Day 66 Haast, Lake Wanaka

The sun has gone.  We woke up to rain and it continued to rain up until we left Haast and for most of the morning.  This road is reported to be one of the nicest drives on the west coast but the cloud coverage was so low that we could only see the hills and nothing of the mountains behind them.  It was this point that I realized that we had fallen into the "take it for granted" trap. We couldn't see the mountains and while we were disappointed with the rain, we almost missed the beauty that was there.  As the clouds or mist moved down the mountains giving only glimpses of what lay behind, it was in itself breathtaking.  This country really is beautiful, it doesn't matter what the setting is.

At about the 1/3 mark of the drive we came to the first of three waterfalls we wanted to get pictures of.  They were Roaring Billy Falls, Thunder Falls and Fantail Falls. All of them were off the highway anywhere from 10 to 30 minutes.  It was still raining when we approached the first one and we thought we were going to get wet. However, it stopped raining shortly after our arrival which made for a pleasant walk and a good way to get the legs going.



Roaring Billy Falls



Roaring Billy Falls flows into this river



Trail to Roaring Billy Falls


















Thunder Falls



Fantail Falls






















Somebody was busy or had a lot of time



We made a couple of other stops, one of which was quite quick, a photo op really.  Clarke Bluff is where the Haast and Landsborough Rivers come together.  The Landsborough Valley is home to a three day rafting trip that is really popular.

What came next was an unbelievable stretch of scenery unlike any I have seen. It started with the Blue Pools of Haast Pass.  It was our best hike and best stop of the morning.  The pools derive their name from the distinctive blue of the water.  The blue color is a result of light refraction on the clear, snow fed, icy cold water.  The water is so clear you can see the brown and rainbow trout swimming in the pool.



The Blue Pools




Stream leading to the Blue Pools



  

The Blue Pools



The rest of the drive into Wanaka had us continue through Haast Pass until we came to Lake Wanaka which we followed for quite a period of time, not sure of the actual distance.  The lake was on our right and then we jogged slightly and now we had Lake Hawea on our left.  The visual collection was unprecedented and really, truly breathtaking.



Haast Pass




Haast Pass




Lake Wanaka




Lake Wanaka




Lake Wanaka




Lake Wanaka




Lake Hawea




Lake Hawea




Lake Hawea



The miles flew by and the next thing we knew we were in Wanaka.  We should have gone back and did the drive again.  Instead we drove through Wanaka and found the Top 10 Holiday Park and pulled in for the night.  We were in for a treat when we got to our spot.

View from Campsite



 

View from Campsite





The view was pretty nice, but it got better.  As the sun started to set we watched the look of the landscape change before our eyes.  It was pretty amazing.

It was pretty amazing. The day was pretty amazing, we saw it all. I think we may have to stay here for a few days.