EE & S Adventures

Beauty really does not benefit from being shrouded - or missed altogether. Overnight I awoke a number of times to hear heavy rain on the cabin roof. While it made things feel cozy for sleeping, we soon learned it also made things too rough for our planned caving adventure. So instead of riding rubber tubes through caves with glow worms we remained dry and warm and set out for Frans Josef.  Our early morning drive along the west coast had all the hallmarks of being spectacular. For example, the road closely hugged the shoreline, bordered on one side by lushly wooded cliffs and on the other by the wild foamy sea: craggy, jagged rocks poking out between the waves. And yet we could only partly see glimpses of it due to the shrouding of fog. Our first stop was Punakaiki or pancake rocks which also boasts a blow hole. Being there so early meant we had it all to ourselves. A short walk on a very well-manicured track set up for wheelchairs brought us close to the amazing rock formations....

 This was very much a taking it easy travel day.  We left about 9.30 and headed back towards Richmond and Nelson.  We started the morning with a bit of shopping for glass and pottery.  Then we headed south just as the drizzle started, tragically missing a visit to Wendleton Guinea Pig Village. We had planned a walk in Nelson Lakes National Park, but with the drizzle getting heavier, a change of plans was in order.  We skipped the lakes and landed in Murcheson for a nice casual cafe lunch.  Samuel ordered another burger - as usual in New Zealand it was enormous. Post lunch the clouds got darker as we checked out Buller Gorge.  The Jetboat wasn't running and we baulked at paying $10 each for a walk across the swing bridge .  Moving on down the Buller River and Gorge we stopped for one or two photos before the skies finally opened. With the rain now pelting down, we pushed on to our accommodation just outside Westport and, post check in, spent a bori...

 This was going to be one of the "signature" experiences of the trip.  A day walk in the famous Abel Tasman National Park.  Alas Elise awoke with a migrane.  And if mum wasn't going then Samuel wasn't going to do 23km with just dad for company.  So in the end it was just Eric driving north from Motueka in the early morning. The prize after an 80km drive was a circle hike at the northern end of the park along the Gibbs Hill Track, and then the last 15km of the famous Abel Tasman Coast Track, reputedly one of the best sections of one of New Zealands best Great Walks. Another advantage of travelling to the north end of the park was people (or lack of).  While the southern sections of the 60km track get the majority of day trippers, very few go to the extra effort of getting to the top of the park. Without family to look after, this became a part run, part walk, with 15-25 minutes of jogging the easy bits, separated by walking the tougher ones.  By sensibl...

 After a rude awakening caused by Elise’s automatic work alarm, we arose a little late this morning. I am also still adapting to the New Zealand change to daylight saving along with the change from Australian to New Zealand time. Today was a travel day as we pressed northward to Motueka. On the way we planned a few stops but we were stymied by the public holiday in respect of the Queen. What was open though were some walks in native bush near Pelorus Bridge. We agreed on a two waterfalls walk. It was lovely to hike through the thick virgin bush. Apparently the bush is a remnant of original bush which was not cut down after white people came to live here.  After our little hike we drove on to Nelson. The town seems lovely but was mostly closed with only tourists wandering the footpaths between outdoor stores. We found some walking gear for Samuel. Seems he has grown out of anything except school clothes.  Lunch was a highlight. We ordered burgers from a seemingly common fi...

Today started with another sleep in and some confusion over the start of daylight saving in New Zealand.  When we did finally get going, it was a spectacularly shambolic start.  First stop was the Blenheim Sunday market.  An absence of stalls taking cards meant our short stay was followed by a trip to the ATM.  Cashed up, our first winery was... closed.  As was our second.  A stop at a crowded "food festival", actually turned out to be a mini duathlon.  Finally we made our way to Cloudy Bay winery.  Open.  Hurrah. Cloudy Bay was a great location.  We sat down to taste in a nice outside courtyard.  Sam enjoyed sniffing each glass, obviously it didn't spoil the taste of his ice cream.   Next stop was the chocolate factory, and then a gallery.  Our next tasting choice was booked out for some function or other.  No loss because Allan Scott winery proved to have some nice whites in a funny, unromantic but practical wi...

Eric enjoyed an early morning run on the black beach and the coastal path while Elise and Sam slept in.  Alas they and the camera missed a beautiful morning over the Kaikoura Range.  By the time the family (with cameras) left the hotel at 9.30, low cloud cover had rolled in. Todays daytime activity was whale watching.  Kaikoura has a deep ocean trench just off the coast which is a rich feeding ground for marine life including sperm whales.  On the way out we saw a few small dolphins before the skilled crew tracked down a 15m whale resting between dives.  We had a few minutes of watching before the whale dived and then another chance to spectate for 10 minutes once he came up from the depths about 30min later. There was a bit of chop and unfortunately Sam was seasick, along with a couple of other folk.   Back on shore we had a (very) light lunch, then hit the road to Blenheim.  The cloud was still hanging around obscuring the ranges so Elise and Sa...