Mount Cook to Glenorchy

Yesterday, I didn’t travel very far in the motorhome but did quite a bit of hiking. Today, I didn’t hike anywhere, but traveled a long distance in the motorhome. The idea was to get to Queenstown, the South Island’s major vacation spot. It is surrounded by big mountains and on a large blue lake that is many miles long. I got to Queenstown a bit earlier than I had planned, and instead of the forecast cloudy day, the weather was nice with blue skies and some fluffy white clouds. So instead of wasting half a day, I continued on down the lake toward Glenorchy at the opposite end of the lake. It’s about an hour’s drive but lots of places to stop for photos. When I got to Glenorchy, I still had some good daylight left, so I continued around the end of the lake toward Kinloch. I’m camping for the night in a beautiful spot with big snowy mountains. Tomorrow I will continue to explore the area if the weather holds up. Then I will make my way back up towards Queenstown.


As I mentioned yesterday, I planned a night hike up to Kea Point to shoot the mountains by moonlight. There was a full moon, so it was quite bright. I managed to do the entire hike without turning my light on a single time. I was even able to do most my camera settings without turning a light on. This is a photo of Mt. Sefton by moonlight from Kea Point.


This is Mount Cook from the same place, but the moon is on the other side so the mountain in in lunar shadow and doesn’t look as nice. The full moon makes the sky very bright and overpowers all but the brightest stars.


This is a wide angle view that has both Mount Sefton on the left and Mount Cook on the right.


Here’s a roadside panorama on the way to Queenstown.


Another spot along the road on the way to Queenstown.


This is the world famous Fergburger in Queenstown. I only stopped long enough to grab some groceries, fuel up, and get a Fergburger for lunch.


A panorama of the lake and mountains on the road to Glenorchy.


Another panorama along the way to Glenorchy.


The lake is crystal clear and very pure.


This is looking toward the North end of the lake where Glenorchy is located.


Looking across the lake toward some dramatic clouds.


Getting closer to Glenorchy.


A sheep farm along the lake near Glenorchy.


This farm is just beyond Glenorchy on the way to Kinloch.


This view is at the same sheep farm, just 90 degrees to the right. I couldn’t talk any of the sheep in to moving over there to graze in my foreground.


This is the view from my campsite looking North.


This is the view from my campsite looking West.