South Island Day 4

We were ready for another day of exploring the Wanaka area. We visited a charming lavender farm for our first stop and fell in love!  The kids loved playing the giant Connect Four and Jenga games in the grass. Lois and I especially loved the cute store and each bought some yummy lavender lotion.  We stopped on the shore of Lake Wanaka and ate a picnic lunch with a beautiful view. We continued on to a very long bumpy drive on a dirt road to a hike we had read was amazing…and it was! The weather couldn't have been better! We walked across our first swing bridge of the trip that hung over a turquoise running river. We didn't realize that this hike was going to be as long and as difficult as it ending up being, but we are so glad that we did it! We walked straight up the mountain with forest on one side and a beautiful valley below. All of the kids were total troopers. We kept our minds busy with chatting about their favorite iPad games and stopped frequently for snacks. We hit the first view point and thought it was gorgeous. But if we wanted to go further to the last view point, it would be another 30 minute climb. We were all exhausted. But, Ethan said, "Mom, we're Woods and we do hard things. Let's do it!" I couldn't say no to that… Everyone we passed told us that the first view point was pretty, but the last stop was breathtaking…and it was! We were basically at the bottom of a massive glacier surrounded by towering mountains and waterfalls. It was stunning! Pictures just don't do it justice. New Zealand is famous for the Fox and Franz Josef glaciers, but the Rob Roy glacier takes the cake! It is less seen because of its location, but it is a sight to see! Our hike ended up being 8k and the kids did amazing! Reese practically walked the whole way with a few moments of rest on Dad's shoulders. Our legs were like jello from the straight climb and descent but it was all worth the effort. We fueled our tummies with some delicious Mexican food and Magnum bars. We hit our beds hard that night with smiles on our faces from a great day!