Middlemarch - Dwarf Escape

Gipatik: 21.04.2024

Welcome back!

For some, the title may seem a bit strange - for others (especially the nerds) it will probably make sense when they see the pictures in this post. I drove to Middlemarch and on the way to the campsite I was already really happy that I had decided to make this stop, because the landscape is simply a dream!

I got the idea from one of the Hobbit films, as some scenes were filmed here, where the dwarves, Gandalf and Bilbo flee from the warg riders. While watching the film, I thought to myself: That looks cool! And what can I say, in reality the landscape looks even more impressive!

When I arrived at the campsite, I asked the owner if she could tell me where the film scenes were shot. She couldn't tell me 100%, but she pointed me in the right direction and gave me the landowner's number, as the scenes were shot on private property. She said that the owners are really nice people and she wouldn't be surprised if they invited me on a 4x4 tour. Well, when I tried to contact the owner the next morning, unfortunately no one answered and I didn't want to leave a 10-minute message asking about walking on his land but not knowing exactly where I was going.

So I drove around a bit and checked whether the Google Maps marker was correct - unfortunately that wasn't the case. BUT: I didn't find a filming location, but I did see my first owl. I was driving at 20 km/h over (who would have guessed?!) a gravel road when I spotted a couple of large stones by the side of the road. On one of these stones sat a very well camouflaged little owl, which I only spotted because it moved its head as I drove past. After an unsuccessful search, I took exactly the same route back to see if the owl was still there. And TADAAAA!

(Imagine a picture of a smaller gray and white speckled owl)

Unfortunately, when I stopped next to the owl, it wasn't too happy and flew away. After this discovery, I decided to go for a little hike and walked around the Sutton Salt Lake.

Simply a magnificent landscape! There isn't really anything more to say and I only met three or four people who were also taking advantage of the nice weather.

Then we headed straight towards Lawrence. An old gold mining town that was recommended to me by a camper from Dunedin who emigrated to Berlin and is currently back in New Zealand to do some house building and work. The route was a little inconvenient as it was over 30 km of gravel road, but I also had some really great views of the hills and lakes.