Invercargill

Invercargill
November 18, 2008


Traveled a very short distance today, we took our time finishing up the Catlins region. We like this coastal area with the rugged beaches. We took one hike to a couple of waterfalls. The falls weren’t memorable, but the walk through an ancient rimu rainforest was.

We had a pleasant lunch in Papatowai and stopped at the Lazy Gypsy, a crazy little shop where the owner makes all kinds of little automata. Not sure if that’s the right word, but he makes little things that move and do strange things when you push a button or turn a crank. I especially liked the “gurgling shells.” You turned a tiny crank and water flowed back and forth from a spiral shell to an abalone shell making a soothing “gurgling” noise. Guess you had to be there for that one.

Invercargill (about 50,000 pop.) is where we are tonight. We washed clothes, and just hung out in the caravan park in the late afternoon. Tomorrow we are going to Stewart Island. The weather is “iffy” for that one, but it is our only chance (and a remote one at that) to see a kiwi. Not going there just for that though, it’s supposed to be a neat place.

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