Feb 27 Haast to Alexandra
I was woken at 6 am by the rain hammering onto the roof. This continued until I got up but then eased a little. I investigated the breakfast buffet but, after serving a large coach party, it looked more than a bit tired so I returned to my room & nibbled some cheese & fruit.
 |
 |
 |
There was a touch of blue sky as I hit the road and there were lots of atmospheric clouds hanging over the river. After a few minutes, it started to drizzle and then, briefly, there was a torrential downpour. I reduced speed and even considered pulling up. Luckily, it soon relented and I drove up the valley in a mixture of showers and hazy sun.
At the Mahinapoua Lake a couple of days ago, I had been asked by an elderly man from Auckland (I think) where one could see Mount Cook. As one of my suggestions had been the lay-by at Pleasant Flat, I decided that I had better stop to see what was visible.
There was part of a mountain just about visible through the cloud, but I doubt that it was the quality of view that he really wanted.
 |
 |
|
|
I took a photo at Gates of Haast, mainly for old times’ sake as the weather wasn’t conducive to anything very much. Scrambling round on the rocks didn’t seem a good idea.
 |
At Haast Pass the weather appeared to be on the mend and there was even a rainbow as I set off down the Makarora Valley. At Makarora, itself, I stopped for coffee and a sandwich, by which time a few drops of rain had re-appeared. The little yellow plane which lives there was neatly parked by the side of the road offering excellent photo opportunities.
|
I was just finishing my coffee when, out of the corner of my eye, I spotted a group of people climbing aboard the plane. I left immediately, took the normal photos & then spotted that the plane was neatly framed in a rainbow. I just hope that I nailed the shot.
 |
 |
|
|
Lake Wanaka looked calm and peaceful in a mixture of sunshine and clouds. When I crossed The Neck, Lake Hawea looked similar. Bypassing Wanaka I drove straight to Cromwell, along the Dunstan Valley, where new vineyards seem to appear by the week. I stopped briefly to buy a morning paper, and then drove to Bannockburn.
 |
 |
|
|
Carrick Vineyard has good wine and excellent food. My pork fillet on a potato and artichoke salad was expensive and worth every cent. Very high quality food. The downside was the drizzle, which made my seat outside on the terrace slightly uncomfortable. As soon as I had finished eating, I returned indoors to finish my glass of wine. |
 |
 |
Suitably armed with some more of the riesling that I had drunk with my lunch, I left Bannockburn, stopping to take some more photos. Along the road back to Cromwell, there were lots of magnificent yellow flowers. Central may be very dry but it also has better flowers on its grass verges than any other part of the country. Back in Cromwell I had a coffee, posted some cards and sheltered from another light shower in the shops.
 |
 |
|
|
|
 |
 |
|
|
Just out of town there is a viewing point overlooking the old town, long since flooded by the lake. Whilst there, I had a chat with a lady from Wanganui. She hadn’t been this far south for about 20 years and was having a wonderful time.
I made the usual stops down the valley at the Goldfields Memorial and the Clyde Dam.
 |
 |
|
|
In Clyde village, I visited the Museum. There I chatted with the two staff, both middle aged ladies, one Scottish and one Irish. The Scottish one was the owner of one of the more interesting exhibits, the paperwork relating to the journey of her and her parents to NZ as assisted migrants in 1952. It was fascinating to see the lists of what they brought with them, the money that they required and sample menus from the boat. She reminisced about the ceremony when they crossed the equator and how she hung over the side of the boat to watch the train which towed them through the Panama Canal locks. We gossiped for a long time about life in NZ, the UK, museums and so on and so on. A splendid way to waste the afternoon.
 |
 |
|
|
I crossed the old bridge and followed the Earnscleugh Road to Alexandra. This runs through a mix of vineyards and fruit orchards.
Drizzle started to fall again. I found the motel, where I had stayed many times before, did some work and then went out to find a major problem. Nuno’s, the Portuguese fish & chip restaurant, almost next door, had been replaced by something that purported to be a bar, advertised some reasonable looking food but also advertised itself as a “burger bar”. I re-planned my evening dinner & went to the supermarket to stock up for self-catering. When I returned to the motel it was raining again but there was a pretty rainbow. |
 |