South Island, New Zealand
Just a short flight from Wellington, Queenstown is an ideal gate into the South Island. Located toward the southern part of the island, from here you can make your way to the renowned fjordland, glaciers, and mountains. Queenstown itself is known for adventure sports like bungee jumping and skiing. It sits on the shores of the South Island’s Lake Wakatipu, set against the dramatic Southern Alps. We arrived into Queenstown on an utterly gorgeous day, where we enjoyed the Queenstown's waterfront shopping and dining, in essence resting up for our south island itinerary.
Driving around Lake Wakatipu provides numerous opportunities for roadtrippers to pull over and admire the stunning vistas. There are plenty of places to stop on the side of the road and hop out for a quick photo.
Milford Sound
To get to Milford Sound from Queenstown, you will unfortunately have to take a huge roundabout. If you look on a map, you'll see that Queenstown sits southeast from Milford, but there is no road there. Instead, you'll need to take a road far south, then southwest, before turning north. We cut the commute down by staying overnight in Te Anau, and then waking up bright and early the next morning to head to Milford. There were not many places for lodging in Milford that were not also enormously expensive.
The day before our arrival at Milford, we reserved tickets online for a cruise. It was cold, overcast, and at times it sprinkled. I was bummed by this since I imagined the view of a clear, sunny, and warm day I missed out on. However, the operator informed me that it was often overcast given its location, and that weather conditions are hard to predict.
Regardless, it was still an amazing view as the ship takes you past sea lions perched on their rocks, cascading waterfalls, and the opportunity to get very close to the waterfalls and get thoroughly dunked.
After the cruise, we went on a short nature walk at Milford Sound. The overcast sky and the backdrop provided for a dramatic and moody ambiance. I think that being a city girl allowed me to appreciate and value the peace and quiet so much more, just because of how rare the experience was.
Blue Pools Track, Lake Wanaka, and Mount Aspiring
After Milford Sound, we had to turn around and head through Queenstown again so we could get on the main highway journey north. From here, you will make your journey p state highway 6 towards the Fox glacier and the Franz Josef glacier. Unfortunately, our trip through South Island was rushed due to time constraints, and it became a race against time.
About 104 km north of Queenstown, while driving up through highway 6, you will pass Lake Wanaka, where you should hop out for an enchanting view of the lake, including the lookout spot.
About 33 km north of Lake Wanaka, we stopped at the Blue Pools Track in Wanaka, which is on the north eastern border of Mount Aspiring National Park.
Here, you will be rewarded with the Blue Pools of the Makarora River. The track requires hardly any effort to reach, as it's located only 8km from a car park in the town of Makarora. It consists of a short walk before you are greeted by the pristine, clear blue pools surrounded by beech forest.
The iconic swing bridge is stationed above the gorgeous pools.
You can see just how clear the water is. A landscape filled with beautiful pebbles of all hues amongst the river gullies.
Only 20 km north on highway 6, and another stop to help break up your drive to the glaciers, is another easily accessible trail called Thunder Creek Falls in the Haast River Valley section of Mount Aspiring National Park. Pictured above, I am standing before and taking in the piercing blue rush of the Haast River.
For a walk of only 5-10 minutes from the car park, you get this incredible view of the 96 meter high falls. There is a viewing platform just behind me in this shot, but you can also walk just a dozen feet down, dip your feet in, and find yourself nearly at the base of the falls.
