch' - the sequel.
We've also made some great friends at the campsite (see pictures below!)
Danni let us use her shower pretty early on (we really must have smelled those first few days!) which was more than kind of her, as well as giving us the best advice on where to go in Wānaka for just about anything we need.
That leads me to... Wastebusters - my new favourite shop. Imagine a charity shop... now imagine a charity shop on crack! The amount of stuff in there was incredible, and I'm already dying to go back (having acquired an old 80s thermos and two balls of wool for $4 NZD - about 2 quid).
On Monday (27/11), we went to meet the dogs we're dog-sitting for in the evening and, despite not wanting to stay long, we actually ended up staying for around an hour and a half, just chatting to their owner's daughter and playing with the dogs (one of whom flopped backwards onto Matt within 2 minutes of being there!).
On Tuesday, we tried out my new hiking boots and Matt's new trainers by taking a short stroll up the trail leading out of the campsite, taking in the view and just waiting for the rain to roll in (as the weather forecast had threatened!).
When the rain finally did come, it meant that we couldn't cook on our stove, leading to a trip to The Albie Tavern (where I write and upload this now!) to get a delicious dinner of burgers and steal their WiFi to have a catch up with my family.
On Wedneday, we took advantage of WiFi in a Wānaka cafe/bar/restaurant to catch up on more blog posts (Matt) and for me to do some work. The food was amazing and the staff were friendly enough to let us hang out there and get on with what we needed to.
On Thursday, we decided that we needed to do some washing, as well as have another shower (I guess) and perhaps sleep in a bed. This led to a one-night stay in Lakeview Holiday Park in Wānaka, little more than 10 minutes away from Albert Town campground.
We went out for Chinese that night, as well as getting everything clean that needed to be!
When we came back on the Friday, we were happy to discover that no one had taken our spot, and set up much more easily than before (with the lack of wind!) and put our tent in a much better spot, making easier car access.
Luckily, we also managed to get the tent up before the rain started (again) and we happy to curl up that night out of the chill and the wet!
On Saturday, Matt wasn't feeling so good in the morning so I drove round to the local 4Square to avoid the rain before starting on coffee, hot chocolate, and breakfast for the morning.
We had a late lunch that day to see us through to dindins where Danni invited us out for Thai takeaway by the lake (in the slight rain) which was super enjoyable - despite the small food muddle-up that meant a return trip to the takeaway before we eventually discovered that mine and Danni's food had been switched (just with the wrong lid!).
Unfortunately, the rain also continued that night, meaning that it was easy to get an early night but annoying when the tent started leaking in some places... (we're planning to fix it on the next sunny and warm day!).
On Sunday - as soon as the rain had stopped - I burst out the tent, starving hungry and ready to eat! Luckily, the rain subsided and I was able to cook under the cover of the car boot.
We had a day in Queenstown, splitting the driving so that Matt drove there and I drove back through the Crown Range (a gorgeous drive, by the way!).
We've been before, but this time we were able to walk around the town a little further, as well as exploring the peninsula that had hundreds of thousands of bees in bee boxes, "disc golf" (also known as frisbee golf - we didn't take part today... but maybe one day soon), as well as overly-PDA couples.
We got our fix of Maccie's for lunch and took it down to the lakeside to watch the jetboat tours set off as well as listening to some bagpipes and drums that were playig nearby.
The South Island has a far more North-English influence on it, so I guess that explains why there were bagpipes... but in all honesty, I'm not really sure.
Heading back, we stopped off to get some burger supplies for one day soon before being invited round for dinner by Danni and Nick. Danni cooked us an amazing meal of potato rosti, spicy tomatoes, boiled egg, and salad, which was really nice. We watched 'The Grinch who Stole Christmas' movie - getting into the Christmas spirit! - before heading back home and enjoying the evening in the tent.
The only thing that was annoying on this day was the fact that a couple showed up at 1am that night, slamming their car doors and having loud discussions before Matt went out to ask them "Do you know what time it is?"... "sorry..."
About half an hour later we thought they were making noise again, so Matt went out again, but it actually turned out to be a couple of young women leaving (not geared up for camping in high wind, we think), but it still took me ages to fall asleep again.
Matt has a trial shift tomorrow, so we'll update you on that, but for now... that's our life in Wānaka! We'll probably hang around in Albert Town campground a little more before we go out to Hawea and beyond for dogsitting but, of course, we'll keep you all updated!
One final update, our friends now feel comforatble enough to bring their babies round to see us in the morning!!! (see picture below!)
Friend of the ducks,
- Abi
Lovely. Very envious...more so about the temperature (and the fact that both Mum and I are full of cold in sub-zero temps!)
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