Te Anau and Queenstown

Marita3
Mark & Helen Syrett
Fri 2 Jan 2015 01:09
30 December 
45:01.794S 168:39.618E
After the delights of Doubtful Bay we spent another night with the Morris Minors and then drove on to Te Anau which is a major tramping centre where you can tramp on your own, go with a guide and do short walks or long walks of several days stopping at mountain huts. The hiking companies also own the shop where you can buy boots, clothing and and anything else that one might possibly need. At 0930 it was full as the potential walkers kitted themselves out.
 
After coffee, Helen’s must have every morning, we motored on to Queenstown the adrenalin high of the South Island where if you want to do something fast and dangerous then this is the place to be——along with hundreds of gappers and coach loads of Japanese. The place was heaving and it was only the eve of New Year's Eve!
Parking was difficult so after a few hours we decided that this was not the place to see in the New Year so we set off to Wanaka over a wonderful hilltop road
We then passed NZ’s answer to Glastonbury—a pop concert with all the trimmings. Several stages, teepees, tents and even heavy rain
15,000 people in the middle of nowhere
We did not stop as we did not have tickets and we wanted to avoid the stop and search alcohol ban which was in place. All along the road there were groups of people finishing their alcohol before going into the concert.
We had great difficulty in finding somewhere to camp as all the sites were full and freedom camping was taboo. In the end we found a good freedom site on the far side of Wanaka and spent the night with the chickens 
in a lovely quiet spot
although we awoke to thunder, lightning and rain the following morning.