Queenstown

Kia ora (hello) again.

View of  Lake Wakatipu from Bob's Peak

After the spectacular beauty of Milford Sound yesterday, we had a long drive to Queenstown. We arrived late in the afternoon and we took a gondola ride to the top of Bob's Peak for a spectacular view of Lake Wakatipu, downtown Queensland and the surrounding mountains which include the Remarkables, the Eyre Mountains and the majestic Southern Alps.

The news with a view

Queenstown is a tourist destination. The city strives to be the "adventure capital of the world" offering a wide range of attractions and activities including hang gliding, speed boating, canoeing,  biking, hiking, snow skiing, and many more.

Because of its glacial beauty and variety of activities, Queenstown is one of New Zealand's fastest growing towns and one of its most expensive to live in.

TSS Earnslaw, known as the lady of the lake

The following morning we took to guided walk along Lake Wakatipu, a pure fresh water lake. The water is drinkable untreated but with a bit of fluoride. Our destination was the Queenstown dock where we boarded a historic steamer, the TSS Earnslaw, a 100 year old 1912 twin-screw steamship.

Sheep shearing demonstration

We took a short ride to the Walter Peak High Country Farm. There we saw a sheep sheering demonstration (fascinating), listened to a short presentation about the many types of sheep, and the different types of wool and their uses.

Although New Zealand has traditionally been the world's largest provider of lamb and wool, the market has decreased by nearly 50% since 1994. There is a growing demand for dairy products, especially in the Asian market, and a decreasing demand for wool products. Therefore, many farmers are converting from raising sheep to raising cattle.

Bess, a border collie mix, is a sheep dog.

Sheep are not native to New Zealand. The merino, the first sheep brought to the country, provides the finest and most expensive wool and is used in expensive jerseys and Italian suits.

The sheep shearing was followed by a demonstration of how the farmer partners with his sheep dogs to round up and control the sheep. Good sheep dogs can cost up to $12,000.

Walter Peak restaurant

After watching the shearing and sheep roundup, we had worked up quite an appetite. We retired to the deck of the Walter Peak restaurant for a delicious BBQ lunch while enjoying the beauty of Lake Wakatipu. The restaurant building is surrounded by non-native trees brought over by Europeans pining for the feel of home. The surrounding flower beds were just lovely.

View of Lake Wakatipu during lunch

Shortly after lunch, the TSS Earnslaw completed its round trip back to Queenstown with another load of passengers. It was our turn to reboard the ship for our return trip to the city.