Cherry Picking Time

Christmas day was full of food, fun. family and friends.  Then came 27th December the first picking day from the first crop of cherries harvested from Forest Lodge Orchard.  The night before we prepared the lunch (salads and other nibbly food) and then on picking day rostered ourselves to food, child minding and picking.  

We had finished by early afternoon and the cherries ("red gold") were carted to the pack house by a friends Tesla - possibly New Zealand's first environmentally sustainable crop of cherries. 

It is hard to describe the festive feeling of picking that first crop.  Jubilation, excitement and relief all come to mind. 

Pre Christmas we did have time to visit Bannockburn (Christmas Eve).  We had been to the winery before but not the walk up the hill which was rather picturesque - Central Otago landscape is quite dramatic.

We also visited the Chinese gold mining settlement on the Cromwell-Queenstown Road.

And after all that picking... we dropped Mike off in Wanaka for his kayak race  and we biked down the river to the bridge towards Luggate.  It was a lovely trip, only problem was we had to share the narrow path with bikers, push chairs, dogs, runners and walkers.  On the way back, we took an inland route and found a nice cafe/bar for lunch.  Probably spent too much time sitting in the sun, but we reminded ourselves we are on holiday.

We also managed a walk around Lake Hayes, biked along the Clutha and went to lots of parks with the kids.

All too soon it was time to move on.  Disappointingly we missed the second harvest by two days.  The trip up the island was uneventful.  The Lindis Pass could be seen (the last time we came through a thick fog) and then on to the Clay Cliffs (last time they were closed due to the devastating fires at Lake Ohau).  Down a gravel road, and through a dust storm (from returning cars) and then a short bumpy walk to the cliffs.  It was busy - and once again we wondered what it would have been like if our borders were open.

Twizel is a quiet little town - and we were surprised at how many people there were out and about. The supermarket was ultra busy - but we found what we wanted and escaped as quickly as we could.  The motor camp is full - motor cycles, kayaks, bikes - tents of all sizes.  Lake Ruataniwha was sheltered with plenty of picnickers and swimmers - a pleasant place to eat our takeaways.  Did a couple of bike rides (one along the river through deep deep mud) and the other towards the canals.

One bike ride was from the Ohau Weir to Ohau Alpine Village.  Part of the A2O trail.  Ohau village was 13 kilometres away and the track meandered beside the lake. The first 1km of the track was bumpy and I did wonder if it continued how far we would get.  After a hill, it became smoother and we biked through pretty summer flowers with the lake and mountains to keep us company.  After our bike ride we stopped at Loch Cameron for lunch before heading back to our digs for a rest and then a walk around the Lake - or some of it.   

Aoraki Mount Cook stood in its splendour - no gusty winds this time - just clean blue sky.  We revisited the Tasman Glacier and wandered around some of the Hooker Valley.  Probably our highlight of the trip was New Years Eve - when at just after midnight we were standing at the top of Mount John's observatory with a group of strangers wishing each other a Happy New Year, under a dark and starlit sky. 

Goodbye Twizel and hello Ashburton.  We didn't really need to stop in Ashburton but when looking for accommodation on line we came across Coniston and it looked so appealing that we decided we just needed to see it.  And it didn't disappoint.  A little colonial cottage (with rocking chairs on the verandah) surrounded by a lake and peaceful garden.  In the evening we took takeaways to Lake Hood - a manmade lake inspired by jet boaters and jet skiers to enjoy their hobby.  It would have been quite peaceful except for all the people enjoying their hobbies.  So, we ate a rather nice Indian and then biked around the lake and the new suburbs. 

Hello to Sharn in Christchurch and onto Hanmer Springs where we biked through the forests a number of times, sipped hot chocolates and lattes in the village and spent my birthday with family picnicking beside the steam and a walk to see the fairy houses.  And of course a walk up Conical Hill and a laze in the springs.