The prizes include accommodation at Lake Tekapo Cottages, a beautiful flight to and around Mt Cook from Air Safari’s, meals and a couple of other treats! In fact several of them….

Have at it, and good luck!

Riders use the winter snow tubes, but the base of the tubes are reinforced for use on the artificial matting. There is an existing Magic Carpet conveyor lift to take people quickly up to the top of the 150 metre slope.

The facility has been installed on the winter snow tube park on the lower slopes of Mount John. It uses synthetic carpet with the same slippery properties as snow, and curves, corners and slopes on the thrilling ride-on-gravity.

Cathy Hemsworth, Business Development Manager for Alpine Springs, said summer tubing had proved so popular in Europe and North America that 500 facilities had been installed in just a few years.
“It’s become a real craze and we’re delighted to be the first in New Zealand to offer such a great summer adventure ride that’s safe for all the family.  They are incredibly popular in Europe where they’re operating in urban and rural settings,” Cathy  tells us.

“The summer tube experience will add to the roller and blade skating attractions and the three hot pools we offer, . I’m sure it’ll be a very popular combo for families here and there will be a lot of younger people who will want to tube and talk about it on their social networks.”

“Tubers get the thrills and spills of an exciting downhill ride in a safe environment, and as operators, it means we can use the same slope and conveyor lift for both winter and summer rides.”

Now, I know this is a few months away but you need to start planning a relaxing weekend off for the Lake Tekapo Fishing Competition on the 17^th March followed by the NZ MADE Fete on the 18^th March,  two great events to encourage people to visit beautiful Lake Tekapo. Perhaps you might choose to even stay the night. Theres plenty of accommodation to suit all budgets and lots of lovely Cafes to choose from too!

The roadsides and unattended areas become covered in a thick carpet of this beautiful plant. The best bloom from mid-November until January and cover the country side and lake shore with a luxurious sea of colour.

Russell lupine (Lupinus polyphyllus) is an exotic plant that can grow up to 1.5 metres. It is a perennial species; i.e. it flowers and sets seed in the summer, dies back to the stem base over winter, to re-emerge the following summer.

Russell lupines produce long, colourful flower heads. The flowers are pea-like and come in a variety of colours; blue, purple, orange, yellow, pink, white or a mixture of two colours.

The leaves, divided into green leaflets, are splayed out like fingers on a hand. Stout seedpods are produced that explode in the summer heat, releasing many dark brown seeds.
Although Russell lupines are beautiful to look at, they can be an aggressive weed. Of particular concern is the invasion of Russell lupines into Canterbury’s braided riverbeds, and the impacts they have on these ecosystems.

Around Tekapo they have become a tradition, drawing visitors from far and wide, so in the local area they are  not been seen as a weed but rather an attraction to the many visitors to the area at this time of the year.

A few days later,  and everything has dried out. Now the construction can begin, and the first poles that will  protect the Sundial from motor traffic can be put in place.

Sushi from Kohan, BBQ lunches, Mexican, Gourmet meats, cheeses, freshly baked breads & muffins & freshly made sandwiches, wonderful Coffee, Mr Whippy, Wines from Point Bush Estate, Organic beer from The Green Man & musical entertainment from the infamous The vaguely Familiars all combines for another great day out in the Mackenzie.

The project that we are fundraising for is to renovate & upgrade theTekapoPrimary School/ Community Pool complex. This will take a lot of time & energy as well as money. So far the Fete has raised $8500 for this project which is a great achievement. This is a community effort as without the wonderful support of our local businesses and Lions Club this event wouldn’t happen. The school has arranged a free entertainment area for children with a bouncy castle, toys and face painting.

There is something for everyone. Come along and listen to the music, enjoy a glass of wine, nibble at the wonderful array of local food and browse the many stalls, all to support a great cause; our school.  See you there!!

If you are interested to display or sell something at the Fete, your can download the Terms and Conditions  here. If you would like to register, the form can be downloaded here.

 Work has begun on the sundial build . We are creating two fun, engaging, and educational scale models of the Solar System within our community and region. Members of the Sundial committee meet today to break the earth on the first phase of the build.

Day one of the Sundial build in Lake Tekapo

The centerpiece, appropriately, will represent  the Sun.  Located on the township domain, between the Scenic Resort Hotel and the Lake, it will consist of an almost 14 meter diameter rock and tile mosaic circle.  Inside the circle will be a large sundial facing true south.  The gnomon in the sundial, the bit that casts the shadow on the “clock” tiles will be a person, standing in the proper place for the season of the year.

Built around the centerpiece are two scaled versions of the Solar System. Visitors will be able to tell time by the position of the Sun, and while taking a few minutes’ walk in our beautiful surroundings will be able to visit all the planets in a small-scale model of our Sun’s neighborhood in space.

The small-scale Solar System will be entirely visible if you are standing by the 6.6 millimeter diameter pole at the center of the Sundial.  Mercury and Venus will be located inside of the larger-scale Sun, with Earth just on its outer edge.  Neptune will be on the far side of the domain overlooking the Tekapo River, and beside the town-side of the proposed footbridge across the river.  You will be able to walk the entire Solar System and experience its size and the relative distances in just a few minutes.

The large scale Solar System is represented by the circumference of the Sundial. This represents the Sun at a scale of 1 kilometer to 100,000,000 (one hundred million) kilometers. The planets are located throughout the region, Pluto being as far away as the Lake Benmore Dam overlooking Otematata.

 Our Sundial will have a tile mosaic Kea, a parrot native to New Zealand Alps, embedded in it. Inside the Kea will be an analemma. This is the pattern the sun make in our sky as it moves North and  South during the earths seasons.

The analemma will contain tiles indicating where a person must stand to obtain the correct Sun-time during each month of the year.  Here is the design drawing for our Sundial which will be constructed over the next few months.  The analemma can be seen in the center of the kea.

On the night there will be a complementary glass of wine and finger food.

• Your ticket includes:
• A goodie bag with over $40 worth of value
• A fundraising auction of quality-living and fashion items throughout the evening

This is a limited numbers event so please get in quick to avoid missing out.
RSVP: By the 4th November 2011

Tickets are available from and cost $99 per person, remember folks it’s for a good cause….
Peppers Bluewater Resort on Free phone: 0800.680.570 or 03.680.6513
OR
Lyn on 03.680.6537
Email: bruceandlynm@yahoo.co.nz
Postal address:
Lake Tekapo Footbridge Society
P.O. Box 14
Lake Tekapo
7945

Lake Tekapo Footbridge Fashion Event

A Night of Country & Blues Music at
Alpine Spring’s and spa in association with Port FM

The gates will open at 6 pm for a 7 pm start with Eddie Simon and
Blue Train. Aly Cook and The Coalrangers will take the stage at 8.30
pm.
Tickets are $36 and will be available from Event Finder,
Event Finder or Alpine Spring’s and spa

Alpine Springs Lake Tekapo is hosting the inaugural high altitude
music festival UNDER THE BIG SKY at the skating rink on Saturday 3
December, featuring Aly Cook with The Coalrangers.
It was originally scheduled for March but had to be postponed after 22
February 6.3 earthquake.
It will be the first time the $7 million recreation and relaxation
complex of hot pools, day spa, snow-tube park, ice/roller rink and
licensed café will have hosted such an event.

Managing director Karl Burtscher, the driving force behind the award
wining facility, wanted to use the majestic and beautiful surroundings
as a setting for a new type of event for the Mackenzie Basin, and to
create an annual event that will bring more people to Lake Tekapo.
“We have these fantastic skies, considered amongst the clearest in the
hemisphere, and people come from all over the world to experience
the Earth & Sky Show at Mt John, and I believe people will come to
special events here as well,” Mr Burtscher said.

“The 56 metre long rink makes a great performing stage, and we have
seating for 1300 people. We’ve got fir and pine trees behind the rink,
and a view over the turquoise lake to the Two Thumb Range – where
else can people come and listen to great music in such a setting?”
The performers are all popular musicians who cover a wide range of
musical genres. Aly Cook, a Nelson-based singer/songwriter, has sung
at concerts in the UK, Europe, Australia, Norfolk Island and around
New Zealand this year. The Coalrangers have been singing for
decades, and three albums later they remain as popular as ever with
their foot tapping iconic style. Eddie Simon, originally from Canada,
has sung alongside greats such as John Denver and Dolly Parton and
has a repertoire spanning country, R&B, blues and gospel.
“We’ve got outstanding performers who will be playing almost non
stop for nearly four hours. I wanted to get really top performers to set
a standard that will bring people back next year,” Mr Burtscher said.
“There’s already interest in using the concert as a corporate event for
local businesses who can entertain clients in a new way and keep it
local,” Business Development Manager Cathy Hemsworth said.
“It’s a good time of the year to offer an event like this and a new
opportunity for businesses to entertain, and to support a local
initiative.”
“We hope that people from out of the region will come for the weekend
and enjoy the hot pools and day spa as well as the concert. Lake
Tekapo is a great destination with good accommodation and heaps to
do. That’s why we want to encourage people here through events like
this.”

The gates will open at 6 pm for a 7 pm start.
Tickets are $36 and will be available from Event Finder,
Event Finder or Alpine Spring’s and spa

Related article scoop.co.nz

Vested as a soil conservation reserve, the park is covered by coniferous forest allowing for a play and leisure area starkly contrasting the surrounding landscape.

Views across the lake to Mount John and up to the Godley Valley, which leads to the highest section of the Southern Alps, add to the visitors’ experience.

The Park can be accessed by car from Lilybank Road or by foot and bicycle from the Lake Tekapo Township along the lake edge or from Cowans Hill.

The newest of Environment Canterbury’s Regional Parks, the development of park infrastructure has only commenced over the past year. However visitors can experience walking and cycling trails, access to the lakeside for swimming and kayaking and; cross country skiing during the winter months. There are also numerous picnic spots throughout the park.

During the current year the park will be enhanced with new disabled access toilet facilities, upgraded walking and mountain bike trails and improved access to and along the lake edge.

Visit the Enviroment Canterbury Website for more information.

No Work, no traffic, no stress….. no problem! Lake Tekapo Regional Park.