Marlborough Sounds

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The true sounds of New Zealand - the guide on Milford Sound had suggested this as a must see and I can see why! Even through the drizzle, the beaches, coves and secluded bays looked stunnning. Turquoise waters lapped truly golden sands and I reckon it rivalled the Greek Islands (Kim, Simon, David, Dad - maybe the next sailing hol - oh no I remember - that was supposed to be the Whitsundays!) We didn't get the opportunity to take a boat out and around but did (through some pretty good navigating Jen!) find a little road that took us out along a peninsula and into the Sounds themselves. The road was a little windy (as in wiggly!)and we didn't quite make it to the end but we saw enough to convince us to come back again!!!

Picton was our destination for dinner and being St Paddys we were hoping for a fun packed evening! Arrival at 7 meant that the pub was well and truly packed by positively plastered individuals and, completely sober, it didn't appeal much! Instead we opted for Scottish pub grub and headed out into the hills to camp and play with the beads! 5 Necklaces and a nights sleep on we awoke to find a sign proclaiming a $100 dollar fine for overnight campers!!! They could have lit it up! So that maybe waiting for us at the end! Once again, it was raining so the wine tour in Blenhiem looked unlikely - instead we opted to head to Kaikoura for a spot of yomping and whalewatching. Driving down the East coast we could see the edge of the weather front and clear blue skies beckoning and our arrival coincided with the cloud's departure! Ace! Thus we walked around the headland of the Peninsula - seal and bird spotting and returned to the town to book a helicopter whale watch! Wahoooo!! Unfortunately we couldn't go straight away as the wind had picked up so much - it was blowing a hooley and I imagine being in a Helicopter would have been slightly vomit inducing!

Much to our relief there wasn't a breath of wind when we woke up! The sky was clear as can be and the water like a mill pond! After a safety breifing and an intro into the Whales and their habitat - they hang around off Kaikoura as there is a 2000 metre gully that runs along the coast which provides rich picking for the Whales' dinners - the helicopter landed! The sound was deafening and within seconds of buckling up we were taking off! We had opted for a 30 minute flight and swooped off along the shoreline, rising up to go over the peninsula then heading out to sea to scan the gully for whale sitings! A false alarm had the pilot sweep over to the left, churning breakfast very convincingly around the place until we resumed scanning the water again! We were very unlucky in that we didn't see any whales although in reality I was so taken by the fact that I was in a Helicopter that I didn't mind that much! Jen was a bit gutted though! Its pretty cool up there, bobbing about in a bubble! Slightly stomach turning but the views and swinging about make up for it! i loved every minute though I'm not sure I could have stood it for too much longer!

After a money back request from Jen (which was refused!- worth a try though!) and a cup of coffee to make her feel better (oh and a manky muffin - don't go to the Pot Belly Cafe!) we decided that Akaroa and it's dolphins beckoned!!!

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