Lake Wanaka & Rob Roy Track

Lake Wanaka is a kitesurfing hotspot on the South Island. Directly south of Mt Aspiring National Park, the lack of wind is bearable. My cold persists, as does the urge to move. We drive 50 km north along gravel roads full of flocks of sheep to the last car park in the national park.

The Rob Roy Track leads steeply uphill in the gorge of a glacial river. Last time I had to miss out here with Georg and Arnulf – my right knee was pretty sore from the Abel Tasman Track. This time the ascent takes a long time via some rock slides, but it’s doable. Once at the top, my lungs stop stinging. Dozens of waterfalls, dandelions and the white edge of the glacier sting my eyes.

We complete 300 kilometres of hiking with the Rob Roy Track. February is New Zealand August, so we not only celebrate Waitangi Day, but also my birthday and three-year anniversary. The self-organised pub crawl in little Wanaka is much more fun than the one in Queenstown. In the empty bars, the immigrant bartenders entertain us, in the only full one, the boozy kids once again live up to the name of the Base Hostel.

The YHA hostel in Wanaka is located directly on the lake and has the most incredible panoramic window of any of the 250 or so hostels I’ve ever stayed in. This seems to overwhelm many travellers. Instead of simply watching the sun go down behind the mountains, they lock themselves in their dark rooms and watch one film after another on their laptops. We also like to watch a film in the evening after a few hours of hiking, but not all day long. It’s a weird world.

In the past, we Germans were always in the majority in every hostel, but here and now it’s the Chinese. The New Zealanders are afraid of them. Many Chinese have become rich very quickly in recent years and that ruins their character. They don’t know what to do with their money. As a result, one of New Zealand’s largest milk refineries and many other essential businesses are owned by Chinese. Here in the hostel, they define prosperity through meat. They eat huge amounts of it, in every form, from every animal and at every meal. Perhaps the problem will solve itself.

A steep gravel track leads up to the nearby Treble Cone. At the top, dozens of paragliders buzz in the updrafts through the blue sky. Lake Wanaka glistens below. Some wind picks up in the late afternoon, but once again I set up the kite for nothing.

We leave the next morning. Shortly before the northern end of Lake Wanaka, and thus the last kiteable water for the next 300 kilometres, something is stirring. There are white waves on the turquoise water. The wind is fully onshore and clean from the north, relatively constant at 15 to 23 knots. There is enough space to set up at the Boundary Creek DOC campsite. There is plenty of driftwood on the pebble beach. The shoreline offers 70 metres of safety, after which there is no stopping until Wanaka, about 30 km to the south.

Another day for the 9er, panoramic kiting in nice waves with some good big airs. You shouldn’t praise the day before the morning. Thanks to Lake Wanka, the wind spirits and the little big one for the pictures!