New Zealand: On to Queenstown

We know what you're thinking with seeing Queenstown as our destination. The adrenaline capital of the world: Bungee jumping (first commercial site), sky diving, jetboating, and more. Well, we didn't do any this trip. This was more of a quick 'check-it-out' visit to relax, enjoy the scenery, and be near our airport for the next day's flight. Maybe next time...

It rained through most of the night and was still falling when we woke up. We dashed to the main lodge for a quick breakfast and to get an update on the weather. It looked like we would have to load the car in a progressively stronger rain shower.

On our way out we stopped at the Milford Sound parking area for one last view, but the rain and clouds prevented us from seeing too much (or far). With that done, we had our drive up through the valley to the Homer Tunnel.

We thought we had seen a lot of temporary waterfalls coming in to Milford Sound, but that was only during a light and sporadic shower. With rain through the night, the mountains were supplied with a non-stop source of water for hundreds of ribbons of waterfalls.

Every turn and clearing over the trees provided a new wall of thin waterfalls splashing down the steep mountain sides. It was a spectacular end to our visit to Milford Sound, and we're both very glad that we got to experience both the sunny and rainy perspectives.

The other side of the Homer Tunnel had a lighter rain, so we passed on hiking the 2-3 return trip to Key Summit and continued on towards Te Anau. By the time we got to Mirror Lakes the rain had nearly stopped, so we slowly walked the boardwalk to stretch our legs and enjoy the view.

Our last stop before Te Anau was at Te Anau Downs, which is the boat departure point for the Milford Track and any tours to Doubtful Sound. Maybe the next trip we'll explore a little further. The Te Anau township was just a quick lunch stop and one more pass at souvenirs before heading on to Queenstown. The good news was that the clouds had cleared and the sun was shining once again.
The last 30 minutes of the drive in to Queenstown hugs Lake Wakatipu with mountains all around. The road zig zags past the tall Remarkables over the last stretch as we caught our first full glimpse of Queenstown along the lake's edge.

For a town of only 10,000, there sure was a lot of activity as we drove to our accommodation. We checked in at Coronation Lodge in the afternoon and soon were walking to the main downtown area to explore. Queenstown was the busiest, most active place we had been since Nelson over a week before. Tourists from all walks of life - from backpackers to families to bachelor parties - wandered or lounged in the central section of Queenstown. There was even an outdoor market along the lake where locals were selling their arts and crafts.

After an hour of wandering and visiting nearly every souvenir shop in downtown, we stopped at Winnie's Pizza for dinner. It was self-proclaimed famous, and believed it after seeing several tourists wearing their t-shirts throughout our travels in New Zealand. The pizza and beer were reasonable and good. As we finished dinner, the crowd was changing as families left and young (i.e. backpacker) groups came in for a cheap eat.

The main activity we wanted to do was the gondola ride which provided panoramic views over Queenstown and the mountains. We had timed it so we would be catching the ride up around 8 in order to see the sunset and dusk over the city before heading back down by 10 (the last non-star gazing time slot).

After arriving at the top, we spent a few minutes getting our bearings and enjoying the view. The sun was slowly sinking off to our right, illuminating Queenstown and the Remarkables behind them.

Nate was initially the only one with a tripod setup until two other guys came running off the gondola with tripods out and multiple cameras/lenses ready. A small, light rain shower over the lake was lit up by the sun's rays, and they must have been watching as the gondola brought them up. Nate actually recognized one of them as Trey Ratcliff from a well known travel photography blog called Stuck in Customs. He's known for his HDR (High Dynamic Range) photography, and had the first HDR photo to hang in the Smithsonian.

After a couple of minutes Nate got to talking to Trey, who was initially surprised to be recognized.  Nate was happy to geek out on photography for a bit and ask a few questions.  Trey was down to earth, happy that Nate followed his site, and willing to chat and share some tips while continuing to take pictures.  His travel partner was Tom Andersen (aka My Space Tom), the co-founder of My Space, who was also approachable and friendly.  He has a large following on Instagram of all the places he visits.

It was hard not to be jealous of all the places they visit and photograph. They were both joking about who had the better shot as we watched the rain storm cross the lake and the clouds slowly turn from a yellow/orange to pink/purple.

As the sun was setting Queenstown's lights were coming on. Occasionally, loud cheers rung out from below from the now crowded restaurants and bars. We stayed through dusk while enjoying the glow of Queenstown surrounded by the mountains and lake.

We caught the gondola down shortly before 10. Visitors have the opportunity to stay up longer if they purchase the star gazing option, which we didn't. Trey and Tom were still there when we left in hopes of capturing the stars (and possibly Milky Way) with Queenstown in the background. Before heading down, they had convinced us to drive to Glenorchy early in the morning for a last round of photographs.

Tomorrow we would be beginning our trip home with a flight out of Queenstown at 1:30. If we were to go to Glenorchy, it'd have to be early and we'd have to allow enough time to get back in time to check-out, eat, and get to the airport.