What a spectacular sunrise this morning. All the colours of the rainbow from indigo to red dancing over the top of the mountain. The day continued to be full of sunshine, with white fluffy clouds blowing around in the sky. The wind was still around from yesterday, but the clear skies and welcome sunshine more than compensated for the high winds. After a quick dump on the camp site, we were on our way to Queenstown, via the town centre for an early morning Kodak moment across Lake Wanaka. The snow on the tops of the mountains was clearly visible this morning, having been shrouded in cloud all day yesterday.
We headed for Queenstown on Highway 89, which takes us through Cardrona and over the top of the Crown Mountains. The first 25Kms was easy going, fairly flat straight roads, until about two thirds of the way between Cardrona and Arrow Junction. From here on it was one hairpin bend after another until we reached Arrow Junction with Highway 6. The views were amazing, particularly as we approached Arrow Junction and being such a clear day, visibility was excellent. We arrived in Queenstown much earlier than we had expected, so we parked in town and headed for the quayside to take a trip on an old steamship, the TSS Ernslasw. As we stood waiting to embark the ship a lorry load of coal was being hosed down ready to be shot into the ships boiler room. Although the lake had plenty of white horses prancing around, the trip on the old ship was very pleasant. Triple reciprocating steam engines that were powered by coal fired boilers propelled the ship along at a respectable 12 knots. We started out on deck at the front of the ship, but before very long, the strong winds forced us back inside. It was the type of wind that would have ripped your wig from its velcro mounting!
Once we reached the destination of Walter Peak, we remained on board for the 1 hour return journey back to Queenstown. On the way back, the wind was much less ferocious as it was blowing from behind and I ventured out onto the front of the ship for some more Kodak moments. The mountains rise steeply from the shore of the lake and are probably a geologist’s idea of heaven. After returning to Queenstown, we decided to investigate the Shotover jet boats. Luck? Was with us, as there were vacancies on the 3pm trip, so we booked a couple of places. Prior to taking the ride we adjourned to the campervan for a spot of lunch. A sort of last supper. We assembled at the town pick up point having passed just about every type of adrenaline ride that is guaranteed to minimise your lifespan if it were to go wrong whilst maximising the amount of money that they can recover from your wallet. In fact they will probably minimise your lifespan, regardless of whether it goes wrong or not! We boarded the coach and headed out to the Shotover River Canyon, where we were issued with a very becoming rubber overcoat and a life jacket – just in case. Two jet boats roared past demonstrating their unique 360 degree turning capabilities and soaking its passengers. We were just minutes away from the same fete. Then it was our turn. The boat pulled alongside and emptied its contents onto the jetty. We boarded and after a one minute briefing by Mike, our driver, captain, pilot – not really sure what he was, we roared away up the river. We did a sherp turn and returned to the point where we alighted and with a wave we were victims of our first photograph. With a circular wave of Mike’s hand we slid into a 360 degree turn and bingo, our second photo was in the bag. Immediately we headed for the first canyon with walls rising perpendicular to the water. These jet boats are famous for the closeness that the drivers get to the walls of the canyon, without actually hitting them. Trust me, they get very, very close. Dodging from side to side the walls whistle past your ears at speeds of up to 50mph. Part of the briefing is to keep your hands inside the boat. If you didn’t, you would almost certainly loose them.
This is about as far removed from the previous boating activity on the TSS Earnslaw, the old steamship, which managed a regal 12 knots from two steam engines, whilst the jet boats are powered by two supercharged, Buick V6 engines developing 520 bhp, feeding two Hamilton jet units pumping out 760 Litres of water per second. With a top speed of 85km/h, these boats and their drivers have the capability to scare the pants off you. Having had our adrenaline fix for the day, we retired to the safety of the campsite and enjoyed a refreshing cup of tea. Depending on the weather tomorrow, we’ll continue with the activities that Queenstown has to offer.
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