The Road to Narnia

About a month ago, when Carol was still here, we went on a road trip to Castle Hill. We’ve been there last winter but back then, we were so lost that we didn't realised where we were. You do remember that incident right? If you recall, it was hubby's fault cos 1. He agreed with me when I said we didn't need a map (I'm whimsical so he should've known better) and 2.  He asked me for directions, knowing I suck in Geography. FYI, he teaches the subject.

This time around, both of us remembered to use our common sense and bring along a map together with some food supply. There wasn't any sleepovers cos Carol was leaving the next day, so a one day trip was all we could have. Since Arthur's Pass is only 140 km from Christchurch, this suited us perfectly. 

We left home at 9.20 a.m. and headed to the West Coast Road along state highway 73. This is the main route to the Southern Alps, Greymouth, Hotikita and as the name of the road suggests, the West Coast. To everyone's delight, Alden was well-behaved and only committed some minor bullying during the journey.

Our first stop was Lake Lyndon, a beautiful glacial lake overlooking the Southern Alps. It's a really perfect place to stretch your legs and have picnic after a long drive on the road. We've been there last winter so it was interesting to see how it looks in the summer. In winter, the water was frozen and there was a nice view of a snow-capped mountain in front of the lake. This time, the landscape was different. The lake wasn't frozen, the trees had leaves and there were lots and lots of wild flowers at the area. It was pretty, yes, but I prefer the winter appeal.


Lake Lyndon in the summer



With the wild flowers

Carol and hubby preparing lunch

Same spot in the winter

After the quick picnic, we continued our journey to Arthur's Pass. We passed the road to Porter Heights skifield and approached Castle Hill. I don't think anyone can miss Castle Hill. Even from a distance, you can see huge rock formations on the hillside. I was so excited to see the place cos the area was used during the filming of the Lord of the Rings and the Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe. Remember the final battle between Aslan's forces and the army of the White witch? This is where they film the scenes.

Source

For travellers who wish to see the whole area, Narnia tours are available from Canterbury Sightseeing. I don't know how much it cost but I reckon it's costly. Well, you don't need to go on a tour to experience a bit of Narnia. We just followed the track and explored the site on foot. Here's a glimpse of it.

At the parking lot

I think this one looks like a dinosour lying on its tummy

The view from the walking track

The place makes you go wow! because of the weird and wonderful  rock formations. These huge stones have been eroded and shaped over millions of years by wind, rain, snow and ice (source: Castlehill.net). I saw some that looked like dinosours and Carol saw one that looked like Shrek. I was right beside her but I didn't see Shrek at all. This bothered me but I just said ya ya. It was frustrating. The feeling is somewhat similar to not being able to see an image in an optical illusion. Like WHERE THE HECK IS SHREK???!!!!! Oh, never mind.

One thing tricky about taking pictures at the hill is keeping your hair intact while the wind is blowing on your face. It was so hard for me to get a decent photo without looking like a mess. The place is very windy and I had to be careful on the steep slopes so most of my poses were kind of static. But that didn't stop me from taking heaps and heaps of photos. I don't have any knowledge of photography other than this: IF I TAKE A HUNDRED PHOTOS THERE'S BOUND TO BE ONE THAT I LIKE. So these were the ones that I favour out of the hundreds I've got.

I borrowed Carol's scarf

This one looks like a skull

Trying to look relaxed while the grass blades pricked my skin

Carol in front of a huge rock formation

Alva having a nap

Alden fitting himself nicely in a big rock

Alden getting tired of walking

  

On the hillside next to the huge limestones

I tried one of the techniques Chegu taught me but I guess you need a DSLR to pull this off

On the lower ground

Yeah. It's really an awesome awesome place and we're definitely coming back in the winter.

So, for those of you who are planning to visit Christchurch, and I'm looking right at you Lois Wong, Caroline Lee, Octavia, Amanda, Jipp and Mimi, be sure to visit Castle Hill. Oh! One tip for the ladies: bring along a can of hair spray. You'll thank me later :)

Weekend On Ice

I know I've been complaining a lot about the weather and on more than one occasion, I even said I hate winter. That's not entirely true. There is one thing I love about the season, and that is the snow. Last July, when my family came to visit, they had a lot of fun taking pictures of frozen lakes, walking on icy tracks and making snow man. I missed all that cos I was stuck at home, in confinement.

This year, I have made it a point to go see the snow and after weeks of dilly dallying, I finally got to do it yesterday. We initially wanted to go to Mount Cook but figured it'd be too long a journey so we headed to Lake Coleridge instead. 

We started our journey in the late morning, at around 11.00 a.m. It wasn't far from Christchurch so  we weren't worried about the journey at all. When we realised that we had left the map at home, both of us decided to move on without it. "Dear, mau balik pi ambi map?" Hubby asked. I answered "Mmm, nda paya la...Kita adventurous la sikit". Since it was my third trip to the lake and hubby's fourth, I didn't think we'd lose our way.

We headed out of Christchurch through Yaldhurst and after a few minutes of driving we got to the West Coast Road. Hubby said all we needed to do was follow the road signs going to Darfield. So off we went. After about 25 minutes or so, we got to a signposted corner that said Hororata. Hubby thought the name sounded familiar and his gut feeling told him it was the right way. Unfortunately, I had to confuse his sense of directions by saying "Itu pi Mount Cook tu". Hearing this, hubby decided to move on and not take the route.

We drove through the Canterbury Plains, passing the small townships of Darfield and Spingfield. We didn't realise it at that time, but we were actually heading towards Arthur's Pass via Porters Pass. As we got further, the scenery changed and the road became more windy. This didn't bother us cos we got to see the impressive view of the mountains ahead.

On the way to Porters Pass

From Springfield, I noticed that the road began to climb steadily and then narrowly up to Porters Pass. When we got to the top, I could see a magnificent view of the Southern Alps; they were all covered in snow. To our delight, there was a beautiful park just after the steep climb. It was the Korowai–Torlesse Tussockland Park, which covers around 21,000 hectares of high country. We got to roadside and found a nice little spot to park the car. This gave us the chance to do a little bit of sightseeing while the kids were still asleep. The moment I got out, I immediately felt like I was in winter wonderland! Snow dominated the entire place and seeing this, I went a little crazy. I began touching the snow every chance I got and forced hubby to take my photos in various poses. There were also wild birds at the park and they all seemed quite friendly. After  having fun in the snow and  taking heaps of pics, we got back to the car and said goodbye to snowy Tussockland.

 

We continued our journey to Lake Coleridge, driving happily on the windy road. After an hour or so, I got a little bit worried cos most of the landscapes I saw seemed alien to me. I didn't remember passing through Porter River Bridge or seeing Porter Heights Skifield in our previous trips. So I told hubby about this and asked him whether he remembered those landmarks. He said "Ini la jalan dia tu, mana  ada lagi". That wasn't comforting at all but I figured he was probably right. Soon after that, we approached Castle Hill. The place is easily recognisable by the huge rock formation on the hillside. It  looked  a lot like Stone Henge to me and it definitely had a wow effect on me. If we weren't too occupied on finding the lake, we would have stopped by and taken a few photos. Too bad.  

Castle Hill

Fast forward 90 minutes.

We were still on the road and Lake Coleridge was nowhere in sight. I told hubby we were LOST and begged him to ask for directions. He smiled and said "Tadi dear bilang mau adventure kan" He wasn't worried at all and I was already imagining the worst. We drove for another mile or so before approaching a bridge with the signpost Waimakariri something. Seeing the length of the bridge, I panicked. It was as though we were crossing over to the other side of the world and I feared that the moment we crossed the bridge, we would be eternally lost. I asked hubby whether he remembered seeing the bridge last time and he said YES. I asked him again "Ada ka kamu limpas ni bridge dulu masa sama mummy?" He said "Ada ba!" Then I said "Kalau ada, napa kita nda sampai-sampai ni????"

At the end of the bridge, we got to a huge camping ground where we saw  two 4WDs.  Hubby decided to end my agony by asking for directions. Finally! After five minutes, he got back to the car, smiled at me and said "Sala suda la dear. Ini jalan  pi West Coast".  Oh Crap! We had to do a major U-turn, get back to Porters Pass and cross over Lake Lyndon via Lyndon road to get to Lake Coleridge. I know what my sister is thinking right now "Tu la kamu nda bawa map".

I'll skip the U-turn details okay?

On the way to Porters Pass, we came across a partly frozen lake called Lake Pearson. We stopped by for a little picnic cos all of us were hungry. It was freezing cold and windy but the view was nice.

Picnic site

Rice, fried eggs and fried dace for lunch

After the late lunch, we continued our journey to Lake Coleridge. The short cut via Lyndon Road was closed, due to heavy snow so we had to take the long way via Hororata. That's right. The route that we passed by earlier in the journey.

Fast forward 60 km ah...

We finally made it! Yay! It was already 3.30 p.m. by the time we got there but that was okay. We came across this spot and this time I came prepared.  As you can see, the fences are heavily adorned with used undergarments. I don't know who started the wacky tradition but I think it's cool. I took out my used bra and panties and began tying them on the barb wire fence. Hubby pun ikut ikut and tied his blue underwear next to mine. Hehehe.

After putting our marks on the fences, we continued our journey to the great lake. Another 10 minutes  on  graveled road brought us there. The lake was just as beautiful as I remembered it from my previous trip but at this time of the year, the water's frozen. Hubby and Alden threw stones onto the frozen surface and they all bounced and skidded across the lake. Alden enjoyed this a lot and did it over and over again. I found it awesome too especially when hubby threw a huge rock and the ice still won't break. That was really fun.

Alden and Dada

Makan ice

Me having a bite :)

Alden in awe

A heart-shaped piece of ice

We only spent half an hour at the lake but it was worth the journey. On the way home, hubby and I talked about our little trip, the accidental detour and the fun we had in the snow. In the end both us realised that we got exactly what we bargained for; a little bit of adventure! If we hadn't gotten lost, we wouldn't have passed Springfield,  Tousseland Park, Castle Hill, Lake Pearson, Broken River, Cave Stream, Cragieburn Forest Park and Bealey Spur. I guess being lost wasn't so bad after all. 

* To give you an idea of how far we went, here's a map of Arthur's Pass and Lake Coleridge. We almost reached Arthur's Pass National Park.