FINALLY clear skies to luxury, February 24, 2026

With the breakfast items we purchased at the Lake Tekapo grocery store yesterday, we had a leisurely breakfast looking out over the lake and mountains. The weather gods mocked us by providing a crystal clear sky over Lake Tekapo. That would have been welcome 10 hours earlier. We headed out and as we approached the mountains,  it became overcast, and the temperature dropped. We passed farms and sheep and cows and deer farms, across green, rolling hills that were

Hedgerow

partitioned with hedgerows. Some of those hedgerows were hundreds of yards long, and thick. Some were neatly shorn, others just a natural thick green wall. It was fascinating to see the variety. They are used to separate fields for crops and livestock, cut the wind, and reduce soil erosion. We did note that some trees were changing color! Fall is coming!

We stopped at a town called Geraldine, larger than most in this area, about 86 miles south of Christchurch. We browsed a few shops, and  stopped at the Hewlings Totara tree, planted in the 1860s to commemorate the birth of the first non-native New Zealander born there. 

Our hotel for the night is in a remote area that is a posh golf resort. We are in a 2 bedroom, 2 bath unit with a lovely view of the golf course and the mountains in the distance. Because we decided to do this trip so late (the summer season here was already under way), lots of choices were completely booked.  As a matter of fact, we see a prepondrance of no vacancy signs. So, we got what our tour operator could wrangle for us. It's worked out well, anyway, as we've had superlative accommodations. 

We had a fantastic dinner in the dining room while our we washed our laundry in the washer and dryer in the unit. When we leave NZ on Saturday,  we'll have mostly clean clothes in our bags.

Photos here: https://photos.app.goo.gl/Rj47uiMijXUyv3nZA