31 January 2015 - Ohau B Canal, Twizel, South Canterbury

It rained all night and was still dismal and wet when we finished breakfast. Our plan had been to drive up to the Blue Lakes carpark and walk up past the Blue Lakes to the viewpoint on the Tasman Glacier moraine wall. From here on a clear day, one has good views of the lower Tasman Glacier and lake, icebergs and the mountains at the head of the valley. This morning we decided we would be lucky to find the car park in the mist, let alone the commencement of the track, although it has probably undergone a massive facelift like the Hooker Valley track. Last time we checked the Tasman Glacier out, the track was a matter of scampering over large boulders; these days hardly up to Health & Safety standards. Perhaps it is just as well we decided to give it away.

We were intrigued to learn about the Alps 2 Ocean Cycle Trail, a trail that starts at Aoraki Mt Cook village, continues down the valley to the airport where one takes a helicopter ride across the Tasman River, continues down the eastern shore of Lake Pukaki, then wends its way on down and around the Waitaki Hydro System, all the way to Oamaru, a distance of 301 kilometres. With the helicopter section, it does make it a rather elite activity; however we would love to do sections of it. Our new motorhome has an excellent bike rack on the rear, but alas our bikes are still back under our house. We will have to return next year, with the bikes, and make sure we tke the opportunity to include a trip to the Tasman Glacier then!

So we left the Aoraki Mt Cook National Park, vowing to come earlier next year, to catch the spikey Golden Spaniards in full bloom and the sun gleaming on the tops of the mountains. As we descended the heights of the alpine area, driving back down the shore of Lake Pukaki, the sky brightened and visibility to the east improved. We did remark on the number of vehicles still heading up to the resort, oblivious of the horrendous conditions ahead of them, and the fact they would see very little today or even in the few days ahead.

We drove south to Twizel, where we shopped in the excellent new Four Square supermarket, dumped our grey water and did a load of laundry at tourist prices: $5 per machine. By the time we had finished there was no sign of rain about at all and the day improved even more after we parked up beside the Ohau B Canal in a specially designated free camping area for NZMCA members. We are one of many motorhomes strung out along the canal not far from the main road, a salmon farm within view and most of our fellow campers with rods set up for their fishy dinner. Chris on the other hand is happy to have television reception and even more, to find that the Pakistan v New Zealand ODI cricket match is being telecasted live on free-to-air.