The unseasonal dumping of spring snow has caught many across the South Island off guard, but has also left a wintry picturesque landscape for many to enjoy.
Heavy snow hasn't stopped falling in Tekapo on Wednesday morning. The cold blast hit the small South Island township, but for some workers, that didn't mean they got a day off.
Photography student Jessie Williams was one of the first people on the Crown Range and claims up to 15cm fell overnight.
"It was pretty spectacular, just seeing the sheer amount of how much snow had packed up," she says.
"Coming through the Crown Pass this morning, before I got here, I had to move a couple of trees out of the way.
"I had seen black ice before, so I was just being very wary and taking my time up here, but it was amazing."
Some farmers have also been caught out by the unexpected snow, but Queenstown farmer Graham Sin says his stock are fine and there are "no problems".
"It's unusual, but you've got to be prepared for it," he says
"It just happens - maybe once every five years, we get snow at this time of the year.
"Strangely enough, we hardly had any snow this winter. This is probably as much snow as we've had at any stage of winter."
MetService has lifted many warnings from overnight, however strong-wind warnings are still in place for parts of Canterbury and Christchurch, where gusts could reach up to 120km/h on Wednesday morning.
Newshub.
