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Day 200

Lupins, Swamps and the Best Pies in New Zealand

Wake up and smell the lupins, people! We're on our last morning in Lake Tekapo. Although we have avoided being another tourist taking photos of those famous lupin flowers by doing much more awesome stuff in Tekapo, like bathing in hot springs, stargazing and flying over the Southern Alps, our time has come to join the tourist hoards at the…

Day 199

The Grand Traverse Flight Over The Southern Alps

Having not a single cloud in the sky is always a good thing in Lake Tekapo. Usually, we like the moodiness and atmosphere of a bit of cloud cover, but we've been waiting two days for the clouds to shift so that we can hit the skies with Air Safaris. Finally, that morning comes today when the sun creeping between…

Day 198

Stargazing in Lake Tekapo

In most cities, the only reason people are still wondering the streets at 2.30am is because they are getting a greasy burger at the end of a hard night's raving. In Lake Tekapo, the reason many of its visitors pull all-nighters is because the town is situated in an International Dark Sky Reserve. This means that Lake Tekapo is one of…

Day 197

Epic Water Slides and Scenic Hot Pools in Lake Tekapo

Oh Lake Tekapo, how you have been teasing us with dreamy photos of a Southern Alps backdrop contrasting against the blue skies and a bluer lake seen between the purple petals of the lupins. That Church of the Good Shepard creating the foreground for sparkling Milky Way shots on nights as clear as glass. Reality: New Zealand weather. Although November/early December…

Day 196

A 360 Flight Around Aoraki Mt Cook

Our time in Aoraki Mt Cook National Park has upped this 365 Days: 365 Activities to a higher level... Both metaphorically and literally! Only 30 minutes into our arrival at the base of the Southern Alps we were being whisked away in a helicopter for some heli-hiking on New Zealand's longest glacier. Then we had a night of stargazing in…

Day 195

A Ski Plane Glacier Escapade

It's not everyday that you get to land on a glacier in a plane! In fact, there are only two places in the world where you can fly in a ski plane and land on a glacier. One of those places is in Aoraki Mt Cook National Park. As cliched as it sounds, we are truly going to have a once-in-a-lifetime…

Day 194

Planetarium and Stargazing in Aoraki Mt Cook

It is expected to happen. Out of the four days we are spending in Aoraki Mt Cook, day 2 is the day the weather turns to sh*t. The snowy peaks of all the surrounding mountains are completely covered in cloud. Frequently changing weather is something they are used to here in the sub-alpine village of Aoraki Mt Cook. Despite its…

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