Moke Lake

We made camp mid-afternoon, and set dinner to soak - some home-dried curry - and set out for a preliminary look at the walking track, going as far as the right hand end of the lake and back.

We were fascinated by the patterns on the lake surface created by wind eddies swirling off the hills.

Hoar frost that night, and we were cosy and warm inside our polyprops and sleeping bags, notwithstanding a thick layer of ice on the inside of the van windows next morning.

We hung around and took photos of the lake "steaming" and watched the sun crawl down from the tops

Miranda cooked bacon and eggs and fried tomato. Kevin and Pauline from Aroha Vans have given us a pretty comprehensive set of camping gear included in the hire fee, and we used most of it, though I felt safer parking my ample frame on a chilly bin rather than on one of those flimsy little canvas folding chairs.

We headed off mid-morning around the lake. With the surface of the lake "steaming" in the frost, the patterns on the lake were even more amazing.

Up ahead the lake was glassy, with just one boatload of trout fisherman testing their luck.

Up on the track, we were feasting on red currants

I also spotted what looked like a small-leaved tutu. There's heaps of tutu around - its almost as common as sweetbriar or matagouri - but this proved to be an alpine version, Coriaria pterioides, or mountain tutu. We left these berries strictly alone.

As we near the end of the lake, a small mob of sheep takes to their hooves and heads off round the hillside.

At the bottom left you can just make out the elaborate staircase stiles used on this track - similar to the one separating St James station from the Maruia Valley DOC reserve

At the stile, a couple of longer walks head right down the valley and out towards the Glenorchy road

Our track heads across the flats, with a substantial boardwalk bridging the stream that feeds the lake from this side.

We take a look back up the lake. They don't come much better than this.