September 16th, 2009
Welcome back! Wow what a winter we have had!
Overall in the Mackenzie we have had fantastic weather, brilliant skiing and skating and a full or close to full motel all of winter. No time at all for the knitting this year!
Spring has arrived in Tekapo rather quickly this year, gone are the frosts, cool days and evening fires. They have been replaced on the odd day by rather strong Nor west winds and very warm temperatures , but not quite warm enough yet to get the water skis out!
The skating rink closed last weekend at Alpine Springs & Spa Winter Park after a great season. Hours of fun were had by the many who visited, skating, curling, snowtubing or playing ice hockey over the winter months. They are in the process of setting up the ice rink for roller skating and inline skating for the summer. They hope to open on the 26th September just in time for the school holidays, they will have skates to hire and I am sure plenty of fun will be had over the summer down there.
There have been some glorious clear still days with views of the snowcapped mountains surrounding our little high country town in every direction and the lake has been at its postcard-perfect best. With more snow and rainfall this winter the lake is a beautiful turquoise blue thanks to the glaciers at the headwaters of Lake Tekapo grinding away on the rock causing the fine dust particles “rock flour” to wash into the lake suspending them in the water to be illuminated by the sun. Absolutley stunning even when you do see it every day.
It is all go here, we are ready for the summer season and ready to accommodate you for your family holiday, weekend getaway, honeymoon or stopover. Whatever your reason for visiting Lake Tekapo or the Mackenzie region the Lake Tekapo Scenic Resort can take care of your accommodation needs.
Take Care out there
We look forward to hearing from you soon or maybe seeing you soon!
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July 24th, 2009
Hello Again from the Mackenzie Basin
It has been a couple of weeks since our last blog – I just don’t know where the time has gone!!
The school holidays came and went so fast, perhaps because we were so busy. There was so much happening in Tekapo over the holidays, with The High Country Art Exhibition, which included works from 42 artists including internationally recognized Austen Deans, Randall Froude and Ben Woollcombe, together with a number of emerging artists and was an unmissable event. The weather more or less behaved itself, providing more snow for excellent snowsport conditions.
The surrounding skifields Roundhill, Mt Dobson and Ohau were flat out all holiday and are well and truly into their main season now. I am sure many guests to the Mackenzie left with some pretty awesome memories and photos of the area at it’s winter magical best.
The Alpine Springs & Spa and Winter Park opened their new snow tubing park just prior to the school holidays. The one hundred metre long by fifty metre wide slope provides a great track for hours of fun for everyone young and old. The ice rink is open daily along with the hot pools and day spa and sauna, so there’s plenty to do for a day or two’s relaxation.
There are some great events coming up at the Winter Park. On the weekend of the 8th and 9th of August, they are hosting a children’s ice hockey tournament and on the Saturday evening are holding an ice disco in conjunction with Roundhill Ski fields “80’s” Day. There are also two great ice hockey matches coming up. The Auckland University team play the Tekapo Thars on the 15th August and the Mackenzie cup will be held on the weekend of the 29th and 30th August.
So book your Lake Tekapo accommodation now for a weekend away or for a mid week break. Dust off your skis and skates (or hire flash new ones when you get here) and head for the Mackenzie for a few days of alpine exhilaration, or just relax and unwind and take in the spectacular winter scenery. You can even get really daring and try out the Wilderness Heliskiing or perhaps a scenic flight over this terrain where you may catch sight of a heliskier – imagine that!
Well that’s enough from us for another week or so, better get on and get some work done around here – must get ready for the next group of guests arriving to stay with us tonight.
Take care out there and hope to see you up here in the magical Mackenzie basin real soon!!
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June 25th, 2009
Hello again from the magical Mackenzie basin.
At Tekapo we have been having a great spell of weather recently with some pretty chilly frosts but fantastic clear, sunny days. This has made conditions perfect for the fantastic range of winter activities to enjoy at Tekapo.
Guests have been in awe of our clear night skies which have been enhanced by the fact that there is no moon at the moment, making a very dark sky. Of course this is always helped by the special lighting in Tekapo Village that prevents light pollution. This provides perfect conditions for taking a Tekapo star gazing tour.
At the moment both Saturn and Jupiter are visible from the Mt John Observatory and the centre of our milky way is at its very best. It’s absolutely breathtaking and is only visible in the southern hemisphere over the winter, so we feel pretty privileged to have that on our doorstep.
Unfortunately over the next few days it looks like we may be in for a change of weather – maybe a day or two of raindrops – but hey, we have to keep the ducks happy and no doubt a skier or two will appreciate a bit of the white stuff falling nearby. It never lasts long and before we know it the skies are once again crystal clear.
The school holidays are fast approaching and Tekapo Village is all set for a busy time with families heading up into the high country for a bit of skiing, skating or relaxing in the hot pools. The Alpine Springs & Spa is open every day from 10am – 9pm and the Winter Park is gearing up to open its new snow tubing park in July, which is sure to be a hit with the kids and adults alike.
So there’s still plenty going on here to keep us all from hibernating for the winter!
Take care out there.
We will be back with more from our piece of paradise next week.
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June 16th, 2009
Hi All
Here is the first of hopefully many more informative blogs on life in Lake Tekapo. This morning while the deep south is under a blanket of fresh snow and the far north is under rainclouds Lake Tekapo is basking in clear blue skies and sunshine the only negative being it is only a balmy 2 degrees! Brrrrrrr.
These however are fantastic conditions for winter with the ski season all but being ready to go for 2009. Mt Dobson had a fantastic opening/30th anniversay weekend on Sat 13th June with record numbers(1300 people) racing up the mountain to take advantage of the free lift passes that were offered to celebrate the fields 30th anniversary. Mt Dobson is open every weekend now until the end of June and then 7 days a week visit www.dobson.co.nz for more info.
Roundhill Skifield is only 30 minutes up the road from Lake Tekapo and is all set to open on the 04th July so dig out your ski gear and get organised to join them for a fantastic dayof fun in all day sun. Checkout their newly upgraded website at www.roundhill.co.nz
Another reason to head up into the highcountry if not for the brilliant sunshine or the skiing is the Lake Tekapo High Country Art Exhibition being held in the Lake Tekapo Community Hall. The Exhibition is open from the 5th – 18th July 10 -6pm and on the 19th July from 10am -1pm. This has been an annual event for the last few years and always has an incredible variety of talent on display most items being available for sale, so get up to the Mackenzie and see for yourself what the high country can inspire.
After all that you are sure to be looking for a caffeine fix! Tekapo has plenty of food outlets for all your needs from four course dinners and award winning cuisine to takeaway hot pies and good ole kiwi hot chips.
We are hoping to make this a weekly report what do you think? Let us know if there is anything you would like to hear about from the high country.
So until next week take care out there.
Farewell for now from us here at the scenic
“The view with accommodation”
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