New Zealand Explorer Motorhome Tour - Day 25

Our first stop on leaving Franz Josef was Lake Matheson which is famed for providing the classic NZ shot of Mount Cook reflected in its water.  We were not so lucky as cloud hung low over the mountains and a gentle breeze disturbed the mirror lake.

West Coast State Highway 6 alternated between hugging the dramatic coast and veering inland to slice a straight route through dense forest.  We observed a change in the trees, the striking tree ferns mostly replaced with hardwood varieties.

A wow moment for us was the pretty creek and beach at Ship Creek, named Tauparikaka by the Maori, meaning “parrots all walking in a row”. The sand was soft and white, the sun shone and the beach was littered with fascinating driftwood and trees with the odd growth of coral coloured fungus.

We spotted a sign for a vendor of whitebait fritters (actually just whitebait with a little beaten egg) and took the track lined with some makeshift dwellings up to the coast. We were greeted by the friendly vendor who told us that we were lucky to catch him in week 9 of 10 of the fry netting season. 

After crossing the Haast River on New Zealand’s longest one lane bridge (737 meters), the road turned inland and bordered the stunning ice-melt turquoise blue river with leg-stretching opportunities to admire pretty waterfalls.

Lake Wanaka came into view and the road hugged it before switching over to give us a view of the adjacent Lake Hawea.

Wanaka is a pretty lakeside town and once again our one night stay was too brief. Before heading off the following morning we sat outside a café enjoying a leisurely breakfast with a view of the water. Ambling along the shore I spotted a scene that had cropped up in a lot of NZ travel literature so I had a shot at capturing it for myself once the forest of selfie sticks cleared!