Our First Wonderful Day in NZ

We picked up our house on wheels for the next 14 days early this morning.
Peter chucked a few wheelies before we took off ...just for some practice....getting to know the new beast.
Excited to be on the road I was delighted to see all the little lambkins frolicking in the fields....the weather just gorgeous.
I was just thinking how beautiful the countryside was when Lo and behold a range of snow capped mountains came into view...my heart skipped a beat......magnificent comes to mind....WOW! Speechless.

We stopped off at Rakaia Gorge......again I was so go smacked at the beautiful colour of the water...a soft but bright blue green....it looked so inviting against the yellow gorse on the hillside......we stayed there a while taking picks and walking down by the water...it was hard to leave...it was only that we had it eaten for nearly 24hours that got us to jump back into the van and head off hunting for food.......and a cup of tea.

We filled up in a cafe ...then feeling a heap better we went shopping for supplies....good job we didn’t go before we ate......it might of cost us double.

Geraldine a town on the way to Lake Tepako is Rododdendron heaven...I have never seen so many different colours of them...all heavily laden with blooms...on place had many bushes all growing together...all the colours of the rainbow just about.......I made P stop the van and I nearly fell out in my hurry to snap them.......the day was a gift that kept on giving.


We passed fields of deer (which I made P stop again so I could take pics)....we saw a hedgehog munching on some road kill....It looked like a hedgehog anyway.......the snow capped mountains kept us company for the best part of the journey.....and then there was the most amazing sight of rain falling way off over the hills....just a smudge on the horizon.........and a rainbow.

I noticed that the trees have some very wonderful elegance here in NZ...it’s hard to explain but they look so healthy and burgeoning with green foliage and some of them have blooms in abundance.

After all this fabulousness we got to Lake Tepako later than we thought we would.
What to say...it’s just amazingly beautiful ....the church of The Good Shepherd greeted us as we arrived along with the doggie statue....lupins are growing down by the water in abundance and of all different colours...even P ....who is not so fond of flowers could not help but be taken with them.
We found a campsite and made a cup of tea...which ended up getting cold because the sunset through the window was so inviting we just had to get down to the waters edge to take some more pics.

What a day........gosh! It’s been just wonderful...but I think I need to hit the hay now as its 1am and I’m feeling rather weary...happy and weary.

What a beautiful country this is.