Saturday 10 October: Mount Sunday, Lake Tekapo, Lake Pukaki and Hooker Valley
A very busy day today. We started by heading NW to visit Mount Sunday which served as the site for the city of Edoras in the Lord of the Rings movie. Quite recognisable!
Since the valley has no exit we then had to retrace our steps back down to the campsite before recommencing our journey SW to Lake Tekapo. The views here are magnificent. We went up a little hill to Mt John's Observatory to get even better views.
After Lake Tekapo we then continued round the bottom of Lake Pukaki and up its western side to the Hooker Valley. We arrived just in time to walk the 1 hour from the campsite to Hooker Lake and back before it got dark.
Lake Pukaki:
Hooker valley and lake:
The end of the day:
Golden Nugget: NZ Frenzy Guide Book
Much of our trip to NZ has been planned using information gleaned from the NZ Frenzy Guide Books written by Scott Cook. These very detailed guide books (1 for each island) describe many of the major attractions but also lots of lesser known gems. An absolute must for those who don't like being ripped off, or who like to avoid the crowds.