Sunday, November 3rd, 2013
When we booked our Stewart Island visit we thought we were travelling almost to the bottom of the world - as close as I ever intend to get to Antarctica. We definitely didn't do our research!! We even wondered if we were as far south as we would be at the southern tip of South America - Teirra del Fuego. Well as it happens Oban, on Stewart Island, is about as far south as Paris, France is far north! What??!! We live much farther north than Paris. In fact, as I recall, Kitimat is on nearly the same line of latitude as Edinburgh which is significantly farther north than Paris. Well, no wonder it's not all that cold here and no wonder everyone we meet thinks Canada is cold all the time!
We awoke to pink skies and calm water this morning, much to Tina's relief, since we're crossing Foveaux Strait again. We enjoyed a wonderful breakfast and visit with our host, Lisa, at the Lodge before boarding the catamaran and heading back to Bluff and Invercargill.
We had time to explore the Queen's Garden area of Invercargill before our ride to Te Anau was scheduled to leave. The gardens are filled with spring blossoms (huge rhododendron trees) and are surrounded by 5 of the city's sporting grounds - cricket, lawn bowling, golf, croquet and field hockey.
We also visited the museum where we saw a display on early sub-Antarctic Island Maori life and also a live Tuatara - a type of iguana, once widespread are now found only on a few NZ Islands. There is a breeding program at the museum here to ensure its survival. Although the species we viewed was only about 12 inches long, the relatives of the tuatara grew to be the size of the one pictured here outside the museum.
Our trip from Invercargill to Te Anau was very pleasant. The rolling hills of Southland got higher as the snow-covered peaks of the mountains got closer. The passing sheep and cattle farms evolved into deer farms. We arrived at our hotel in Te Anau early afternoon - plenty of time to explore. We visited the shops that were open (it's Sunday) and then walked part-way around the lake taking pride in our newly-acquired knowledge of plants, trees and birds we saw.
Lake TeAnau could be a lake anywhere in BC except for the signs near the boat launch.
We had a delicious roast lamb dinner at a restaurant called the Moose. It took its name from an event that occurred in the early 1900's when 10 Canadian Moose calves were released at Supper Cove in Dusky Sound, Fiordland. This was an attempt to create a herd for big game hunting. By the 1920's there were reports of sightings, so it was assumed the moose were well-established. Hunting licences were issued and several 'trophies' were claimed, but there have no moose sightings for over 40 years now.
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