NZ Day 4 - Ashburton and beyond

On night 3 we pulled into Ashburton, for no real reason other than it was on the road where we were headed & had a few motels. My run the next morning was a pleasant surprise, as I quickly left the suburban housing behind & found the rural area. It reminded me of the country towns in Australia in a lot of ways, except for one obvious difference - the massive snow-capped mountains in the distance.

On our way to Clyde (our plans changed as we had to cancel the Routeburn tramp due to avalanche risk closing most of the track), we stopped at a few awesome places. The first was Lake Tekapo. The Church of the Good Shepherd, perched right on the shore of the lake is a gorgeous stone building built in 1935.

The aquamarine colour of the water is something you have to see to fully appreciate.

And yes, I was there - here is proof.

Looking back at the church - the altar looks out through that window right over the lake - it's magical to sit in a pew & contemplate the natural beauty.

Next stop was Lake Pukaki - the largest of the 3 lakes bordering the Mackenzie Basin. The water here also has a bright blue colour, but it was less obvious when we saw it.

That's Mount Cook right in the middle - the clouds were doing some pretty cool shit right above it.

Finally, we stopped along a stretch of windy road through some pretty impressive hills & valleys to take some photos. First we had to climb up a big hill, but, as always, putting the effort in was worth it for the views.