Get Sleepy: Sleep meditation and stories - The Stars of Tekapo (Encore)
Episode Date: August 7, 2026Writer & Narrator: Thomas Jones 🇬🇧 Sound effects: crickets 🌌 Welcome back, sleepyheads. Tonight's episode was first heard on Get Sleepy in 2019, just a few weeks after the show laun...ched. Based on Tom's trip to New Zealand in 2018, it focuses on a night spent by Lake Tekapo, when the skies were clear, the stars were bright, and the Milky Way was subtly visible. 😴 Get Sleepy Premium Listen completely ad-free and access our entire catalogue of stories and meditations by subscribing to our premium feed. Your support means the world to us and makes it possible to keep the show running! ❤️ Get your 7-day free trial: getsleepy.com/support. Connect Stay up to date on all our news and even vote on upcoming episodes! Website: slumberstudios.com/getsleepy/ Facebook: facebook.com/getsleepypod/ Instagram: instagram.com/getsleepypod/ Our Apps Redeem exclusive unlimited access to Premium content for 1 month FREE in our mobile apps built by the Get Sleepy and Slumber Studios team: Deep Sleep Sounds: deepsleepsounds.com/getsleepy/ Slumber: slumber.fm/getsleepy/ FAQs Have a query for us or need help with something? You might find your answer here: Get Sleepy FAQs About Get Sleepy Get Sleepy is the #1 storytelling podcast designed to help you get a great night’s rest. By combining sleep meditations with a relaxing bedtime story, each episode will guide you gently towards sleep. Thank you so much for listening! Feedback? Let us know your thoughts! slumberstudios.com/contact-us/. Get Sleepy is a production of Slumber Studios. Check out our podcasts, apps, and more at slumberstudios.com. That’s all for now. Sweet dreams ❤️ 😴 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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Welcome to Get Sleepy, where we listen, we relax, and we get sleepy.
My name's Thomas. Thank you so much for being here. I'm really excited to return to tonight's story.
It was the sixth ever episode of Get Sleepy and one of the first stories I wrote for the show.
In 2018, I had an amazing.
five-week trip to the beautiful country of New Zealand. It was such an enriching time,
and this story is based on the memory of a night staying in Tecapo. When the skies were clear,
the stars were bright, and the Milky Way was just subtly visible. The first and only time
I've been able to see it with my own eyes in my life so far. So,
Rest your head on your pillow.
Stretch your limbs and muscles if you need to let go of any achiness or tension
and take a nice full breath in.
Then release it slowly, closing your eyes if you're yet to do so.
And as you listen to my voice,
use your imagination to visualize what I'm describing.
As we travel to one of the most,
most beautiful areas in all of New Zealand.
This is where our story begins.
Situated at the heart of New Zealand's South Island.
Lake Tecapo is one of the most breathtaking areas of natural beauty on the entire planet.
With clear and vibrant blue waters, the vast lake is itself a glistening pool of paradise.
but better yet, the lake is surrounded by fiercely varied landscapes.
Snow-top mountains, green forested hills, expansive farmland, and the occasional village or small town.
Located on the south-eastern corner of the lake is the town of Tecapo.
It offers locals and visitors some incredibly scenic views across the water.
On land, there are a number of fancients.
Fantastic attractions also.
These include a quaint and petite Catholic Church, which attracts a plethora of tourists, but maintains
a sense of peace and calm within.
As you sit inside this peaceful church, a crucifix stands tall with a serene backdrop of
the lake and mountain.
Nearby, you can stroll across an impressive modern footbridge that stretches
over the dam, offering some excellent photo opportunities. And then, perhaps most famous of all,
Tecapo is inundated with elegant scatterings of wild Lupin flowers, providing some bright
and joyful colour for photographers and painters who might visit the area. The beauty found here
in the daylight hours is truly astonishing. However, once the sun goes down,
and the night draws in, the spectacle above the earth's atmosphere is even more staggering.
And that is where we'll be taking our imaginations tonight.
The University of Canterbury's Mount John Observatory is located just a couple of miles north
of Tecobo.
This is New Zealand's premier astronomical research centre.
It's built atop Mount John, over 1,000 meters.
meters high and the observatory is perfectly set for great views of the Milky Way and beyond.
The center is home to several large telescopes, including its newest and perhaps finest apparatus
that measures an impressive 1.8 meters in length.
This was funded by the Japanese for a collaborative project with the New Zealand Astronomy
Wing.
For years, astronomers have studied the scene above from Mount John.
In that time, some notable discoveries have been made.
Possibly the site's greatest finding came back in 2008.
Astronomers discovered what was, at the time, the smallest planet ever found outside of
our solar system.
At just over three times the size of Earth, the planet was estimated to be three thousand.
3,000 light years from our location.
An impressive find indeed.
As well as research use,
the observatory regularly opens its doors for night tours.
These are small group tours,
exclusively run by a local tourist operator.
Visitors are invited to stargaze
from the idyllic spot,
surrounded by dark.
There is even a telescope,
purpose built for the tour guests to try.
A guided tour is undoubtedly a great educational experience,
a rare opportunity to get a magnified gaze at the star.
However, you may want to save your money as self-discovery is well within the realms of possibility around here.
From the low-lit resort town of Lake Tecapo,
numerous walking paths offer visitors the chance to escape light pollution,
and be at one with the night sky.
On a clear night in the town,
the stars are already more visible
than most of us would be used to.
The brightest of them
break through the gentle haze
created by the dim street lamp.
But a clear night
is the best time to follow
one of the footpaths away from civilization.
Therefore, with a torch at hand,
you wander out into the night.
As your feet carry you along,
The tarmac roads turn into gravel pathways.
And before long, these turn into dusty, dry mud track.
The path leaves you on a steady climb through the forestry aside the lake.
The gigantic trees encompass you in darkness, blocking any view of the sky for a little while.
Of course, if you're easily spooked, then it's always a comfort to share this walk with a companion.
This way, you can also help one another to spot the various star formations above.
After just 15 to 20 minutes of walking, the light from the town is almost out of sight.
The forestry begins to clear, and the path continues upwards on a comfortable gradient.
It isn't long before the final dregs of electric powered light disappear.
And the full-fledged view of the cosmos,
glistens above, make a deep breath in, and begin to absorb and process the spectacle as your eyes
continue to adjust. The stars grow more and more vivid, doesn't take an expert to help one realize
the enormity of the universe on display. Truly comprehending the vastness of our outer space
is surely beyond even the most adept of physicists.
Hundreds of thousands, perhaps millions of twinkling speckles of light,
show themselves to the naked eye.
Whatever your beliefs, you sense that this awe-inspiring display
was every bit intended by divine creation.
The moon tonight is only a quarter visible
So the interference of light is minimal.
In this region, there are even restrictions to prevent aircraft from flying above at night.
And this means it's highly improbable that you or astronomers will ever confuse an airplane
are something much further away.
Even vehicles travelling up the surrounding mountains are not supposed to use headlights,
as this can be detrimental to the observatory's work.
This helps to contribute to making this a perfect time.
Stand and admire what is above.
The trained eye will no doubt spot a number of constellations within minutes.
The most prominent in this part of the world is the Southern Cross.
A small collection of nearby stars that tend to shine brighter than most.
Over to the east, one might revel at the site of Canis Major, commonly known as the greater dog.
Beyond that, the epic site of Orion's belt.
Consisting of three of the brightest stars in the sky, these are named Al-Natak, Al-Nalam, and Mintaka,
all derived from the Arabic language on the opposite side of the sky.
you may be able to group together the constellations of Libra, Scorpius and Virgo.
Whatever your level of knowledge, the eternal array of light will awaken your inner spirit.
Just can't help but look up and feel inspired.
As well as stars, it's not uncommon to see a number of planets from our solar system.
With the naked eye, these may just look like bright stars.
However, with a telescope, you may manage to inspect the dusty, reddish surface of Mars,
the gassy atmosphere surrounding Venus, and even the titanic surface of Jupiter.
You might ponder just what these distant worlds truly hold within,
something our race has been researching for many generations.
And who knows if our very own soul is,
system is or once was home to alien life form. And how long will it be before we get proof?
As you continue to hold your gaze at the sky, you may be lucky enough to witness a shooting star.
This is a magical moment, romanticised through the ages. It can be as quick as the blink of an eye,
so spotting one feels like a real gift.
Contrary to their name, shooting stars are in fact small meteors as they enter Earth's atmosphere.
They swiftly burn up and dissolve into nothingness.
However, their appearance looks like a bright star, wishing through the air, giving them their familiar name.
If you've ever been a fortunate witness to this phenomenon, you will know the feeling of excitement and blessing that it brings.
Maybe the most amazing sight of all from the shores of Lake Tecobo.
It's something less obvious.
After a while, you'll begin to see a very light, cloudy patch
stretching across much of the sky on a perfectly clear night, as I am describing.
There's no chance that this lies within Earth's atmosphere.
In fact, what you are witnessing,
It's very distant indeed.
It is the vast and astounding sight of our milky way.
See which houses our solar system.
It's so heavily populated by distant suns
that it appears like a hazy band of light to the naked eye.
It's estimated that our galaxy alone is made up of hundreds of billions of stars.
Watching on from our southern hemisphere,
You feel like no more than a tiny speck in the grandeur of the eternity beyond you.
You may perceive themselves as being rather insignificant at such a moment,
but we are all just as much a piece of the complex universe as anything else in existence.
The questions and considerations provoked by such a sight should surely be treasured.
The stars are forever regarded as.
an inspiration, a goal to aim for, and when you take a moment to see them in all their glory,
I clear why, as you lay in bed, listening to my voice, why not picture that sight?
There isn't much, as calming as laying back on a bed of soft grass,
breathing in the fresh air and absorbing the pure spectacalions of possibility.