The day after our Midford Sound cruise, we drove from Te Anau to Queenstown.  Many of the pictures in this post will simply be of the beautiful scenery we saw along the way.  As you might expect, we saw lots and lots of sheep.  We also saw horses – frequently wearing a blanket or “rug.”  In warmer weather, this is to protect them from insects.  We  saw alpacas at a rest stop.  They are native to South America but were introduced to New Zealand in 1986. Today there are about 5,000 in the country – they are raised for their fleece.  We also saw deer in farm pastures.  Because they have no natural predators, they are raised on farms for venison.

The next pictures are of Lake Wakatipu.  It was formed almost 15,000 years  ago, carved out by a glacier.  The Maori have a legend that the lake was formed when a giant was burned to death creating a hole in the earth.  Melting water from the surrounding mountains filled the hole resulting in the lake.  The lake actually rises and falls about four inches every 25 minutes.  Scientists say that the lake has a seiche (like a standing wave) due to changes in atmospheric pressure that causes this rise and fall in the water level.  The Maori legend explains that the giant’s heart could not be destroyed and that the rise and fall of the water is due to his beating heart.  I know atmospheric pressure can change, but the Maori legend almost seems the more logical of the two explanations!

The next two pictures are of a mountain range named “The Remarkables.”  They lie along the southeastern shore of Lake Wakatipu.  Our guide told us that The Remarkables run due north-south and are sometimes used for directions.

We stopped at the Amisfield Winery for a wonderful lunch and were treated to great views.  About 60% of the wine they produce is Pinot Noir.  After lunch, we were able to walk the grounds and could order wine to have shipped home.

The next day, we took a steamship, the TSS Earnslaw, on Lake Wakatipu to the Walter Peak Sheep Station.  The Earnslaw dates back to 1912 and actually carried Queen Elizabeth and Prince Phillip in 1990.  The steamship doesn’t seem to fit with New Zealand’s emphasis on a clean environment, but for now the Earnslaw is allowed to sail.  Our cruise on the lake was beautiful and once at the Sheep Station, we enjoyed beautiful views of the lake, mountains and gardens.  We also saw a demonstration of dogs herding sheep and a sheep being sheered. While the sheep didn’t look too happy, the sheering process was quick and he jumped up and went on his way after the sheering was complete.