Half-time! Wonderful, even relative hot weather. Time for a hike, especially in the Wanaka scenery. We got up early and hiked up till Isthmus Peak, a 5-hour-hike, 2.5 hours uphill to 1385m.a.s.l. Definitely worth the sweat, the scenery is magnificent, a 360° panorama with views on both Lake Wanaka and Lake Hāwea which makes scenic flights unnecessary.
Next stop was at the Blue Pools in Mount Aspiring National Park.
After a 10-minutes-walk to the pools we regretted not having our swimming outfits with us. On the way back to the parking lot we decided to use the chance for a jump into the fresh water, so we returned fully equipped. The water is really crystal-clear, and you might imagine, reeeally cold!
But too late to backtrack, especially considering our plan to use a “primitive” campground (no water, no power) for this night. Not a bad choice, the trade-off of comfort got payed back by much more wilderness feeling and a low price.