Bendigo Reach, 19 to 20 April 2009

19 April 2009

263988kms, 15.5⁰C partly cloudy. Decided that doing chores around the section could wait for another day or so, because we really wanted to go and have another "Maggie" break! So at 11:12 we headed off into Alexandra to fill (62L, 263998kms), shop etc and then made our way to Bendigo Reach, just below the Lindis River towards Tarras. We had found this spot coming back from over the hill last week, and had decided it was worth checking out. Marielle fished for a while (caught 2 tiddlies and heaps of didymo!) while Mike read. Turned out to be a beautiful afternoon, mild enough for just a T-shirt, and if the cloud had gone away earlier we would have been too hot in jeans.

20 April 2009

Up at 7:30, 7.7⁰C with a very chilly southerly blowing. Marielle went for another fish (only didymo this time) and then we decided that it was too early so went back to bed for a while. Had brunch, and then decided the wind wasn't going to get any warmer, so headed off home. Lovely spot to park for a night

or so - and very handy, as only about 50kms from home!

Easter Weekend 2009 (11 - 13 April)

11 April 2009 - Saturday

Off to the campsite beside Lake Ohau that the jetboat gang at Contact had told Mike about. Stopped at Neville and Wendy's for a couple of beers, then headed off into the "unknown" once again! Found campsite with a problem, and as promised nicely sheltered from a fairly stiff norwester! Met Jenny, who's in a tent a bit along, thanks to her dog Fergus coming to say hi to our two. Talked to her for a while - she comes here fairly often, considering she hails from Rotorua and even though she's over 60, still does it the hard way - a tent!

12 April 2009 - Easter Sunday

Beautiful when we got up, but a chilly southerly picked up and we decided we should move. So went and checked out the head of Lake Ohau, where it was blowing a decent norwester! Very beautiful scenery! Drove back past Alpine Village and thought we'd park up on the lee shore, out of the southerly, but after an hour the wind changed to the north and really started to blow, so we packed up again and decided to go and park beside Lake Benmore, by the dam. But on arrival there it seemed every man and his dog had had the same idea, so we carried on to Fisherman's Bend, thinking it might be less crowded and there might be a spot for us. To our amazement, the place was pretty much deserted, so had a lovely afternoon enjoying nice warm weather, and trying to catch fish - no luck!

13 April 2009 - Easter Monday

Mike starts work again tomorrow, so we had to head off home, bugger it all as the weather is gorgeous! Stopped on way back and checked out Bendigo Reach on the Clutha River - another definite good spot to try out next time! Even though we stayed "close" to home, still managed to drive 468kms this trip! Odo reading now 263987.

Mackenzie Country, 30 March to 4 April 2009

30 March 2009

Going over to Lake Benmore, below Ohau C, and seeing as we have been there many times before, this blog entry is not going to be that detailed! However, we didn't leave Alexandra (after shopping etc.) 'til 15:25, so decided to stop for the night just across the Ahuriri River, out of Omarama. Really cool spot, we've often driven past thinking, we should check it out!

31 March to 4 April 2009

Spent the time at Ohau C (parked at our usual spot!), enjoying fabulous weather - cold, frosty mornings but beautiful days -, fishing, relaxing and reading. Met a lovely couple from Timaru called Don and Lynne and had a very sociable evening with them the night before we left.