meanders through the ferns and in about 45 minutes, ends up at Monro Beach.
It is such a beautiful place.
Jan 11
Once again we woke to a drizzly, rainy day at the Wilderness Lodge. After breakfast we did laundry and made preparations to check out. Our destination, Wanaka, was only 176km to the south so we were not in a hurry to leave such a beautiful spot.
The reports came in late last night that the road to the south were now open so the Backroads group was gone by 7am. We left around 10am and took our time.
The road winds around coastal hills with stunning views of deserted beaches. It goes through Haast Pass which is the lowest pass through the mountains in all of New Zealand.
At Haast Junction is an interesting World Heritage Visitor Center that featured the history of Southwest New Zealand and the influence the Whitebait fishermen once had in the area.
WHITE BAIT -They look like a mass of squirmy slivers of gelatin with eyes.
Whitebait is a collective term for the immature fry of fish, typically between an inch or two long. The young fish often travel together in schools along the NZ coast, and move into estuaries and up rivers where they can be easily caught with fine meshed fishing nets called “sock” nets.
Whitebait is regarded as a delicacy. The entire fish is eaten including head, fins and gut. When we were at Lake Moeraki Jerry had a whitebait sandwich with the whitebait mixed with egg, a common way of cooking them. And with a glass of NZ white wine, of course.
Whitebait fishing is now mostly done by licensed commercial fishing. Unlicensed individuals can only catch restricted amounts and mostly for their personal consumption. Occasionally we did see whitebait signs along the road.
As the road turned inland towards the Southern Alps, it began to wind easily along the bank of the Haast River gradually gaining altitude over the hills. It passes through lovely moss-draped rainforest with striking vistas of mountains, rivers and waterfalls.
The sections of the previous road closures were evident. At one point we had to stop and wait for the highway crew to hold the traffic while they shored up the roadway. We took pictures of three different places on the highway that had been severely damaged. Highway 6 is the only route north and south in this part of the country and without it, all commerce stops.
As we approached Wanaka the forested landscapes turned to a tawny-brown interrupted by the turquoise blue of Lake Wanaka and Lake Hawea.
We reached our destination, the Edgewater, around 3pm, took a moment to enjoy the view from our 2nd floor balcony and set out to explore the little town which is a 45 minute walk around the lake from our hotel.
Wanaka is a commercial area catering to the tourists and activity buffs. The town sits right on the lake which is a popular attraction during the summer months.
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