Known as the holiday villages with a low number of residents, Lake Tekapo and Lake Pukaki are two neighboring big lakes of the South Island in New Zealand. They are located in the unique geography of the Mackenzie Basin, featuring desert-like vast flatlands, with views of snow capped alps to the North.
Lake Tekapo: Places To Visit
The Church Of The Good Shepherd
The Church of the Good Shepherd is probably the most iconic man made structure in Tekapo. The exterior is free to visit and offers scenic photographic shots with the amazing backdrop of snow capped alps and the lake.
Come at a different time of the day or weather condition to get different looks of the shot. (P.s. The fence around the church will be locked at night and no access will be allowed within the fenced area, but you can still walk around the area outside the fence.) As part of the Dark Sky Reserve, it’s quite a popular place for night sky photography too.
You would usually see Lupins blooming around the back of the church near the shore from late November to early January. I visited the place in late January and the Lupins were already wilted.
While you’re here, take a scroll along the lake shore for the views!
Trying my luck with the Lupin bloom, I drove to Lupins Flower-sea but the Lupins there were gone too. By the way, Lupins are an invasive species in New Zealand and don’t belong here. They are known to negatively affect riverbed habitats, so I guess it’s a good thing to have less lupins around.
Lake Pukaki: Things To Do
Lake Pukaki Lookout & Mt Cook Alpine Salmon
Stop by at Lake Pukaki Car Park and take in the views of the blue glacier fed lake. During clear weather, you will see the iconic Mount Cook / Aoraki across the massive lake.
Great views are not the only thing you get to savor at Lake Pukaki. Taste the freshness of Mt Cook Alpine Salmon by the lake (the shop is by the car park). Maximum satisfaction!
NZ Alpine Lavender
Drive further south to Mount Cook Road and visit NZ Alpine Lavender, an organic lavender farm. The farm is open to visitors when the lavender blooms around late spring to early autumn, so do check their opening days from their website beforehand.
Entrance fee is $5 per pax, or free if you spend at least $30 at the lavender shop. There are essential oils, honey, and lavender ice cream! You can pretty much roam anywhere in the big lavender farm. Also to note, the smell was lovely! The scent of lavender would ‘stick’ onto your clothes and you’ll have a natural perfume for the rest of the day.
Check out the lavender harvest tractor.
The Road To Mount Cook / Aoraki
Drive towards Mount Cook from Lake Pukaki for a scenic road trip. Highly recommendable to drive all the way to the end, where there are some awesome hiking tracks to explore. The tracks I recommend are the Tasman Glacier View Track (30 minutes return), Hooker Valley Track (3 hours return), and Mueller Hut Route (8 hours or overnight in the hut).
*Captain Planet passing by* Remember, please take care of our environment, and please don’t destroy the Nature. Leave no trash behind and take back only photos and memories (and also some trash if you can). Walk on the designated path and stay in the middle as much as you can, so that the exposed soil doesn’t spread/corrode further. BE ONE WITH NATURE *flies away*
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