Sunday - Today we drove from 'Wanaka' to Glacier country. We left at 11am and took "Route 84" and then "Route 6" up to 'Haast'. The drive was spectacular! We followed "Lake Wanaka" and then "Lake Hawea" appeared along the side of the road, backed by the snowy mountains of the "Young range". After an hour we stopped at "Blue Pools" and they were pretty amazing. You walked through a beech forest, over a swing bridge to the destinctive icey blue river and pools. Aft...

Today we slept in and when we woke up snow was falling! Our hostel is nice; $20, en-suite, TV in room, log fire and a really top kitchen. It is also really close to the town centre. We then had some lunch before heading into 'Wanaka' to see what was about. 'Wanaka Lake' is right on the mainstreet so we decided to walk a route around it, but found it quite cold! We then went and got food supplies before doing a bit of window shopping. It is really geared up for sk...

Friday - I had to drive today as Neeley had a superb hangover! We checked out of the hostel in 'Twizel' and drove up to 'Mount Cook', and what a stunning drive it was! Past "Lake Pukaki", through rolling hills and snowy mountains. We got to 'Mount Cook' and walked to the top of the hill opposite to get a great view. After a break for lunch I then drove us to 'Wanaka'. It was not an easy drive as there was snow, ice and frost about on the roads, especially on the ...

Thursday - We drove from 'Queenstown' to 'Twizel' in the centre of the South Island today as it is a good base to visit 'Mount Cook'. We first drove up to "The Remarkables" ski area and got a stunning view back over 'Queenstown'; the lake, snowtopped mountains and hills. Then we drove to 'Glenorchy', round "Lake Watatipu", which was a quaint little "Goldrush" town situated on the lake. From there we then drove through 'Arrowtown' which was also a "Goldrush" town,...

Tuesday - It was a 2h journey from 'Te Anau' to 'Queenstown' along straight and bendy roads, but the weather was good so the drive was not all that bad. The scenery again was wonderful, especially as we drove along the edge of "Lake Wakatipu" which was very very big! The sun broke through the clouds and so the hills reflected really well in the water. We reached 'Queenstown' and checked into "Bugil backpackers", $17 a night and a really nice hostel. It has a good...