Day 13 - 15 (February 9 - 11) - Lake Pukaki, Aoraki/Mount Cook National Park

Day 13

We spent our first night at Lake Pukaki. What can I say, this turquoise lake with a view of the snowy Aoraki/Mount Cook is simply unbelievable beautiful. The water is really as turquoise as in the pictures. With our luck with the weather (we have 3 days of sunshine and 26 degrees ahead of us), the water sparkles so beautifully in the sun and the view of Mount Cook is completely unobstructed. It is said to be a special sight to see the mountain without clouds.

Tonight we slept on a freedom campground (Hayman Road) right at Lake Pukaki, so we had the best view from the campervan again. We had breakfast outside in the shade. Unfortunately, we are always torn between keeping the children in the shade and not freezing OR having morning sun and not freezing.

In the early afternoon, we drove to a organic lavender farm, the largest in the southern hemisphere. Well, if you know the Provence in France, this is rather small. But we fell in love with the lavender ice cream. Really delicious.

Then we continued to Twitzel, the nearest bigger town in the area (but it was rather a small village). Tim went grocery shopping and Mattis, Lea and I went to the playground. The New Zealanders really put a lot of effort into designing playgrounds and they are very lovely. There is something for every age. Really beautiful. Lea swung joyfully for the first time today and Mattis, as the big brother, proudly watched. Otherwise, Mattis was very happy to roll stones down the slide and spin stones in the circle. In between, Tim took Lea with him for shopping and I had some undivided time with Mattis. That was very nice for us, as I currently have the impression that Mattis needs more time alone with me. He is also quite clingy at the moment and often gets offended when Lea sits on my lap or is breastfed and he cannot sit alone with me. As he said to Lea one day when he sat on my lap and cuddled: "This seat is taken."

For dinner, we had Fish & Chips at the playground. Quick and tasty food.

We decided to sleep tonight on the freedom campground just a few meters further on Hayman Road. Here too we were right at Lake Pukaki.

In the evening, unfortunately, Tim suffered a deep cut on his big toe when he was walking in the dark with flip flops in the forest. Man, it was bleeding so much. Luckily, we have first aid equipment with us. During the night, Tim also had to take painkillers.

Day 14

Today we took a break at Lake Pukaki. This way, Tim could let his wound heal a bit. The day was really beautiful. Just do nothing and enjoy the sun and the turquoise water. The place here was simply perfect for that.

Mattis was very happy to be able to drift through nature all day long. We walked through meadows and forests with sticks, splashed a bit at the water's edge, of course threw stones into the water, and he took his afternoon nap in the shade of a tree. Lea went swimming in the lake and wasn't bothered by the cool water temperature. She also enjoyed lying on the blanket in the shade and being able to turn around. What a beautiful day.

Day 15

While we could see Aoraki/Mount Cook every day from Lake Pukaki, today we made our way to Mount Cook Village in Mount Cook National Park. Mount Cook is the highest mountain in New Zealand at 3,724m.

From Mount Cook Village, you could do various hikes towards Mount Cook. We chose the Hooker Track, which was supposed to take only 1.5 hours (later we found out that this was only one-way). The path was really beautiful. We had a view of a glacier in the sunshine, crossed several bridges, saw small waterfalls, and had a view of the snowy Mount Cook at the end.

Unfortunately, Mattis was not in a good mood and wanted his pacifier all the time (which was in the campervan). His mood improved only when we took a break by a small stream where he could put his feet in the water and throw rocks. The break was also very nice for us. Lea was as usual content in her carrier and was awake throughout the tour. However, we didn't complete the hike and turned back after maybe 1 hour.

Unfortunately, Tim was not in such a good condition today. In the morning, when changing the bandage on his foot, his back suddenly started hurting again and everything felt twisted. During the hike through Mount Cook National Park, he also had a sharp pain in his calf. The man is getting old. But carrying Mattis and luggage weighing about 20kg on his back and then hiking through terrain and over heights is really not to be underestimated. At least his foot injury was fine.

Today was unfortunately our last night at Lake Pukaki (same campground as on the 1st night at the lake). We will miss it here.