Beautiful in its own right, this tiny town packs a punch in terms of access to greater wonders
Manapouri is a tiny town in Fiordland, about 30 minutes south of Te Anu which is the main Fiordland tourist base for trips to Milford sound. Manapouri is the base for trips to Doubtful Sound (which was our main draw) and also seemed less tourist crazy when I was choosing destinations for us. It is on the shores of Lake Manapouri and has a dairy, two restaurants and a gas station. And mountains everywhere of course.
Thursday – Move Day
I started with an early morning walk along the pretty northern lakeshore before we set about packing, cleaning and getting on our way. Our destination today was Manapouri, the closest you can get to Doubtful Sound if not in a tent.
We passed through Queenstown on our way down and decided to stop there for hiking. The reasons are: (1) Although we’ll be coming back to Qtown in Feb, we know there is more to do there then we can fit in the 4 nights we’ll be there (short stay because it is expensive) and (2) I’m in no rush to get out in the bush in Fiordland with its notoriously awful sandflies.
The drive into Qtown is a beautiful one, with dry hills enlivened by the thousands of lupines of every color blooming along the lower stretches. The Queenstown Hill leading down into the valley was a surprise since we hadn’t felt like we were climbing very high. The views revealed that Qtown is surrounded by mountains on every side, unlike Wanaka which has them on two sides but with flats on the others. There are police out on the roads as just this week there was a terrible tour bus accident involving a careless driver and last month a local woman killed when a tourist veered over the center line.
We didn’t even go into Qtown, but even the built-up suburb of Franklin with its shopping centers and traffic made us feel like we were back in the states. Soon we escaped though – turning up the narrow, steep and winding road to the Remarkables ski area. From the ski lodge, we embarked on two short and rewarding hikes.
The first to picturesque Lake Alta, a circque of blue backed by jagged rocky peeks with one waterfall running in and another running out. Then up, up, up to Shadow Basin lookout, at the top of the ski lift plus an extra bit to look out over Lake Wakatipu, blue rivers and mountains in every direction.
After having the lookout to ourselves and a picnic, we chatted with a friendly kiwi who shared tramping suggestions of his favorite spots with us and then we were back down the steep slope, into the car, to the grocery and on the main road for a two hour drive south. Along the way we passed about 25 huge tour busses coming back to Qtown from a day in Milford Sound. We have definitely found the tourists.
Friday – Doubtful Sound Cruise Separate Post
Saturday
A nice stay around home day in Manapouri. We spent the morning doing mundane tasks (like calling Fidelity), then a walk along the beach paired with a phone call home, lunch and a quick drive up the road to Rainbow Reach. This is a lovely hike along the Waiau River, through an appealing beech and fern forest to the shores of Lake Manapouri. Although part of the Kepler Great Walk, we only saw day trippers like us. Home for a quiet evening.
Sunday – Milford Sound Drive and Cruise Separate Post
Wrap
Fiordland lived up to its high expectations and then some. What an absolutely incredible place. My only sadness about it is that I wish all our loved ones could experience it themselves rather than just through my pictures. That thought was ever present in my mind as I was trying (in vain) to capture the majesty of it with my tiny cell phone. Hale and I fell asleep our last night marveling at the extraordinarily good fortune we have to be living this life.
