Are you looking forward to a new start in the new year? I think we’re all hoping for better times.
2021 is just around the corner, and I’ve got a very limited supply of calendars! These calendars are 8.5×11, and are filled with sketches from my trip to New Zealand and some of my favorite quotes! All pages are sturdy cardstock, with white wire binding and a hole for hanging. 
Sample page
Sample page
These calendars are $16 each. Order soon, as supplies are limited!
This post is about day 14, as we drive to Twizel, Lindis Pass And Mount Cook. Day 13 did not have many on site sketches, so art from my photos can be posted later, if they get completed!
Sketches from this day are all about Mount Cook. Enjoy!
Mount Cook with Lake Pukaki in the foreground.
Mount Cook with Lake Pukaki in the foreground
Mount Cook
Day 12 was a 4+ hour drive going north to Wanaka, in the Otago region on South Island. Along the way, we stopped at Lake Hayes to sketch. The Māori name is Wai-whaka-ata which translates to “water that reflects”.
Lake Hayes
A dizzying series of switchbacks on Crown Range Road brought us to a pull off where we sketched a fantastic view. Quick pencil sketches were all I could manage while I recovered from that ride! 
A fun stop in Cardrona, a popular ski town, where Cathy donated to a fence of bras! “Bra-drona” hopes that you will make a donation to the NZ Cancer Society.
Bra-drona in Cardrona
A famous tourist attraction in Wanaka is #thatwanakatree, growing in the lake.
#thatwanakatree
Nearby, there were several huge Douglas fir trees needing to be sketched. Only took time for one, and as I sketched, I wondered how old these are.
Douglas fir
Day 11 – we retrace some of yesterday’s travels. First order of each day is usually getting lunch and snack food! Miles Better Pies has a cute statue out front.
Miles Better Pies in Te Anau
Stopped along the way to practice clouds, these are the reason for calling New Zealand “Land of the Long Cloud”. 
We returned to Mirror Lake, in Fiordland Nat’l. Park, where I may have been the only one in our group who didn’t sketch the calm clear waters.
View at Mirror Lake
Mirror Lake – I wonder how it got the name? 😉
Here we sat and painted in an ancient beech forest next to Gunn Lake. We saw faces in the trees, while parrots and keas sang above and a New Zealand robin visited us. He tried to join me by sitting on my water container, which he tipped over.
ancient beech forest.
Faces in the ancient trees
A slight interruption in our travels while we waited for them to cross the road –
Slight traffic jam
Last stop of the day was in Eglinton River valley with broad horizons to paint.
Eglinton River Valley
Day 10 – We head to Milford Sound in Fiordland National Park for a boat ride through the fiord with breathtaking scenery. Luck and sunshine was with us (it’s in a rain forest with annual rainfall of 22 feet) as we first stopped at Mirror Lake on the way, before meeting up with a convoy.
Sections of the only road to Milford Sound were one lane following cyclone damage a few weeks earlier. There was terrible flooding and several hundred people trapped up there. So only buses and 12+ passenger vehicles were allowed in the convoy. We were one of the first vehicles in line, so we had a bit of a wait until the line was complete and we could start up.
I could have spent several days here, in this place called the pot of gold at the end of the road. My sketches don’t do it justice, but you may be able to infer by the quantity, just how much I was enchanted with this place.
Milford Sound employee.
Milford Sound sketches 1.
Milford Sound sketches 2.
Milford Sound sketches 3
Day 9, we left Queenstown and wandered the shores of Lake Wakatipu along the Devil’s Staircase as we travel to Te Anau.
pencil sketches during the ride
North of Kingston on Lake Wakatipu
Sketch at the Oreti River
New Zealand travel on Day 9 – from Queenstown along the Devil’s Staircase
On day 8, we visited Arrowtown, a preserved gold mining settlement. Lots of quaint shops with things to see and buy!
Arrowtown hat display
In the mid 1800s, Chinese workers were invited to work in the Arrowtown mines. Their homes were very simple huts they built near the river.
Many of the Chinese miners huts have been reconstructed
In the afternoon, we went to the Kiwi Birdlife Park, where we sketched kiwis and saw other birdlife. The kiwi show had red lighting, which is the only way to view these birds.
Sketching kiwis in the dark.
After the park, there was a mountain range, the Remarkables, in view to sketch.
View of the Remarkables
I really liked the Platinum villas we stayed at, with amazing views from our balconies.
View from Platinum villa in Queenstown, the Remarkables again
On day 7, we drove back to Auckland and caught a flight to Queenstown on the south island. I’m sure I’ll be doing a few sketches from my photos, but didn’t have much time on this busy travel day. Here’s my first view of the South Island.
Landing in Queenstown
And here is a rather quick sketch of nearby mountains at the airport while waiting for our ride. 
On to day 6, we leave Rotorua and head toward Tongariro National Park and Mordor, a land of remarkable scenes used in filming Lord of the Rings. Here’s a map with our stops. 
First stop was Tokaanu Bay on Lake Taupo, to see the black swans. 
We stopped to enjoy our lunch at an old hydro plant at Beggs Pool, on the Tongariro River. The Tongariro is a famous spot to fish for rainbow trout. Very lucky to have Phil, our guide, spot a rare blue duck.
Beggs Pool falls
Our final sketch spot was with views of Mountains Ruapehu, Ngauruhoe and Tongariro. Mount Ruapehu is an active stratovolcano.
Mount Ruapehu sketched on site
Mount Ruapehu done at home