Abel Tasman & Barrytown

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Picked up by our Stray Bus in Nelson - the drivers name is Baggins. We arrived at our hostel in Marahau, Old Macdonalds Farm. Its a working farm and we get a nice little room with cockerals, ducks and a peacock ! Tonight was a Stray BBQ for NZ$7 - dead cheap. We got a log fire going in a brazier to keep us warm and spent all night drinking and looking at the flames 😊

We chose to view Abel Tasman via a sailing boat as Bill still cannot walk too far. So its off on a sunny, but cold, day in a small catermaran traveling up the coast looking at islands and the park coast, great scenary and storm clouds over the mountains. We stopped at Anchorage for lunch on the beach and walking up to look at caves. Full sail up on the way back, only stopping to look at a seal colony - they were out to lunch - and a nice rock called Split Apple Rock - look at the photo to see why. When we got back to our room we found a chicken had laid an egg on our porch !

The next day it is an early start for a long drive down the West Coast. On the way we stopped at Westport to look at the seal colony at Foul Wind Bay and then on a bit further to look at Pancake Rocks - by this time the rain was coming down in buckets but it was still great scenary and very impressive 😊

Back on the bus to our destination for tonight - Barrytown - population 40 ! Staying at the All Nations Hotel - well anyone stays here. We get the only double room in the place - a wooden shed 😞, with outside loo and cold showers. The whole hotel was out of the 50s and it was still bloody raining - quite miserable. Still we went to the bar for what turned out to be a lively night. The dressing up box came out and everyone got stuck in - Bill was a baby & Sue a workman. The music on the jukebox was great and Bill settled in to drink the Bas Vegas ale - the local brew and very tasty.

Next morning was a late start so we gave up on the option of bone carving and decided to walk - still raining stair rods and couldn't find the start of the Croesus Trail so decided to go to the beach to hunt for greenstone - predictable we didn't find any. Back at the 'hotel' only for Baggins to point out the start of the trail right opposite! So we made a token walk for a few hundred yards - and it finally stopped raining 😊

Not sorry to leave Barrytown !

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Comments

[Jo]

I want to see a photo of you dressed up as a baby!

[gary]

Hi Bill, Looks like you are both having a fantastic time in NZ - not a sheep in sight!. Optioneer update --- v 1.5 released but still no sales!