New Zealand #2 - We avoid Queenstown and discover the Land of Orcs - Glenorchy, South Island

When I started planning our trip almost 2 years in advance I knew from the outset that Queenstown was the adventure travel capital of New Zealand. After all it had the first commercial bungee jumping attraction, and also claims to be the jetboat capital of the world. So I expected the place to be busy, but really...

Looking north to Glenorchy at the top of Lake Wakatipu.

We arrived in early autumn, on Easter Monday, so I thought any weekend visitors would be on their way home to Christchurch or places further afield. The first indication I was very very wrong should have been about 10 days ago in Oz when I tried to book a cabin and had to take the one remaining unit, with virtually no cooking facilities and nothing for washing up - take your pots and dishes to the communal kitchen! The second indication should have been when we drove from the airport through town, streets packed with cars and sidewalks packed with people, and 'no vacancy' signs everywhere.

Starting our daytrip - brightonbonnie dressed for the weather!

So after our unsuccessful return yesterday to Queenstown to find a meal I finally got it and decided our first day exploring should avoid the town and head into the country. Wise choice!

The wonderful drive north along the lake, less crowded than Queenstown!

The weather is a bit of a shock after 30 plus Australia. Today is cloudy with some rain, and maxes out at 15 Celsius. Thankfully we are well-prepared, our very large rolling duffles containing lots of layered clothing options like lightweight jackets and rainwear. We get good news on checking reception - due to an unexpected cancellation they have found us a better cabin, and offer to move our belongings across while we are away.

Can you hear the orcs?

Shortly after 10 we drive into and through Queenstown so we can head north along Lake Wakatipu to Glenorchy. The drive along the lake is absolutely stunning, even with cloud and rain hugging the mountains, which actually gives them an eerie feeling. At one viewpoint I tell brightonbonnie I think I can hear orcs across the lake coming down the mountains, and she has the same thought. Weeks later, when we buy a Lord of the Rings 'where the movies were shot' book for our son there is a photo taken from almost the same viewpoint, one of the scenes used in the movies!

You must be able to hear the orcs now...

At one of our vantage points we meet a nice family, husband Australian swimming instructor/chef, wife Indonesian graphic designer, with their 8 year-old son, basically traveling the world trying to find their place to settle – Hong Kong, Singapore, Paris (Cordon Bleu school), Australia - hoping to start a pastry shop. The son points out a peak he thinks is from The Hobbit so we take a photo. Later we both remark on how mature the young man is, probably due to how much he has traveled, and independently conclude that we should have given him an Inukshuk (google it!) from the stash we carry to thank special people we meet, as a way to encourage him to visit Canada one day.

Is this The Hobbit peak?

We stop for lunch at The Glenorchy Café, where I finally surrender to the New Zealand weather and put on light jacket, socks and shoes. The café is very warm and comfortable, and for lunch I have a very good late breakfast of halloumi, poached eggs, avocado, thick toast, chili sauce, and tzatziki, while brightonbonnie has an equally good quiche, and we take away two cake slices – apple and prune, and mixed berries.

Glenorchy Café for a nice lunch.

A bit more crowded in Glenorchy as it's the only town for miles. We see rental caravans like this one everywhere, in our parks and on the road.

We would like to travel further north to visit one of the Lord of the Rings shooting sites but the weather in the mountains looks pretty miserable, and more importantly the car rental contract precludes driving on unimproved roads, and the roads are actually indicated as such on some maps and signed 'No rental vehicles'!

Coming back through Queenstown we have to stop at the Salvation Army store so brightonbonnie can buy a very fluffy and very warm housecoat! We are obviously at the opposite end of the spectrum from our main concern in Oz, which was 'Will the aircon be on when we check in to our cabin?'.

Another view of the road north...

Back at our new cabin we settle in more comfortably, brightonbonnie very cozy in her new/old housecoat. The view from the kitchen table when I write my journal and check photos is amazing! The TV here is awful, only 4 channels, so we are forced to watch Family Feud NZ, where we discover that New Zealand English, like the Australian version, presents us with some challenges: one answer to ‘What do you associate with court?’ is ‘Nipple’...

...which I soon realize is ‘Netball’! And now, above, one final shot looking north into the mountains and weather beyond Glenorchy, this one by brightonbonnie on her iPad. It's very similar to the one at the start of this post which I took with my DSLR, so in my mind mine has to be better - but she disagrees and wants photo credit too!

We both probably under-appreciated the effects of the 3 hour time change from Cairns, and are both very tired and cranky, so early to bed!

PS - if you've enjoyed this post please check out my first New Zealand post, the previous 19 posts in my Australia series, and the 3 before that as we started our 90 day roadtrip in Tahiti!

And please join us in my next post as we take a look at Queenstown!

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!steemitworldmap -44.850995 lat 168.389016 long Glenorchy South Island New Zealand d3scr