Queenstown – MikeHawkey.com

One more from my photo trip down memory lane of the South Island holiday. I mentioned yesterday about the amazing enormity of the mountains. Often rising up above the flat land, it confronts you face on.

Todays shot, taken in Milford Sound is another location when you can get up close to this once glacier formed landscape. Sitting on the flat ocean, looking up, the ranges almost disappear from sight.

Currently Milford Sound is part of a controversial debate whether to bipass the traditional road track (up to a 12 hour return journey from Queenstown) down to a two hour one way by train. This will however mean cutting into our national park – protected land. Some of the tourist stop towns may loose out, and some of the more quiet and beautiful places, Glenorchy, may become a busy traffic bipass. No argument the bus journey is a long one, but its also a beautiful one, and critical to some of the small stops. Then again, in this changing climate of tourism, many of those who travel to New Zealand to see the sights dont always want to bother about the small bits, and generally under estimate the real time it can take to take in our little country.

Shot on the Ricoh GRD IV, resized and bordered in Gimp

Looking over one of the blogs I regularly follow, I was inspired to have a look back, and reflect on my trip to the South Island in December 2011. My second time travelling from New Zealands North Island to the South Island, I cannot express how beautiful parts of our wonderful little country are.

Todays image was shot somewhere in the region of the Routeburn track (a stunning 32km track down the bottom part of the South). What takes ones breath away when down near the Souther Alps is the shear size and enormity of this great mountain range. Its something that simply must be on your travel list if you come down to New Zealand.

Shot on the Ricoh GRD IV, resized and bordered in Gimp.

All photos I took today were on film for my Rollei 35 – loaded with my first self develop film in some time. I finished the film, but realised I was missing my thermometer for developing, so will have to get another this week (and post my hopeful results).

Based on yesterdays popularity of ‘Paradise’, I thought I would add one more from the Lake Wakatipu region. Taken from the summit at Queenstown, the view is quite amazing. Todays image is a sew together of two images from my Ricoh. Due to the settings I had on it, I was getting some vignetting at the edges and had a hard time getting the color/shade match right when stitching them together…so its not perfect, but its ok considering.

For those interested, lake Wakatipu is New Zealand’s longest (80km) and third biggest lake. If you base yourself in Queenstown, you can do anything from skiing, para gliding, tramping… the list goes on. – you can also visit Paradise (yesterdays image).

Taken on the Ricoh GRD IV, 2X images, stitched in Gimp.

Just south of Queenstown in New Zealand’s South Island is a little settlement called Paradise. Taken late last year, we drove through it on the way to the Routeburn track. Sandflies aside, Paradise really is paradise. The view in my opinion is one of the countries most stunning, and captured on a still day as in my image above, it takes ones breath away.

Taken on my Ricoh, I just resized for the net without making any adjustments. If you come to visit the country and head to the South Island, you really must make a stop in at Paradise!

Tag: Queenstown

New Zealands Milford Sound

Mountains beyond the Grass

Lake Wakatipu from Queenstown

Paradise, New Zealand