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Published: November 9th 2007
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Hello all. I watched your video to Brendan uncle Phil 😊 Very funny and horrifying 😊 And congrats on inventor of the year again. You are on a roll. I could probably use your learning cycle to spell a little better. For all of you english buffs out there, my spelling may not be as accurate as you like, but you know what i'm saying basically right?
I think the last time I posted it was the day before we left Wellington, so I will catch you up. We left Wellington on the morning of the 6th by way of ferry to Picton, which is the closest town on the south island to Wellington. It was about 3 hour boat ride, and freezing on the top deck, but I stood in the blistering wind to stare in awe at Marlborough sound as we travelled up it to get to Picton.
We had been told many times on the north island that we hadn't seen anything yet. That the south island was much more beautiful and that we should get there as soon as possible. And so far....they were right! In just the first few hours of the ferry
More of Marlborough Sound
We hiked to the top of that mountain in the center of this picture. going through the sound I was blown away at how dramatic the mountains were and how beautiful bay after bay was. You can kind of get a sense of the spectacular views that we have experienced by the pictures I have posted, but it is really hard to show the immense beauty of the area with a picture. You really have to just see it for yourself.
After arriving in Picton, we got to our hostel and did our usual ritual. Check into the hostel, consult the lonely planet guide on places to eat and things to see in the town, and then walk around the town looking for second hand bookstores or extravagent shops, such as a jade shop we came across. It is a very small town, maybe 2000 people. Kinda like Valley Springs, but wayyyy better because it is located on a bay!
We did a local 30 min hike, which was like putting my legs up and taking a nap because they are like redwood trunks, and went back to the hostel to watch some of The Green Mile and play some Texas Hold'em. I lost after about the 4th hand because I went
all in and I didn't care too much, but Paul made it to the end and won about $3. So a coffee in practical terms for us.
The next day we got up early because we did one section of a great walk. I'm not sure if there is a definitive definition of a New Zealand great walk, but there are 7 or 9 of them in the whole country and they usually consist of a 4-5 day trek, where you take in some of the most spectacular mountain, lake, volcanic, and oceanic views that the Kiwi's have to offer.
The great walk that we began is called the Queen Charlotte track which is a 4-5 day walk of the Marlborough sound area. We calculated that we hiked about 22 miles in about 7 1/2 hours that day, and that is with a 1 hour stop. I slept very well that night.
Our final destination was a mountain peak in the area that presented us with spectacular views of many inlets and mountainous regions as far as our eyes could see. The hike was surprisingly easy compared to the hikes we have done recently, but that is
most likely due in part to the length of the great walk and that it tries to accomodate as many travellers as possible. Tea and pasta put us to sleep pretty quickly that night.
The next day we drove south east to Kaikoura, which is about 2 hours from Picton. Again it is another small town, that is along the east coast. We checked into the hostel, blah blah blah. In our hostel guide this hostel promised us Kayak's, however, we soon found out that that was a lie. We were a little bummed because we could have gone to a hostel that had free internet, if that was true... but we managed and checked out a seal colony right near town.
We saw a couple seals, which were, well, seals. Fat lazy seals. They remind me of my old dog Sarah 😊 I did learn that they sometimes sleep underwater where they surface every 30 minutes to breath, without waking. Another cool evolutionary trait 😊 The rest of the day was spent eating pasta and susage that we made and reading.
Today we got up and walked along the coast where we saw some more seals
and a bird colony, that was obnoxiously loud and smelly. Nothing to great.
I'm almost out of time so I will post again in the next couple days in Christchurch where we will have free high speed internet at our hostel!
Daniel
I'll post pictures tomorrow.
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Mom
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Legs
By redwood tree trunks did you mean your legs are like those? Speaking of legs, was your part of the Queen Charlotte trail a loop or did you have to hike back the same way you went out? Also, how many miles in total is the Queen Charlotte trail? Danny, HELLO! I am surprised you haven't said, "Mom, why haven't you weighed in on my spelling mistakes?" or, "Mom, I am proud of you for not critiquing my every step of writing." I am interested in your streams of consciousness. You can edit down the road, if you like. I am interested in hearing your voice in your blog EVERYDAY (if possible). You have a wonderful, melodic voice that causes us to smile and envision where you are and feel you are here speaking to us. I love you. Mom