After the excitement of river surfing we spent the following day resting up. My shoulders were stiff and sore and Rich’s knee had swollen up. We weren’t in the greatest of shape and accomplished little more than going to Cookie Time after breakfast for a one dollar coffee and hot chocolate, getting our washing done and watching episode after episode of Breaking Bad on the laptop!
Despite the next day being mostly cold and wet, we headed out to sample the local food and drinks on offer. Our first stop was Fergburger, a burger bar that had been recommended to us by a number of people when we said we were heading to Queenstown. It started off as a burger outlet through a small hatch in a wall a few years ago and was now a renowned burger bar which always has queues out of the door and down the street.
“Rich rarely declines an offer of food to eat.”
After Rich ordered our burgers we had to wait twenty five minutes for it to be served, not the longest wait we heard of during our stay I have to admit! It definitely ensured we were hungry when our burgers arrived and they certainly did look good.
The huge buns were filled with massive prime New Zealand beef burgers, crunchy lettuce, succulent tomato, tangy red onion, creamy aioli and a delicious tomato relish. It was a jam packed feast that I couldn’t finish. Rich even declined my leftovers which really shows how filling they were, as Rich rarely declines an offer of food to eat!
Filled with Fergburgers we strolled down to the lakeside and watched a street entertainer balance on top of a BMX ten foot in the air whist juggling a baton with a flame at one end, a sword and an apple (which he took a bites of whilst juggling too). It can’t be seen from the photo’s but it was a really windy day and we were both seriously impressed with his efforts!
We spent the rest of the afternoon enjoying drinks and dodging the rain. With a glass of wine in hand, a cosy fleece blanket over my legs, a view of Lake Wakatipu and The Remarkbles mountains and my husband to snuggle up with, I had little to complain about. It was one of those moments when you appreciate how good life is.
It was perfect, then the rain started and we left our little bit of paradise and worked our way around a couple more bars on the way back to our hostel!
We managed to complete a couple of walks during our rainy days in Queenstown. The lakeside walk around Queenstown Gardens was lovely, a nice meandering walk filled with dog walkers not put off by the rain either.
Our walk up through Ben Lomond forest was a slippery and steep ascent of the hill which the gondola went up and promised panoramic views of Queenstown from the top.
“It rained a lot while we were in Queenstown!”
Refusing to pay thirty dollars each for the five minute ride on the gondola, Rich and I hiked to the top. With the weather getting brighter the higher we climbed by the time we reached the gondola station and lookout deck the sun was shining and we had clear views across Queenstown and beyond.
It’s a stunning town where the mountains meet the lake and where there’s snow on the mountain tops even in summer. We had four seasons of weather in a day a few times during our stay which meant we were usually able to get a photo in the sunshine every now and then.
Despite what our photos may show, it rained a lot while we were in Queenstown!
We had hoped to do a day hike up into the mountains surrounding Glenorchy, however the weather and our lack of serious hiking attire meant that we were unable to do this.
Knowing how changeable the weather was in Queenstown, we didn’t want to risk a day hike up into the mountains without the proper kit to survive should the weather turn on us. So we settled for a short walk around the head of the lake at Glenorchy during a brief spell of sunshine instead.
Our final sight seeing spot whilst staying in Queenstown was Arrowtown, established through gold mining it was small, friendly, filled with bakeries and cafes and a high street that reminded me of a movie set as it was so picture perfect.
One of the photos in the museum showed the Post Office during the days of the gold rush. I took a photo of the same Post Office from the street outside the museum and despite some changes in appearance and the substitute of cars for horse drawn carts, you can see it is the same building, just over one hundred years older.
“We really enjoyed our stay in Queenstown, despite all the rain.”
We walked around the old miners cottages that were occupied by Chinese miners that fled to Arrowtown to make their fortunes. The cottages were tiny with low doorframes, one room inside and small fires with chimneys to help keep the cold winters at bay.
Arrowtown was centred around its gold mining history and we even saw a street poster with someone resembling Rich being wanted dead or alive!
We really enjoyed our stay in Queenstown, despite all the rain. The only reason I’d hesitate to return is because I suffered massively with hay fever whilst there. I even visited the pharmacist to check how many one a day antihistamines I was allowed to take as one just wasn’t doing anything for me. I couldn’t afford to live in Queenstown purely for the fact I had to have three antihistamines a day!
Lambs on the loose 