Farm to Freedom Camp

Wednesday 19 March

Waking up in the peace of Glenmac Farm was such a joy - the sun was rising, the moon was still up… and the sheep were wandering around outside their paddock! Oops! They saw me, looked “sheepish” and hopped back over & through the fence! It turns out they were serial offenders and on this occasion were likely trying to dodge the sheerers who turned up shortly after 8am with two gorgeous herding dogs.

However, my small highlight of the morning was finding my long lost Ikea fork in the draining rack - it had accidentally been left behind on our last visit.

More creamy eggs - none from Robbie Hewitt this time so they looked a little less golden - for breakfast then we packed up carefully & thoroughly, double checking that all the lids in the fridge were securely screwed or clicked into place to avoid a repeat of the previous spillage.

The route up to Lowburn followed a familiar course - up the side of Lakes Waitaki, Aviemore & Benmore and then once again, over the Lindis Pass.

Took a break to explore around the first dam we came to - Waitaki Dam & Powerstation has quite the history, being the first dam in NZ to be built without diverting the river's natural flow. The powerstation was constructed by manual labour using picks, shovels & wheelbarrows as part of a "make work" project in the 1930s during the Depression. It started providing the South Island with almost half of its electricity needs in 1935 and was expanded several times in 1940-45 and 1952-54.

Paused in Omarama for a coffee stop and a quick whizz around the Four Square in search of a snack - I declined to be tempted by the bizarrely flavoured hot cross buns on offer - but did buy a cheeky pack of the regular squishy fruity ones. Was intrigued to find a tree that accepted the Everyday Rewards card even though there wasn't a Woolworths for miles around.

This time through the Lindis Pass we got to stop and admire the scenery of the pass itself - such an amazing landscape.

Swift stop in Tarras for a real fruit ice cream as the cafe was shut, then a brief pause in Cromwell, before heading up to Lowburn to find a spot in the freedom camp by the lagoon.

Much busier than the farm but a lovely scenic spot on the shore of Lake Dunstan to call home for two nights. BBQ lamb steaks for dinner accompanied by a bizarrely variegated orange & white kumara.