Our Journey Through New Zealand Continues
For the first eight hours of our drive from Cardrona to Christchurch, I was convinced I had died and gone to Heaven.
The South Island’s beauty is unlike any other place in the world.
Then Ashburton happened…
To follow us on our journey, check out our stay in Queenstown and the day in Milford Sound by clicking here. Then join us on our next stop at Arrowtown, That Wanaka Tree, and the Cardrona Hotel by clicking here.
Day 6 – Christchurch Here We Come!
The day started peacefully.
I strolled the gardens of the Cardrona Hotel with a cup of coffee in one hand and my camera in the other as my wife stayed in bed.
It was a nice, quiet moment by myself.
Spring had been good to the garden. It had obviously been well cared for, beautifully maintained without being overly manicured.
I sat at the outdoor fireplace, exactly where my wife and I enjoyed our wine the night before, and finished my coffee. When the groundsman came to remove the ashes from last night’s fire, that was my clue to leave.
The Cardrona Hotel will be fondly remembered.
Our Drive to Lake Pukaki
We left the Cardrona Hotel early that morning to start our journey towards Christchurch. Our first planned stop was about 2 ½ hours from the hotel.
The drive took us through the Lindis Valley to Lindis Pass and then along the Ahuriri River.
There was little green covering the mountains. Instead, they were a dark tan that turned golden when the sun popped through the clouds.
It was one of the prettiest drives I can remember, though it was marred by the tension in the car. I was still struggling with driving on the left side of the road.
And my wife made sure I knew it.
We stopped at a couple of viewing areas along the way—partly to capture the views with my camera, and partly to soothe our nerves.
The mountains and valleys offered some much-needed relief.
Lake Pukaki
We hoped to catch a glimpse of Mt. Cook’s reflection off Lake Pukaki’s placid waters, one of those iconic photographs shown in the New Zealand tourist guides and blogs.
But when we arrived, Mt. Cook could not be seen.
The mountain peak was engulfed in clouds, and Lake Pukaki’s waters were anything but placid.
I walked down the nature trail to the shore, hoping the clouds would part and I would be able to clearly see Mt. Cook. No such luck.
Instead, I walked into a Gorse shrub. Don’t let the pretty yellow flowers fool you—the shrub has prickers! I learned that the hard way.
There was a momentary reprieve from the heavy cloud cover. But it was merely that, a fleeting moment.
As much as I tried, I wasn’t able to reproduce the iconic shot.
Timing is everything, though. I’m sure later in the day, the clouds would have cleared, showing Mt. Cook blanketed with fresh snow.
Lake Tekapo, Lupins, and The Church of the Good Shepherd
I felt like I was finally grasping how to drive on the left side of the road as we traveled from Lake Pukaki to Lake Tekapo—and we arrived there much more relaxed than earlier.
Lake Tekapo stunned me with shades of blue that reminded me more of the Caribbean than an inland lake. Lake Pukaki was beautiful—but Lake Tekapo was breathtaking.
We made our way towards the shore, passing through the lupin fields.
The lupins swayed in the wind, an almost rhythmic wave of spectacular shades of purple and pink.
With my wife posing for me as she stood among the flowers, the wind made it difficult to capture the moment. Her hair was flying all over the place, either covering her face or lifted high above her head.
Though I took over a hundred pictures and videos, only three were usable. But those were my favorite pictures of her from our trip.
The others were just comical reminders of that moment.
The Church of the Good Shepherd
Between the wind and competing with at least 100 others vying for the best location to photograph the lupins by the lake, we conceded the battle with Mother Nature and walked to The Church of the Good Shepherd.
The small, stone church stands alone by the shore of Lake Tekapo. I can’t imagine it holds more than 40 or so parishioners, but to this day, it still conducts weekly service.
But what struck me about the church was the beauty in its simplicity on the shore of one of the most gorgeous settings I’ve ever seen.
It was truly built in a location He created.
The 5 Minute Mistake
Leaving Lake Tekapo for Christchurch, I decided to take State Route 1 rather than the Inland Scenic Route 72.
Why?
Google Maps said it would take 5 minutes less. Yes, a whole 5 minutes.
Decisions often have consequences. And this one did.
State Route 1 was relatively flat, lacking the stunning landscape we had been enjoying thus far. Had I known that, I probably would have opted for the Inland Scenic Route 72—even if it was 5 minutes longer.
We approached the city of Ashburton around 4:00 PM. This appeared to be New Zealand’s version of rush hour. Traffic was moving at a snail’s pace.
As we came upon the KFC (yes, the reference point this day was none other than Col. Sanders’ restaurant), the two-lane road merged left into one lane. I was in the right lane.
An 18-wheeler with a large double trailer was to my left. The narrowing passage was a tight squeeze, especially considering the size of the large truck next to me.
My wife was sound asleep as our light turned green.
The truck started moving forward as I waited for him to pass so that I could merge to the left.
The screeching sound of the truck’s trailer ripping through the metal of our rental car will forever be etched in my memory!
My wife, startled and panicked, started yelling at me. “What did you do?!?!?” She didn’t know it wasn’t my fault, but considering my driving in New Zealand, could I blame her for thinking that?
I jumped out of the car to assess the situation.
The truck driver came running towards me. His arms were flailing as he yelled at me, calling me names I wouldn’t dare use in the United States. He was furious.
I’ll admit, he was intimidating — weathered, furious, and clearly not interested in a calm exchange.
There was no damage to the truck’s trailer, but a hole had been ripped through our car.
I took a few pictures and then looked up. The truck was leaving the scene!
Quickly, I snapped a picture of his truck as proof of him leaving the scene of the accident.
My wife and I stood there in disbelief as drivers passed by—none offering assistance, but freely expressing their frustrations for the traffic jam caused by the accident.
Not knowing what to do, we pulled into a convenience store parking lot.
My wife went into the store to get the number of the police station so we could call and get advice as to what we needed to do.
This was at 4:35 in the afternoon.
The police station had closed at 4:30.
Have you ever heard of a police station closing in the late afternoon? Me neither.
We were connected with the police department in Christchurch and told how to file a report.
Shaken and frustrated, my wife took over behind the wheel. She remained our driver for the duration of the trip.
Arriving at the Hotel in Christchurch
We finally arrived at the hotel around 6:00.
As we were checking in, the clerk asked how we were.
I explained what just happened to us, and her reply was in disbelief, “That was you?”
Apparently, news travels fast in New Zealand. She heard about the accident and was incredibly empathetic.
She was so kind when we needed it most.
A Rack of Lamb, a Pinot Noir, and Recovery
The hotel clerk recommended a restaurant for dinner, Twenty Seven Steps.
Fortunately, they had a table available. I’m glad they did. It was exactly what we needed!
Over dinner and drinks, we recounted the day’s events.
We decided to put the accident behind us. There were so many great memories from the day. The accident was not going to ruin our vacation.
With each bite of my rack of lamb and sip of Pinot Noir, I found my breathing was returning to normal, and the stress I was carrying in my neck and shoulders was dissipating.
That was until I was almost hit by the Christchurch Tram as I crossed the street.
This really wasn’t my day.
The Lesson I Learned in Ashburton
We were fortunate. Our credit card eventually reimbursed us for the damage, although not before plenty of paperwork and a month or two of waiting.
But Ashburton changed me as a traveler. In the future, when I rent a car in a foreign country, I will happily pay for the rental company’s insurance and consider it money well spent.
Some lessons come from guidebooks. Others come from the sound of a truck trailer ripping through the side of your rental car.
