Tasman Lake and Blue Pools

The next stop for today is the Tasman Lake and New Zealand's biggest glacier, the Tasman Glacier and the so-called Blue Pools.

The track is just a short drive away from the Hooker Valley Track. And also here I arrived before the crowds were showing up!

First I went all the stairs up to the Lake Tasman Lookout.
Awesome view and you can really see the glacier and even some ice on the lake!
I met a group of young people and a girl asked me straight away if I would like to have a picture of myself in front of the scenery. That was so nice of her! Never happened to me before. I usually ask someone to take a picture for me.

After that I went down to walk to the Blue Pools, they are called Blue Pools, but they are actually green 🤔

Good that there was an information board that was explaining, why they are green now.

Since the glacier is getting smaller and smaller the Blue Pools, a few hundred years ago in the same ice-blue color as the big lakes around, are no longer connected with the glacier lakes and are now mostly filled up with rainwater and so changed their color.

Here I also learned, why the glacier lakes are so grey/brown in color and not so beautiful as Lake Pukaki and Tekapo.

„Grey or brown water is glacial meltwater with large amounts of glacial flour (ground-up Rock) in it. The water is found close to the glacier.

Turquoise blue water is glacial meltwater in which much of the glacial flour has settled. The fine particles of rock still suspended give the water it’s particular turquoise blue color.“Read more