Start – Lake Hawea
Finish – Wanaka
Daily Distance – 25 km
TA Distance – 2619 km
Bluff Distance – 421 km
Today a man looking uncannily like Marlon Brando’s Vito Corleone, made me an offer I couldn’t refuse.
A ride for the last 3km into town, when my feet are hurting from 20km+ on gravel paths, I couldn’t
possibly say no. Also, despite the mumbling speech and mafiosi looks, he was incongruously wearing a
fez. Intrigued? I most certainly was!
It has always been my impression, although this is admittedly an area where I have little prior experience,
that one should wear a fez somewhat proudly and as a bold rejection of conventional style. The spirit of
James Dean, fused with the sartorial elegance of an English comedian, if you will. After a slightly
awkward 10 minutes, in which I may have been inducted into a crime family, or given directions to the
best pizzaria in town (it was hard to tell), I am left with the theory that either I have gone mad and am
hallucinating novelty headwear, or he was totally unaware that there was anything on his head. I can only
imagine his surprise, upon glancing in a mirror later, to discover a tasseled cone perched upon his pate.
Saying something like “Goodness me, how long has that been there? What must people have thought?”.
Anyway, I digress. In short order we arrived in town, and setting me down at the kirb with another
incomprehensible mutter, possibly something about owing a favour, he simply drove away. Just like
that…
Other than this slightly strange episode there is little worth relating from today. The walking was easy,
but rather boring in the way that a sedate walk by oneself often is. Few exceptional views and little to
occupy my mind, so I listened to podcasts for most of the walk. Rest day tomorrow in scenic Wanaka, a
much improved knowledge about the fall of the Roman republic and there isn’t room for a horse’s head in
my one person tent. Not such a bad day overall.
