On Monday, we hiked the well-known Queenstown Hill Trail.  This was not a hill but a major mountain!  We walked uphill on a never- ending steep trail to the summit at 2700 feet above sea level.  The views of the lake and snow covered mountains were extraordinary as were the high winds.   Right now, it is late spring in New Zealand; but the weather feels more like it is late fall.  As we hiked (tramped) up the hill,  we continually heard the breaking of tree limbs.  Not a big issue until we saw the 2 1/2 foot diameter “branch” that had crashed upon the trail no more than a week before.  The total hike was about 4.5 arduous miles-quite demanding as the heart really pumps as you  gain altitude.  Because of the “loop”, the downhill loop was a bit shorter than the uphill climb.  The downhill hike was just as difficult due to the constant stress on the knees since we didn’t have our hiking pole with us.

Later that day, we drove to Glenorchy which is the northern most town on Lake Wakatipu. The drive along the lake was quite magnificent.  We read that this drive was one of the most scenic drives in all of the South Island and we agree.  The town of Glenorchy was VERY SMALL.   Once there, we walked the Glenorchy Lagoon trails, including boardwalks across the lagoons, for about 4 miles.   It was so incredibly windy and cold, there were times when it felt like we were both going to be swept from the miles of boardwalk into the muddy marsh below.  We spotted about 15 horses  and riders tramping through the shallow water to a small peninsula-it was a perfect photographic moment against the snowy mountains and the gorgeous aqua-colored lake.