Day 24: Passing Paradise to Te Anau

Wow. Even after such a short amount of time, Kinloch has really grown on me. Surrounded by majestic mountain ranges and lying directly opposite to Glenorchy on the banks of Lake Wakatipu, it is utterly quiet and peaceful.
There are loads of outdoor activities to do, and the surroundings are beautiful. Stunning views everywhere!
Yes, it does rain quite a lot, and no, apart from the lodge there is nothing else, but the location is simply awesome.

After some muesli this morning, we are off heading towards Te Anau. This means we have to drive the dirt road back towards Glenorchy, passing Paradise and driving the full hour to Queenstown. That is also when we reach civilisation, the other places I mentioned are tiny by all standards.
From there, Te Anau is just a few hours away, and mostly an easy drive.

We encountered no rain at all on the trip, and have had a wonderful time driving through the lovely New Zealand South Island scenery.
Arriving at Te Anau, which lies on the shore of Lake Te Anau, we booked a tour to the Te Anau Glowworm Caves.
Being quite a tourist attraction, it is just one of those things you have to do, and even though it is insanely overpriced, the experience is quite nice, as is the boat ride to the caves themselves. The pamphlet speaks of a ‘scenic tour of Lake Te Anau’, but it is more of a ferry or shuttle than anything else.

We did find a very good Italian place over here, and we’ve both had some great fresh pasta. Go check out Da’ Toni whenever you’re around!