Beautiful St Bathans

Tuesday 3 March

A day of extremes in St Bathans - we woke to the first frost of the year and recorded -2*C on Banjo’s outdoor thermometer!!! The grass was crispy, Banjo and the Pajero were all sparkly and the trip to the long drop was super chilly - but we had the diesel heater so all was not lost!

It was the Fernandi's last full day with us and the freezing temperatures demanded a slap up hot breakfast so I steamed up Banjo cooking bacon, eggs & mushrooms while they got their working and studying days started. 🍳

By mid-morning the sun was heating everything up, the frosts had disappeared and the snow capped mountains were looking a little dandruffy. Louis and I took the footpath to the lake and had a quick wander - the place was looking stunning, with still reflective waters and beautiful blue skies overhead. Had fun photographing the old relics... and no, I don't mean Louis!

Hard to believe that 4 hours after that frosty start, we were eating lunch in the sun then spending the afternoon on/in the lake and it was scorchio!

Inflated our kayak and the Fernandi took their SUPs and we explored from one end of the spectacular lake to the other and back. The lake was created by gold miners from the 1860s onwards, who cleared away the quartz of Kildare Hill and dug deep into the ground, and the pit they created was later allowed to fill with water & become a lake. The white cliffs and escarpments around the lake are the scrapings of quartz deposited by the miners and there are mining relics dotted around the site.

The deep blue waters of the lake, vibrant blue sky and the white/grey cliffs separating them made for a stunning, almost unreal backdrop as we paddled gently up the lake, played in the reeds, admired the fascinating rock formations and explored some of the chasms and cliffs.

We had an awesome afternoon in the sun and Louis even got in a 1.8km swim too! Russ hung out back at the beach end, and Nickie and I went back up and down the lake again with him - fortunately the water temperature was a fairly manageable 18*C or so... somewhat higher than for the Ice Swim championships in July!

Scrubbed up and strolled up to “town” for dinner at the Vulcan Hotel (opened in 1869) as this was our last night travelling with the Fernandi 💔 Nickie had an online tutorial from 6pm so Louis, Russ and I wandered up to the Vulcan for beersies in the garden in the evening sunshine before Nickie almost sprinted up the road to join us for a fab dinner. She was looking awesome in a top and necklace combo that we had found in the SPCA in Timaru about a week ago - I was having a Gok Wan moment and insisted she add the tassle necklace to the cute top!

Deeeelicious dinner - 2 burgers, a pan fried blue cod & pulled lamb tacos, oh, and onion rings! So many onion rings!

Freezing cold as we walked home as the sun set, played cards in the FernandiVan and popped out randomly to check on the progress of the blood moon/lunar eclipse. Wow!