New Zealand: Lake Matheson & the southern Alps at sunset
Rewards go to the patient, especially those on daytime walks through the temperate rainforest to the Franz Josef Glacier and the Fox Glacier.
After all, this area is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
After my visit to Fox Glacier earlier in the day, I arranged for a short 10-minute shuttle from Fox Glacier town to Lake Matheson (Te Ara Kairaumati) before sunset. Even in winter’s low-season, I was surprised by how few people were around to enjoy the view.
The sequence of photos below span a period of just over one hour in time. Appearing in most of the photos are the two grand snow-frosted peaks: Mount Tasman (Horokoau) on the left and Aoraki (Mount Cook) on the right.
I asked the question if one could really “hear” a sunset. I tried to find an answer in this post.
In the map below, I’ve marked Lake Matheson and walks to Fox Glacier and Franz Josef Glacier. The red line traces the approximate path of the flying tour with The Grand Traverse over the Southern Alps.
Zooming out on the map below, the lowlands are separated from the Southern Alps by a “diagonal line” which is the active Alpine Fault line with the Australian tectonic plate to the northwest and the Pacific tectonic plate to the southeast. The Alpine Fault runs about 600 kilometres along the centre of the South Island between Marlborough and Milford Sound.
Sunset at Lake Matheson
Horokoau and Aoraki, from Lake Matheson
Dusk, 1 of 3
Dusk, 2 of 3
Dusk, 3 of 3
Last light, 1800h local time
I made the photos above on 22 July 2012. This post appears on Fotoeins Fotografie at fotoeins.com as https://wp.me/p1BIdT-2Id.
Fotoeins Fotografie 
12 Responses to “New Zealand: Lake Matheson & the southern Alps at sunset”
[…] The slow forest walk to Fox Glacier : red and cyan pins in the map above • Lake Matheson and the southern Alps at sunset : yellow pin in the map […]
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[…] • The slow approach to Franz Josef Glacier • Lake Matheson and the southern Alps at sunset • The Grand Traverse over New Zealand’s Southern […]
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[…] • The slow approach to Franz Josef Glacier • The slow forest walk to Fox Glacier • The Grand Traverse over the Southern Alps • Lake Matheson and the southern Alps at sunset […]
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[…] • The Grand Traverse over New Zealand’s Southern Alps • Sounds of a sunset on New Zealand’s South Island • Lake Matheson and the southern Alps at sunset […]
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[…] The quiet still moments when you’re aware there’s little to no sound; birds and animals seem to know how to observe the end of the day. It’s the last light of the day, as the final set of photons stream 150 million kilometres to their destination. Those packets of light finally reach New Zealand. They bounce off the two tallest peaks in the country. Above are Mount Tasman (Horokoau) and Mount Cook (Aoraki) at left and right, respectively, in the southern Alps. A full photo-gallery appears here. […]
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[…] Southern Alps: Flying over the South Island’s Southern Alps • Southern Alps: The Southern Alps at sunset, from Lake Matheson • Train: Coastal Pacific train, from Picton to Christchurch • Train: […]
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[…] Lake Matheson, 🇳🇿 during my year-long RTW: Mount Tasman and Mount Cook, in final light (photo: 22 July 2012). […]
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[…] A tranquil Lake Matheson, 40 minutes before sunset […]
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[…] Picturesque afternoon on Aotearoa’s South Island – 22 July 2012 (HL) […]
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[…] An hour before sunset: Lake Matheson (Te Ara Kairaumati), New Zealand – 22 Jul 2012 (450D). […]
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[…] 40 minutes before sunset (HL). […]
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[…] the Fox Glacier, I arranged for an afternoon shuttle-bus ride from the township to (and back from) Lake Matheson (Te Ara Kairaumati). The walk around the lake is not physically demanding, and at the northwest end of the lake is the […]
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