North and South

The next stage of our expedition took us south. Unfortunately the weather on the North Island waged a bit of a war against us and foiled some of our ideas for activities. First there was Ian’s desire to do a sky dive at Taupo, when, on a good day, you can see both coasts of the island. From there we had thought about doing the Tongariro Crossing, which is a full day hike across high plains. Unfortunately the unseasonable weather meant fresh snow had been falling, with 10cms overnight just before we travelled that way.

We then tried to do a mountain bike trail called Fishers Track, which is a good beginners trail with a short incline where, upon reaching the top you get great views of the three mountains in the area – Tongariro, Ruapehu and Ngauruhoe – and then it’s 17kms downhill all the way. As the day had started out pretty rough, we were advised that it wouldn’t be good. So we decided to go to the local thermal pools for a relax. We were extremely pleased to get a private pool for $9 each (that’s about ₤4!) for 20 minutes, and then access to the public pool was included. We soon realised why it was so cheap though, as it was like going to a bad public swimming baths! But the waters were warm and soothing, so we didn’t care!

After we’d had our fill of soaking in warm water, we carried on our southward journey. At this stage the weather was turning into a lovely afternoon, affording us fantastic views of the three mountains anyway on the drive round. We arrived in our port for the night – Ohakune – in the early afternoon and had some lunch. This town is the main access point to the biggest ski area in the North Island, Turoa ski field, so we thought we’d take a nosy to see what it was like, especially with the fresh snow. The access road is worse than the one at Killington! It’s about 15kms long and very windy. The ski lifts were actually shut for the day, and the season-closing ski race postponed, due to extremely high winds up there. Although some people were up there on sledges and snowboards doing little runs.

The following morning was our longest drive as we headed down to Wellington, so we had an early night, which wasn’t hard considering the fresh mountain air and a long, warm soak earlier in the day! And so we were up at 5.30 to commence the 4-hour trip to the country’s capital city. We did this because we wanted to get an afternoon to have a look around “Welly” on the way through.

We headed straight for the Te Papa Museum which is the New Zealand National Museum. There is a special exhibit in there at the moment which covers the history of Formula 1 racing and includes a number of history-making cars – some of which appeared to be on loan from Donington Motor Museum – how ironic is that?! We finished off our visit with a ride on a simulator, which was a pretty violent way to end it!

We then headed off to find some lunch, choosing a location Ian had read about in the guide books. It turned out to be a really hippy/bohemian area, but we found one of the recommended cafés and felt rather over-dressed, but well-fed at least. Then it was off to the Mount Victoria lookout to get a great view over the city and the airport (for Ian’s enjoyment!). The Mount was also the filming location for some of the Lord of the Rings trilogy, which is quite remarkable when you see how built up the area is. But then there was so much CGI used in the films, apparently most of the filming sites are unrecognisable.

After trying to get some of our niggles fixed on our campervan, we decided to kill a bit of time with some ten pin bowling, where we also enjoyed a local beer (although brewed on the South Island). We were rather taken with our choice of tipple, so we’ve now added a stop at the Monteith’s Brewery in Greymouth to our itinerary for the South.

We then camped up for the night, ready for the early Interislander ferry to the South Island on Monday morning. Due to his propensity for sea sickness, Ian spent the entire 3-hour journey getting the cobwebs blown away on the VERY blusty top deck. However, when we reached the other side, we were both positioned on either side of the boat with cameras at the ready.

The ferry that connects New Zealand’s two islands slowly chugs into port on the Southern side through a labyrinth of bays and inlets called the Marlborough Sounds. And it is truly impressive. The water is aquamarine in colour and much of the land is untouched, giving it a unique rugged beauty. It travels slowly through these narrow waterways before dropping everyone off at the port of Picton.

We decided to base ourselves here for a couple of nights to enable us to explore the Sounds further. That afternoon we went in search of a good way to see the area, and opted for a day tour kayaking and mountain biking on the Tuesday. We were up bright and breezy again to get into our boats (sea kayaks) for a 3 hour cruise around the Queen Charlotte Sound. The water is so clear and that is what creates the bright blue hue.

After a gentle paddle around a couple of bays and across the sound, we bumped into a couple of local seals. One of them decided to follow us and he frolicked and played alongside us, affording us plenty of photo opportunities.

The tour then took us further towards the tip of the Sound to Anikiwa, where we ditched the kayaks and picked up our mountain bikes to ride the earliest stage of the Queen Charlotte Track. Now this is billed as suitable for most beginners to tackle, but, as we found out later, is actually a Grade 3 Intermediate stage. And it’s not hard to see why. After an undulating start, which lulls you into a false sense of security, there is a long, climb upwards, which is also very steep in places. Rounding each corner we were hoping to reach the apex, only to be defeated by another incline.

Eventually though, we got to the top, to be rewarded with some amazing views of the surrounding bays and inlets. And then it was time for the fun part of the downhill. The track was actually pretty narrow, so Annalie took it fairly easy for fear of dropping off the steep hillside! This bit was far too short, and over far too quickly, considering the pain we’d gone through to get up there! And then it was all over and we were at our stopping point in Mistletoe Bay, in plenty of time for our water taxi back to Picton. After our exhausting day, we thought it would be wise to book some time in the Jacuzzi spa bath at the campsite – and it was very much welcomed!

Picton and the Marlborough Sounds have truly amazed us with their colour and beauty, and we could easily spend days exploring them further. So who knows, maybe we’ll have to schedule a return visit? ;o)

Upon leaving Picton we decided to stop off in the Blenheim region which is one of the most prolific wine-producing areas in New Zealand, renowned for its Sauvignon Blanc. We asked at the campsite reception if they had a recommendation for a winery to visit and we duly headed for their suggestion – Saint Clair’s. The welcome was warm and the Sauvignon Blanc (or Savvy as the Kiwis call it!) was very good. The tasting fee was a measly $2 (less then ₤1) but this was waived if you bought any wine. So Annalie bought a bottle of Savvy, just for the hell of it!

Then it was back onto State Highway 1 for the trip to Kaikoura. The State Highways are the New Zealand equivalent to motorways, and we’ve honestly seen bigger, wider B Roads than these in some places! Having said that, with some of the scenery being as spectacular as it is, you don’t want to be travelling too fast! And this leg of the journey was no more disappointing. We ultimately ended up driving along the coast with an immense and awesome backdrop of the mountains. The word “wow” was probably over-used several times during this trip.

To give us chance to soak in some of the scenery, we’d been advised to stop for lunch at a place called The Store, which was about 50kms North of Kaikoura, and it was worth the stop. A lovely vista out over the ocean and some fabulous homemade food was enough to keep us off the road for an hour! We even indulged in what was possibly the best-looking carrot cake ever! Although we did share ;o) The remaining journey to Kaikoura was broken up with stops to view the New Zealand Fur Seal colonies, resting their weary flippers on the rocks and beaches neighbouring the highway.

And now here we sit in Kaikoura, at a campsite less than 100 yards from the Pacific Ocean, yet looking out over some amazing snow-capped mountains as our backdrop. This has to be some of the most stunning scenery that can be found anywhere in the world. But that is our opinion based on what we’ve seen so far. Our bet is that the best is yet to come…