Taking it Easy in Wanaka

Reluctantly we left our idyllic lakeside getaway the next morning and set off towards Wanaka. We stopped at the remains of a Chinese settlement where Chinese gold miners lived and worked in the 1860s. After a drink we carried on up the road for a brief stop at roaring meg falls and the hydro-electric power station. We also passed Kawarau Gorge, the place where AJ Hackett invented bungy (and where you can bungy for free if you're over 70!). Further on we drove through countless vineyards, each row marked with a rose bush at the end. We even stopped to pick up some fresh peaches at a roadside orchard outlet near Cromwell, known as the 'fruit bowl of the south’. Finally arriving into Wanaka, we parked up and went to the nearest pub for lunch before heading off again to find our campsite.

Glendhu Bay campsite was definitely up there on the list of sites with a heavenly view - we were parked right beside the lake with a mountain vista backdrop and even a tree with a rope swing. Sat on a bench we enjoyed a beer and some scorchers before taking a swim in the still crystal clear water. What a life!

Next morning we hurriedly cooked some eggs and bacon before our paddleboarding session at 11. After a brief instruction on how to use them, we set out on the lake trying our best to look serene and composed while struggling internally not to fall off - Hugo's particularly poor sense of balance did not do him any favours here. Nevertheless there were no spectacular wipeouts and we paddled steadily around the lake, weaving between boats and swimmers for an hour. Having dropped off the boards we bought some suncream from festively dressed staff at the supermarket. We set up camp on the beach in front of the van. A more relaxed scene could not easily be imagined - we spent the following few hours servicing our tans, reading books, swimming in the clear warm water and generally being as lazy as possible. The mercury hit 32 degrees! Hugo mustered the energy to walk 50 yards to the car to pour a cold beer into a cup and bring it back to the beach for consumption, despite the alcohol ban. All good things must come to an end though, as we left back to the campsite to do our laundry and reheat some soup for tea. We got chatting to a British couple and talked for an hour or two about our vans and our recommendations for destinations during and after NZ. We watched the sun set over the lake and Hugo stayed out to get some photos of the stars.

Wanaka was the laidback sister of Queenstown and we really enjoyed our time there.Read more