Wakatipu By Waka

Despite the go-go-go pace of Queenstown, we decide to take it down a notch today. Get up late, eat a light breakfast, and then drive up past swaths of mountain lupine to the top of Lake Wakatipu. We get lunch at a little cafe in Glenorchy, and while there we find a kayak outfitter in Kinloch who can take us out on the lake and up the river above.

Kinloch is, basically, a lodge and some campsites, and is accessible only via a 10km gravel road after driving 20km past Glenorchy. Our kayak guide Bas turns out to be from the Netherlands — yet another transplant in the Queenstown area, lured in by the beautiful and accessible landscape. We head out from the north end of Wakatipu, a sapphire-blue, 80km-long glacier puddle.

We land on a rocky beach some ways south and embark on foot toward an unidentified ruin a ways into the forest. Bas shows us the remains of what appears to be an English settlement, probably over a hundred years old, but with no concrete info or formal research, he doesn’t know for sure. All that’s left are some rock-walled terraces, a couple of collapsed chimneys, and a telegraph wire that appears now and again through the leaf mold.

Back in our kayaks, we paddle back up to the meeting of the Dart River and Lake Wakatipu, and head up through the currents. On the way, our accommodating guide offers to tow the paddle-weary Gloriane, who happily accepts the free ride. We wander around in the wetlands and flats for a bit, then settle in on the shore for a beer before heading back home.