April 21st, New Zealand Day 6

These are the photos I took on the day the tour departed Queenstown.

This is Lake Wanaka, one of our rest stops after we left Queenstown in the morning. Unbeknownst to me at the time, this was apparently used as a background for Gandalf's ride to Minas Tirith. 

The waters of Lake Wanaka were so clear that you could see fish swimming a few meters down. You should be able to see them in this photo. 

This, and the next 3 photos, are a panorama of Lake Hawea, not too far from Lake Wanaka. 

Photo 2 

Photo 3 

Photo 4 

This is the scenery of the Haast Pass, itself transected by the Haast River, which may be the body of water in the foreground. 

These are the well-known Thunder Creek Falls, located within the Haast Pass. 

This is Thunder Creek from where falls get their name. 

This mountain is typical of those that flank the Haast Pass. 

This snow covered mountain, I believe, is Mount Mcfarlane. 

These interesting are close to the very scenic Knights Point on the West Coast of the South Island. 

These are also rock formations as seen from Knights Point.

More rock formations near Knights Point. 

This is Fox Glacier, an ice field that once reached the sea, and is named after a Prime Minister of New Zealand who visited it once. 

This is the leading edge of the glacier. 

This is rainforest beside Fox Glacier through which you have to walk to reach the ice structure. 

This interesting formation is a large cave in the ice of the glacier. 

This is the wall of Fox Glacier. The dark stuff is dirt carried with the glacier and the blue ice is pristine. 

This is the valley that Fox Glacier had carved out over the last couple thousand years.