Te Anau Prep Day

Cottage 45 provided a wonderfully restorative sleep (well, there are some allegations of snoring). Upon waking up at 730 AM, Jody opened the curtains and was greeted to the sun rising and lighting up the mountain peaks around us. He headed out with his camera and I soon followed for fear of missing out. We walked up the road to a lookout on the hill overlooking Te Anau and the mountain ranges. From the lookout we could see Mount Luxmore to the north, which the Kepler Track runs around, the Jackson Peaks to the northwest and Takitimu ranges to south, Paddock Hills to the west; along with fields dotted with sheep, the Lake Te Anau below and the morning birdsong provided us with its best show!

Once the rest of the crew were awake, we brewed our espressos…’cause a day without coffee is ‘depresso! (Gotta have a laugh in these crazy times :-)). Will whipped us up a breakfast of eggs, tomatoes, avocado and toast. We savoured a few of remaining apricots while lounging around the cottage. Our amenities included Fischer & Paykel appliances, so we took advantage and did laundry. The comfort and view provided by this location certainly made me feel like I was at home…it just seemed to offer me a sense of peace.

Alas, we broke away as errands in town were on the agenda. First stop was to register at the Department of Conservation (DOC), then to check out storage situation for valuables while tramping, rental of sleeping bags for 3 of us, contact with Easy Hike to confirm pick up for cruise to Milford Sound, and a stop at grocery store for provisions. The menu for the evening was set for BBQ’d lamb cutlets and loin chops with mint sauce and veggies. The tougher decisions were around picking out food for the trek – boil in bag suppers, lunch of tuna and rice bags, trail mix, jerky and a few treats!

Back to Cottage 45, we settled back into the tranquil atmosphere and shared drinks, crackers, cheese, beet humus, mango chutney, green lipped mussels, apples, (more) apricots and laughs! FaceTime calls to family ensued to Charlotte and Niccy in Dunedin, NZ and Mitch and Gloria in Harvey, NB (once we confirmed they were awake). We tried our best to convey the atmosphere and surroundings of the cottage.

Although it was tough to breakaway from the relaxation, gear packing and organization called (ugh!). Dry sacks, stuff sacks, rain gear, hiking clothes and hut clothes, hiking food and implements…it is a science and an art! Feeling confident with the contents of our packs, yet trepidation about the weight, group vibe was we were as ready as we can be!

As final preparations for our tramping wrapped up, the rain and wind moved in. Will donned his grilling jumper (sweater) and we cozied inside the cottage, beside the wood stove, to share in a delicious meal, wine and stimulating conversation and some Kiwi TV about sheep shearing…proper thing, eh?

Tomorrow we set out for 3 days on the Milford Track, a form of social (and social media) isolation. Looking forward to the adventure! Update to follow on our return.