After lunch in Kaikoura, we had a wander along the beach and over the rocky foreshore. There is a seal colony here, but the seals were heavily outnumbered by tourists. We had considered going for a kayak, or perhaps even a snorkel, but the weather was overcast and windy, so the sea was not very inviting.
Continue reading Kaikoura – Picton
Month: January 2016
Mt Grey
I drove into Christchurch city on Monday morning to catch up with a long-time associate from a father’s support group I am involved with. I was a bit concerned about rush-hour traffic, but by Auckland standards the streets were practically deserted.
Continue reading Mt Grey
Bridal Path to Lyttelton
On our way to Christchurch we stopped at Oxford for a night to visit our friends Jeremey and Noeleen. We spent a very enjoyable afternoon and evening catching up, then walked over the road to the local farmer’s market in the morning.
Continue reading Bridal Path to Lyttelton
Huatekerekere – Little Mt Peel
After a couple of hours spent parked in the main street of Geraldine using the internet and eating lunch, we headed inland along a gravel road to a DOC camp-ground at Orari Gorge.
Continue reading Huatekerekere – Little Mt Peel
Moeraki
In the town of Moeraki, just south of the famous boulders, we found a commercial camp-ground overlooking the wharf. If the weather had been a bit clearer we might have been able to see the boulders as well, but the view was limited by the low cloud.
Continue reading Moeraki
Trotter’s Gorge
It started raining again as we left Central Otago and drove out towards the coast. We parked up for a while in Ranfurly where there was internet available, but we weren’t tempted to stray far from the van.
Continue reading Trotter’s Gorge
Cromwell
All the way across the Haast Pass it continued to pour with rain, so although there were numerous interesting-looking places to explore, we didn’t stop. When we arrived in Hawea, we finally had cell-phone reception and internet again so while we ate lunch at the edge of the lake we caught up on emails and blog updating.
Continue reading Cromwell
Lake Paringa
By the time we re-joined the highway at Fox Glacier we were ready for lunch, so we sat in the hotel carpark eating and doing a bit of work while we had internet available. There is no cellphone coverage south of Fox until you reach Hawea on the other side of the Southern Alps.
Continue reading Lake Paringa
Gillespies Beach
20 kilometres along a winding metal road out of Fox Glacier is Gillespies Beach. When Felicity was a teenager she and a friend rode all the way out and back on bikes, which is very impressive because this would be a big mission for me now. She has wanted to return ever since, so here we are.
Continue reading Gillespies Beach
Franz Joseph
It is only a short trip from Okarito to Franz Joseph, so we arrived in time for lunch, which we ate parked in the main street. We did some shopping while we were there, and visited the information centre to ask about guided walks on the glacier.
Continue reading Franz Joseph
Okarito Lagoon
At the crack of dawn we leaped out of bed, scoffed some breakfast and headed for the boat ramp at Okarito wharf. The sun was just rising over the distant hills, and as we had hoped there was almost no wind.
Continue reading Okarito Lagoon
Lake Mapourika
There was a little bit of rain overnight, but by breakfast time the sun was shining and the sky overhead was mostly blue. We spent the night at a DOC campground at the north end of the lake, and were parked close enough to the boat ramp to be able to unload the kayaks without moving the van.
Continue reading Lake Mapourika
Hari Hari
Heavy rain forecast for Friday made us decide to hang around Hokitika so that we could get some work done using the wifi in their public library. The Motor Caravan Association has a campsite just across the bridge from town, so we found ourselves a spot there.
Continue reading Hari Hari
Lake Mahinapua
Lake Mahinapua is just back from the coast about 10km south of Hokitika. Before there were any roads in this area, there used to be a couple of paddle steamers travelling up the Mahinapua Creek and across the lake transporting gold miners to Ross, the next town south.
Continue reading Lake Mahinapua
Lake Kaniere
Just south of Greymouth is the town of Kumara where the famous Coast To Coast multi-sport race starts. Joy suggested that we head out to the start line and walk along the beach to the mouth of the Serpentine River.
Continue reading Lake Kaniere
Fox River Caves
Bullock Creek didn’t flood and wash us away during the night, so we woke to another fine day in paradise. After breakfast we drove back down to the highway, then even further north to the carpark at the mouth of Fox River, where the Inland Pack Track begins.
Continue reading Fox River Caves
Punakaiki
The rain arrived on Saturday morning as advertised, so we decided to drive to Greymouth and visit our friend Joy. Two days parked in the hot sun with almost no driving meant that our house battery had gone flat and the fridge defrosted, another good reason for running the motor for a while.
Continue reading Punakaiki
Charleston
At 8.30 am on the first of January we turned up at the base of Underworld Adventures Ltd to join their morning cave rafting tour. This takes place through part of the Nile River Cave system in Paparoa National Park.
Continue reading Charleston
Constant Bay
Just south of Westport is Charleston, which used to be bustling town with a population of 30,000 people. It was also once the demographic centre of New Zealand, ie: 50% of the countries population lived south of it. Nowadays there are less than 300 permanent residents, and the demographic centre is probably somewhere near Hamilton.
Continue reading Constant Bay