🇳🇿 New Zealand Road Trip - เล่าเรื่องด้วยภาพ#7

🇳🇿 New Zealand Road Trip - Storytelling with Pictures #7 Day 7: This morning, we woke up in our campervan parked on the shores of Lake Hawea, with its vast turquoise waters stretching as far as the eye could see. Under a sky with bright sunlight filtering through the thin clouds, we changed our plans to stop in Wanaka today and trekked up to Roys Peak for a bird's-eye view of Wanaka instead (because tomorrow, it's expected to rain most of the day!). We left Lake Hawea Campsite at 10 a.m. and stopped in Albert Town (the small town before Wanaka). Then, we continued on to Wanaka, a New Zealand resort and vacation destination with a population of over 13,000. It felt more lively than any other city we'd been in for the past four days. ⛰️ We then drove to our designated Roys Peak Car Parking location, which was just a half-hour drive from our campsite. We spent a short time packing our supplies, drinks, and backpacks, along with rain gear and jackets, and were ready to start our hike up the mountain. The entrance fee was only $2 per person, or about 50 baht, because some areas we had to walk through were privately owned land. There were no guards or shops at the entrance, so we just put our money in a small box before crossing the fence. However, the surrounding area, including the parking lot, was very clean and tidy, with no litter left behind. 👍☺️ The Roys Peak trail is one of the most popular trails for tourists with enough time to spare and visiting Wanaka. The hike is about 16 kilometers, taking at least six hours. 🚶 Then we set off for a hike, enjoying the beautiful scenery of Lake Wanaka. The trail is a mix of dirt and gravel, with low grasses lining both sides and flocks of sheep grazing along the way. The weather was pleasant, not too hot, but the sun was quite strong, and the wind was quite strong at times. Then we climbed to the Viewpoint, where a promontory jutted out. We didn't hesitate to join the queue behind the foreign tourists who were taking photos of the incredible view. The two of us enjoyed the breathtaking scenery for over two hours, taking it easy. Then, we continued our trek to the highest point, Roys Peak, which was a 1.5-kilometer climb. The weather was getting cooler and the wind was so strong that we could barely stand, so we had to take shelter behind some rocks before continuing. Finally, the two of us made it to the summit of Roys Peak as planned. We stocked up on food and drinks and enjoyed the stunning views of Wanaka. We spent enough time at the summit to avoid any tourists, as it was almost 7 p.m. (We had already walked for 7 hours). Then, the two of us slowly walked back down the same route to the parking lot. 🚶In short, the two of us hiked up and down Roys Peak for about 9 hours. We then drove back to Lake Hawea Campsite to cook dinner and disinfect our clothes before we finally passed out for the night. 😴😪