We traveled to the South Island of New Zealand in October, so their early spring. The first part of our trip was on a photo tour with Joshua Cripps and Daniel Murray. We then spent another week revisiting some of the places and doing some exploring on our own. We experienced all kinds of weather and saw some amazing sights during our time there.
We started and ended our trip in Queenstown, a beautiful city located on the shores of Lake Wakatipu. These photos are from Queenstown and the general area around it, including Wanaka and Glenorchy.
View of Lake Wakatipu from our hotel
Lindis Pass
Wanaka Lake from Rippon Winery
Willow and Sheep
Sheep and Lambs
Wanaka Willow
Wanaka Willow before sunrise
Lake Wakatipu
Lake Wakatipu
Mountains across the lake
Parasailing from Bob's Peak
View from Bob's Peak
Mountains from Queenstown
Silvereye
Tui
Tui
Willow and Sheep
Mountains near Glenorchy
We spent time in the Mt. Cook/Aoraki region, returning there after our photo tour for more exploration. We encountered all kinds of weather, including a storm that pretty much kept us inside all day with hurricane like conditions. Our helicopter flight was cancelled, but we were able to do an airplane flight over the Mt. Cook area from Queenstown later in the trip. We were also able to do a heli-hike on the Fox Glacier.
Lake Pukaki
Windy Day at Lake Pukaki
Mount Cook Range Rainbow
Tasman Glacier
Tasman Lake
Tasman Valley View
Golden Glow Over the Vineyard
Sunstar Over the Range
Hiking to Kea Point
Aoraki/Mount Cook
Mueller Lake
Paradise Shelduck
Tasman River
Tasman River Valley
Aoraki/Mount Cook at Sunrise
Swing Bridge Over the Hooker River
Iconic New Zealand
Tasman Valley from the Air
Blowing Snow Off the Peaks
Tasman Lake and River
Lenticular Cloud Over Aoraki/Mount Cook
Mount Cook Range
Hiking Up Fox Glacier
Smile!
Glacier Blue
Looking Into the Glacier
View Down the Glacier
New Zealand Pigeon
Tui
Lupins at Lake Tekapu
Lake Pukaki and Aoraki/Mount Cook
Tasman Lake
Tasman River Sunrise
Mueller Lake Swing Bridge
Don't Overload the Bridge!
Tasman Lake Iceber
Tasman Lake Sunrise Pink Clouds
Tasman Lake Sunrise
Hogsback Cloud Over Tasman Valley
We also explored Fiordland National Park, taking boat cruises on Milford and Doubtful Sounds and another airplane flight over the Southern Alps.
Cloud Reflection in Mountain Lake
Southern Alps Spotlights
Snow Dusted Peaks
Fresh Snow in Fiordland
Fall Creek Falls
So Many Waterfalls (from our room)
Bowen Falls
Mitre Peak
Milford Sound
Weka
Kea in Flight
Milford Sound with Stirling Falls
Fairy Falls Rainbow
Fairy Falls Double Rainbow
Stirling Falls
Monkey Creek
Fantail
Kea
Forest Fern
Marian Falls
Mirror Lakes
Fur Seal Chase
Seal Battle
Fiordland Crested Penguin
