Canterbury Tales

The guy from the campsite had kindly written us a list of places to pass through on the way to lake Tekapo, avoiding the featureless highway of Canterbury. Many kilometers of countryside and cattle farms later, having stopped for lunch in the university town of Lincoln, we stumbled upon the picturesque Rakaia gorge. This seemed as good a spot as any to stretch our legs and find a campsite. As we followed the trail up the hill we caught glimpses of the turquoise water beside us, with a large bridge connecting the land on either side of the meandering river. Unsure as to whether we had reached 'the' lookout, we considered turning back, but in the end continued, and as it happened, eventually found the signpost we had been looking for. Before us was a view across the valley, with the snowcapped Mt Hutt in the background and lush green pastures below.

Our  campsite for the night was just across the bridge. We picked a spot overlooking the river, and as the sun set we set up our stove for our evening meal. As Hugo cooked up Chinese chicken with noodles, I prepared and fed him feta canapes. Such a hard life! A joint effort was required to wash the dishes, with Hugo pumping the water as I scrubbed in the mini sink. Hugo, keen for some alternative company, wandered over to a group of three British guys playing hackysack and asked to join, or should I say 'play out’.

Next day we continued on our way towards Tekapo, guided by the spectacular lupin-lined roads. Tall stems of purples, pinks, whites, oranges and yellows created a beautiful foreground against the southern Alps mountain ranges. We passed through the country hamlet of Mt Somers with a cute general store that looked like the set of a western, before stopping for lunch in Geraldine. We opted for a cheese platter as we had read that the town was well known for its country produce. We cracked a smile when we saw the local butcher’s car with the number plate SRLOIN.

We joined state highway 79 and then 8 and arrived in Tekapo mid afternoon. After deciding that it was too expensive to stay in Tekapo itself, our plan was to view the sights and then continue on to lake pukaki. We walked down to the iconic landmark, the Church of the Good Shepherd, and found swarms of Chinese tourists taking photos. We were just in time to enter the church before it closed 10 minutes later. The view from the window at the back of the church was incredible. We filed out to find an Asian couple having wedding photos taken, albeit on her mum's phone. We wandered amongst the lupins to the lakeside, cunningly positioning our photos to block out the tourists. Standing on the bridge, we peered down at the emerald-coloured water below, akin to the lakes we had seen in the Canadian Rockies.

Lake pukaki was equally as beautiful and we found a campsite in the town of Twizel (pronounced Twyzel). Laundry done and food devoured, we stayed up until it went dark at around 10.30. Fortunately, the sky was forecast to be clear that night, and after researching where to go to get a good view of the southern skies, we snuck out of the campsite (wary of Moa’s noisy engine) and drove back to lake pukaki. The approach to the car park was rough gravel terrain and we were unsure whether we would be able to get going again… Hugo ignored this and parked up anyway. Hugo was in his element; he set up the tripod and framed the 'night sky’ shot, sat beneath the starry canopy for an hour and a half. The Mackenzie area is an international dark sky reserve, the only one of its kind in the southern hemisphere. Unfortunately the moon was full so the sky wasn't in its full glory, but we were nevertheless able to see the milky way, Magellanic clouds and the Southern Cross.Read more