We got up late and were 2 of the last people in for breakfast this morning. Later, we headed out to check out Queenstown, a city built on hills in the southwest of New Zealand's south island. It sits on the shores of Lake Wakatipu, a beautiful glacial lake surrounded by mountains. It's a relatively new city, as the first non-Maori to arrive here came in 1853. Shortly after that, gold was discovered in the Arrow River, and the settlement grew from there.
Having been built on the mountain sides, the city streets are steep! 16-25% grades are common. I wouldn't want to have to drive a stick shift around here...
We took a walk in the picturesque Queenstown Botanical Gardens, dedicated to WWI veterans. It is an absolute gem, situate on the lake shore, and boasting some gorgeous tree specimens. There were sequoia brought from the US, and beautiful flower gardens all perched on Queenstown's steep hills.
This evening, we boarded the TSS Earnslaw , a commercial coal powered steam boat, to cross Lake Wakatipu and arrive at the Walter Peak Farm for a sumptuous dinner and sheep demonstration. The ride took us through the mountains and some wonderful
scenery. The farm itself is gorgeous, as it sits in a small bay on the shores of Lake Wakatipu. The dinner was great, the sheep show, not so much. When we were in Ireland, we had attended a demo at working sheep farm, where the dogs, herded the sheep at whistled commands over a many acre area in a natural setting in the Irish hills. It was a marvel to see, followed by a sheep shearing demo where a small group gathered around, feet from the shearer. Tonight's shearing demo was under a lighted tent in the dark, with an audience of about 200. The herding was shown in a dimly lit field in the back of the tent. It was hard to see what the dogs were doing, and it felt really "commercial".
Photos here:
https://photos.app.goo.gl/4VJ82X9oSMGgbS4e8
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