10am – What day is it? 🫩
Big breakfast and some coffee at a local cafe before we go for a leisurely drive out towards Aoraki/Mt Cook.
Two hikes in a row – Holidays are wild.
– Tak
12pm – I should not be trusted with directions. We drove 40 minutes out of town in the wrong direction before it dawned on me and we chucked a U-turn.
2:30pm – We’ve finally arrived 🫣 Nic has decided to brave the suspension bridges – we’re tackling the Hooker Valley track!
6:30pm – Aoraki/Mt Cook and its surrounds are outrageously beautiful. There’s far less snow on the mountains as I’d expected, based on my previous experience. Still, we managed to score a totally fine day which makes Lake Tekapo and Lake Pukaki pop with swirls of turquoise and aquamarine.
We walked for about four hours, stopping to take photos and to just sit and hear the natural sounds around us. We took some less trodden paths and found adventures within adventures, climbing over rocks and down pebble-strewn hillocks.
About tomorrow: We originally planned to drive to Te Anau tomorrow to check out Milford Sound, but the weather forecast predicts over 200mm rain and possible flooding. Heh. We’re going to think of something else in the morning. G’night for now.