38 | Lake Maniphua

By this point my NEXT bags were on their last legs with holes in the side of them but they were still going after 11 months of being taken in and out of my backpack every day. Again we only had one night in Westport but to be fair that was enough. Simon was left behind on this leg because he booked the trip two days before starting and didn’t realize he had to book every bus journey in advance due to high demand. We had come accustom to his catch phrase (Swedish accent) ‘Ah shit’ which covered everything from the shock of accommodation costs to realizing he booked the trip without knowing which direction it went in or where he was going.

The main stop off of the day was at the Pancake Rocks in Punakaiki. Volcanic layers had formed to create tiers of rock built up along the cliff face giving it an unusual appearance. The round loop track which we walked on took us around the formations and across blowholes. As the sea crashed into the rocks below, vapour is vented up out of these caverns causing the vapour to shoot high into the air which absolutely soaked us. With my camera lens exposed, I took shelter behind James whenever the waves came in in an attempt to prevent the device from getting drenched. No luck! Half my photos came out blurred after that point but hey I still have the memories. It was pretty cool to see rainbows form over the holes and see the spectrum of UV light. James I need your videos mate!

Lake Maniphua was bitterly cold. After arriving at the pub and unpacking my belongings for the 350th time, we headed straight for the lake. Alejandra began counting down 5 of us brave souls who decided to take a leap in Spanish which confused some. Our choreography was slightly off but we all ended up in the water which took my breath away on impact and called for Steve to cry out “fuck me” haha. Thankfully the pub had 3 hot tubs out the back which brought us back to life slowly.

It was fancy dress time. My favourite by far was Steve’s snake charmer outfit. A recorder with a piece of string dangling down to the head of the snake which emerged from the front of his trousers when the instrument was blown (apologies for the puns). It was hilarious. There were also some creative ideas such as Brave Heart and Winni 1 and 2’s trump supporters jerseys accompanied by Alejandra trying to climb over the border wall. Listening to live music and getting blinded by Charlie’s high viz jacket made a pretty good start to New Zealand nights out.

#Nightlife #Lake #Hiking #Nature