We had a lie in today as we'd booked our scenic flight to Milford Sound for 2:30pm. Dean went to the supermarket and nearby phonebox to check that the flight was still on and we were collected from our hotel at 1:30pm. However, on arrival at the airport, we were told that the forecast had suddenly changed and we would be unable to do our planned cruise and return flight  Instead we were offered a scenic flight there and back or rebook for the next day. Since the cruise was the main thing we wanted to do, we rebooked for 10am tomorrow.

Luckily we had the car to fall back on, so after being dropped back off at the motel, we began the scenic drive to Glenorchy. Described as one of the most beautiful drives in the world and with several scenes from the Lord of the Rings trilogy filmed here, it didn't disappoint. We had a guide leaflet from the information centre and stopped at several places along the way to take a picture or even just stop and stare at the scenery. Can Milford Sound really top this?

At one stop Julie got friendly with a few locals. Whilst opening the boot, two small birds flew out of the woods at speed and landed on Julie. She paused for a heartbeat then let out a scream that must have been heard back in Queenstown. However, one of the determined little birds flew into the car and perched on the door, refusing to budge until being almost swatted away.

We also stopped at an unusual tea room with lodging and a 5-acre garden to tour. The house looked like something from a Grimm tale with walls made from piled up branches. We enjoyed tea and cookies in the warm sun, but unfortunately had our first encounter with New Zealand's famous sand flies. These little blighters don't numb the area before biting (like mosquitos), but at least the pain is short, but sharp, and there are no itchy lumps that linger for days afterwards.

We finally arrived at Glenorchy (population 220) at about 4:30. Tiny place with a few cafes, but with beautiful scenery and easy access to the lake where we saw several locals kite-surfing.

After driving back and power walking to Pog Mahone's Irish pub, we arrived with seconds to spare for the free 8-round quiz. Unfortunately we finished 7th (out of 8 teams), but in fairness, there were only two of us...