Across the world: 2015 Re-visit to New Zealand: Omarama and Lake Tekapo

27 - 28 April 2015

From Omaru to Lake Tekapo, we took a longer but scenic route to Lake Tekapo via Omarama. Omarama is a small township at the junction of State Highways 8 and 83, near the southern end of the Mackenzie Basin, in the South Island of New Zealand.

We saw the first rainbow in the day

You must not miss the Benmore Power Station with New Zealand's largest solid-earth dam (110m). The Clay Cliffs with their dramatic sharp pinnacles and deep narrow ravines are a fascinating place to explore. We did not drop by here this time. You can read my post on my previous trip to Clay Cliff here.

Before reaching Lake Tekapo, you can pay a visit to he High Country Salmon Farm where you can grab some fresh salmons and trouts home.

Aoraki Mount Cook National Park is home of the highest mountains and the longest glaciers. Aoraki / Mount Cook is the highest mountain in New Zealand. Its height since 2014 is listed as 3,724 metres, down from 3,764 m before December 1991, due to a rockslide and subsequent erosion. Although it encompasses 23 peaks over 3000 metres high, this park is very accessible. State Highway 80 leads to Aoraki/Mt Cook Village which is situated beside scenic Lake Pukaki

I did Kea Point Track last time. I could not wait for the Hooker Valley Track this round. The sky and lake were blue. We even saw double rainbow on the way driving to the Mount Cook National Park (This is the second and third rainbow we saw in the day). The weather just changed and it started to rain halfway towards the national park. We kept finger crossed the weather might turn better. We continued our journey for a while more then we decided to turn back to Lake Tekapo as the rain did not stop and the sky got more cloudy. 😭

Lake Tekapo is part of a UNESCO Dark Sky Reserve, making it the perfect spot for stargazing. If you can, plan you visit here during new moon. The color of the Lake Tekapo's water truly sets it apart from other lakes. It’s a beautiful turquoise blue created by rock flour from surrounding glaciers. The glaciers in the headwaters of Lake Tekapo grind rock into a fine dust on their journey down towards the lake. This rock flour is suspended in the water and causes the magnificent turquoise.

Picture taken at same spot 4 years ago. Good weather can make huge difference to the picture.

The Church of the Good Shepherd was built to the glory of God as a memorial to the pioneers of the Mackenzie Country. The builders of the Church were instructed that the site was to be left undisturbed, and that even the matagouri bushes surrounding the building were to remain. Rocks which happened to be on the wall line were not to be removed. The stones for the wall were to be procured from within a radius of five miles of the site, and were to be unchipped and in their natural condition.