VictoriaMarch 17
Happy St. Patrick’s Day. I’m wearing green pants to mark the occasion. They’re also my only clean pair of pants at this point so, yeah.
The TSS Earnslaw Lake Cruise was highly recommended by locals and many friends who visited Queenstown. We opted for the 9 a.m. cruise to start the day early, which was a good call because it wasn’t crowded.
We cruised down Lake Wakatipu and explored the vessel, a 1912 coal-fired steamship which happens to be the oldest passenger carrying steamship in the Southern Hemisphere.
We sailed past the Remarkables mountain range and Cecil Peak to Walter Peak High Country Farm.
At the farm, Kevin took us around to meet some of the animals.
An Irishman, he was very much looking forward to getting off of work and celebrating the holiday. But for the next hour he was our guide and a very informative one at that, along with his important and valuable sidekick, Mia, a NZ Border Collie.
We started with the lambs, who sometimes get rejected by their mother if they’re born a triplet, because there’s only two teats. Survival of the fittest, little lamb. Walter Peak Farm often takes in unwanted animals, as was the case with two abandoned baby lambs.
The day before sheep are sheared, they are put in a drawing pen which allows their wool to dry. They also don’t get fed for 24 hours beforehand, to minimize the risk of a potty accident during shearing.
Next up were the Highland cows. I got to feed the little baby named Chappy. The horns on the females point upward, the males point straight out.
Kevin took us around to see a few more farm animals so we could feed them as well.
There are 7 dogs at the farm and Mia, a short coat Border Collie, is Kevin’s hardest working mate. These dogs are bred in NZ for their shorter hair to keep them cooler in the summer months as well as during the tens of miles they run everyday. Mia runs on average 60 miles a day and is known as a heading dog, which brings livestock towards the farm. She is smart, fast and didn’t bark once in the time we were there, instead controlling the sheep with a death stare during the herding demonstration. Check out the video below.
There are 600-700 sheep on the farm. The multi-use wool from these sheep is not expensive and is used more for carpets and insulation, fetching only $1.50 or so a pound. The oil from the wool is extracted and sold for lanolin, which is good for your skin. In comparison, Merino sheep are bred for their soft, cozy wool.
After a nice tea break, Kevin showed us how he shears a sheep. He changed into leather moccasins, traditional shearing shoes, which are more comfortable for him and also the sheep. The flat soles prevent back pain and provide a good grip from the slippery lanolin oil.
As you’ll see in the video, he dragged the sheep onto its back from the holding pen and held it between his legs. The sheep appeared relaxed and calm and was soundless. The process didn’t take long using electric shears versus hand held ones they used in the past.
After the shearing, Mia was ready for her big moment. Kevin gave the calls and out she went, rounding up all the sheep in the field and bringing them down to the pen. It was very impressive to watch.
Farmers often buy already trained dogs, starting price $10k. Seems worth it if you get 10 years of work out of the same dog.
After the show, we boarded the ship back to Queenstown.
We strolled around town a bit and then headed back to the motel to rework the trip a bit.
In the afternoon, we visited Kinross Winery for live music and a glass of wine.
Dinner was at Sherwood, a nice restaurant with very good food and a super nice waitress from Canada.
Tomorrow, we head out of Queenstown to Wānaka, our next stop.
