Lake Pukaki...

 Lake Pukaki is the largest of the three glacial lakes...

All three lakes were created when the terminal moraines of receding 

glaciers  blocked their respective valleys, forming moraine-dammed lakes. 

 It has become famous for its milky-blue color and as the foreground

 to Mount Cook... Which in this photo is hiding in the clouds.

 The glacial feed to the lakes gives them a distinctive blue colour, 

created by glacial flour, the extremely finely ground rock particles 

from the glaciers. Lake Pukaki covers an area of 178.7 km², and is 

518 - 532 meters above sea level.

 The lake is fed at its northern end by the braided Tasman River, 

which has its source in the Tasman and Hooker Glaciers close to  

Aoraki/Mount Cook, which today is being very elusive.

Lake Pukaki in Aoraki/Mount Cook National Park - is the 

location of Lake-town in The Hobbit Trilogy.

Read about that here. 

 The lake is now part of the Waitaki hydroelectric scheme.

     The lake's original outflow was at its southern end, into the Pukaki River.

 The outflow has been dammed, and canals carry water from Lake Pukaki 

and Lake Ohau through the Ohau A power station to  Lake Ruataniwha.
 Pukaki is also fed by the waters of  Lake Tekapo, which are
diverted through a canal to a power station on Pukaki's
 eastern shore (Tekapo B station).
The lake has been raised twice to increase storage capacity
(9m in 1952, and 37m in 1976 ), submerging Five Pound Note Island,
which once appeared on New Zealand's five pound note.

Lake Tekapo... I'm Travelling South...

I've been in Christchurch long enough, it's time to go

somewhere... North, South, East or West?... Well I chose South

 The road south from Christchurch is amazingly flat and straight.

For a long, long way. This is south of Timaru... Heading

 west to Tekapo...

 All prosperous farming country and  a cool but sunny day...

 Until I got to the top of Burkes Pass and I could see a

weather change coming. I stopped and took these photos looking

all around me at the amazing variations...

 Dry tussocks and hills...

 Advancing clouds...

 And looks like snow?

 Well there was snow on the mountain tops.

 A bit further on and over the next hill... Lake Tekapo.

It's only 4pm and already looking quite dark.

 The next morning parked in the new NZMCA Park.

Overnight there was heavy rain but no snow.

You can see my fire going, definitely needed to

keep warm and dry.

 It's a lovely park, not very level though...

 Quite a lot of trees that gave me good shelter from the

howling north west that had developed but rather shady.

 Through the trees to look at the lake...

 And mountains...

 There is a walk way/ bike track... About 20 minutes walk...

To the Tekapo village.

 Past lots of new housing...

 Round the south end of the lake...

 To the historical 'Church Of The Good Shepherd'

Built in 1935 as a memorial to the pioneers

of the Mackenzie country.

 The view from inside... Looking north  up the lake.

Lake Tekapo is the second largest of three roughly parallel

lakes running north-south along the edge of the

Mackenzie Basin in the South Island of New

Zealand, the others are Lake Pukaki and Lake Ohau.

It covers an area of 83 square kilometers and is at an altitude

of 700 meters above sea level. The lake is fed at it's northern end

by the braided Godley River which has its source

in the Southern Alps.

The Lake Tekapo dam and control gates...

Water from the lake is diverted through a 1.4-kilometre (4,600 ft) 

 tunnel under the town to the power station, with the water originally 

 being returned to the river. With development of the Upper Waitaki 

hydroelectric scheme in the 1970s, water is now fed into a 

26-kilometre (16 mi) canal which leads to Tekapo B 

on the shores of Lake Pukaki.

 Looking north...

 And south...

 From the top of the dam and the bridge into Tekapo village.

 It was a freezing day with a bitter wind but while I was

walking the sun came out. I found a sheltered spot behind the

shops to drink the flask of hot coffee I had taken with me.

The most fantastic view...

 The sun continued... And so did the wind... As I retraced

my steps... Looking at this stunning view...

Back to my bus parked amongst the trees.

I decided to move on... I had come down here

to try fishing in the canals...