Up the Waitaki Valley - Night 107

Being in a large, comfortable queen bed with no one tossing and turning in the bunk above or below me I actually managed to sleep in until 8am. After breakfast and a short trip down to the beach I packed my bags for the long two mile walk into town. My bus was scheduled for 11:15 and by noon I began to worry that the driver had forgotten me, as Oamaru is an optional stop for the Magic service. An hour late, the bus rolled into town. It turns out the driver was a substitute who didn’t necessarily believe in sticking to the rigid schedule set forth in the manual.

Lake Pukaki

The drive Tekapo was beautiful and long. The country in this part is very dry, a result of being on the leeward side of the north-south running Southern Alps. The west coast, only 60-80 kms away as the crow flies, get nearly five times as much rainfall. Water, however, is abundant here as the snowmelt from the Alps drains eastward to the Canterbury plains and eventually to the Pacific Ocean. All through this area are dams and canals, providing 25% of New Zealand’s electric power.

We finally arrived in Tekapo at 4pm. The small

Evening BBQ

town is perched at the southern shore of Lake Tekapo peering directly over the water at the snow covered peaks of the Alps. The driver, Steve, had arranged for a group barbecue tonight. Being one of the only guys who signed on for the event, I received the task of steak preparation, which was fine with me. The feed turned out to be a huge success. In all honesty it was probably the best $10 meal I’ve had in New Zealand.

Sunset over Lake Tekapo

What I Learned Today: The river, canal, and dam system of the Waitaki Valley is one of the most elaborate in world. Water from Lake Tekapo (originally from the flanks of the Southern Alps) passes through eight different hydropower plants on its relatively short trip to the Pacific Ocean. Also, strangely, because of the amount of glacial flour in the water, most of the large glacial lakes in the Mackenzie Region are completely devoid of fish.

written by

exumenius on January 25, 2008 from Lake Tekapo, New Zealand

from the travel blog: Kiwis and Kangaroos

Send a Compliment

comment on this...