Nelson Lakes

Lake Rotoiti – On a windy day the normally glass-like waters were transformed into white-capped waves.

Our next destination was the Nelson lakes region, specifically Lake Rotoiti around which we planned to do an overnight hike. After a day preparing our things, we said goodbye to our cozy little home (we’ve grown quite attached to our purple Murple) and headed off along the lakeside track.

We made it to the Dept. of Conservation hut by lunch time and picked out our bunks for the night. It ended up being quite a social event as we were soon joined by about 14 other people, with whom we shared good food, conversation, and a toasty wood fire.

We also got to know this kea, a chicken-sized parrot that lives in alpine and sub-alpine environments. Apparently the kea is one of the smartest birds in the world and is well known for its mischievous nature and the tricks it seems to enjoy playing on hikers and campers. We heard stories of them eating boots left outside tents, tearing the weather-stripping from car windows, shredding tents, and flying off with socks sitting out to dry!

On day two of our trek, we were faced with the choice between fording a small river and adding three extra hours to our hike by going to the swing bridge upstream. At first we were a little daunted by the river, but then a middle-aged kiwi couple and their little girl showed up and we decided to follow their lead. We took off our shoes and socks and rolled our pants up as high as we could before stepping into the ice cold water (snow-melt from the mountains in the distance). It was a painful exercise, but after toweling our feet dry on the opposite bank, we felt invigorated and our feet warmed up in no time. Sorry we don’t have pictures of the actual crossing, but the camera was safely stowed in a waterproof bag in Sean’s pack…just in case!

The trail crossed several old avalanche fields like this one

This is a close up shot of the trunk of a red beech tree. It is covered with a thick layer of black mold fungus, which doesn’t hurt the tree and in fact provides the foundation for a very important food cycle in the forest. The mold provides a home for certain insects, including the honeydew scale that converts the beech sap into the little droplets you see in the picture. The sugar-rich liquid, called honeydew, provides food for many birds, bats, lizards, insects, and for the black mold itself.

The kaka. As we were walking we came upon three of these gorgeous birds playing and feeding in the trees.