South Island, New Zealand Travel Log 4

Kia Ora friends! Welcome to my fourth travel log featuring my adventures visiting the South Island (Te Waipounamu) of New Zealand. 

A quick recap, if you haven't been following along...I just returned from traveling to New Zealand with my momma and second dad for an adventure-filled few weeks. We arrived in Christchurch a few days before meeting up with our tour group to hike the South Island for a couple weeks. There were eleven of us on the tour, plus one guide. We traveled daily in a Sprinter van to grand locations throughout the South Island and experienced some incredible trails, scenery and excursions.

After spending the night in Queenstown, we drove to Glenorchy (a stunning drive that has been voted one of the best drives in the world), stopping for some sheep photos along the way. We spent the day hiking on the Routeburn Track. Starting at the Routeburn Shelter, we made our way along the crystal blue waters of the Route Burn, past Sugarloaf Stream and Bridal Veil Falls and above the gorge...stopping for lunch in the Flats, before returning to the shelter. This was a wonderful, full day of hiking on one of New Zealand's "Great Walks." Afterwards, we returned to Queenstown, where I had dinner on my own and explored the incredible Queenstown Gardens and water front by the Main Town Pier. 

The South Island robin, also known in Māori as the Kakaruwai,
is a sparrow-sized bird found only in New Zealand, where it has the
status of a protected endemic species.

The following day was a "free day" in Queenstown. Dan and I started the day by riding the Skyline Gondola 480 meters above Queenstown and Lake Wakatipu to the top of Bob's Peak, where we had breathtaking mountain views and a birds-eye view of Queenstown. Next, we met my momma at the hotel and walked the garden path to the waterfront, where we boarded the TSS Earnslaw (a 1912 coal-fired steamship) and cruised past the Remarkables mountain range and Cecil Peak, to Walter Peak High Country Farm. Here, we were supposed to go horseback riding, but due to a staffing shortage, it was canceled...so we opted to take the Walter Peak Farm Tour. Although I was a bit letdown about the horseback riding, the farm tour did not disappoint - we were able to spend up close and personal time with all the farm animals (my momma bottle fed baby sheep) and had a lovely afternoon tea, followed by a sheep dog herding demonstration. I also immensely enjoyed the grounds and took photos in the gardens, while my parents visited the gift shop. Afterwards, we took the steamboat back to Queenstown, where we did a little exploring and then had an early dinner at Pedro's by the Lake. After walking with my parents back to the hotel, I spent some more time in the Queenstown Gardens (one of my favorite places of the entire trip).

Again, I hope you are enjoying my photo journey of the South Island...the photos today were some of my favorites. I will have a few more travel log updates before getting back to my usual creative posts. I will be back tomorrow with my next travel log. Thank you for visiting!