Kayaking and walking in Abel Tasman national park

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Day 164: Wedneday 10th December - Returning to the South Island

Nelson is a small city (it would be a town in the UK) of 50,000 people, which makes it the third biggest settlement on the south island after Christchurch and Dunedin. Its also the sunniest city in New Zealand and the weather is living up to its name. We arrive late in the afternoon, and the first thing I do is call up to book a place on a walking/kayaking tour in the nearby Abel Tasman national park. That done its off to the bar for the free beer tasting session. This is followed by my first roast dinner since leaving the UK, Yorkshire puddings and all. If it wasn't for the sunny weather in mid-December I could almost be at home! After dinner its a few beers in the hostel bar and then into a pool bar in Nelson to take advantage of the ridiculously cheap drinks offer and to have a few drinks with the boys and girls off the bus who I will be leaving behind tomorrow as I jump off the Kiwi Experience bus for a couple of days. Its a good night, helped by the 4 beers (or glasses of wine) and a shot for $13NZ (5 pounds)....bargain! Its made even better when the barmaid gives me 2 vouchers instead of one thereby entitling me to double the amount of drinks....result! I have mixed feelings with regard to leaving the bus.....I'm glad to have a few days at my pace rather than that of the bus and being constantly on the go. That said its a shame to be leaving behind the people I've made friends with off the bus but I may catch up with them further down the South Island at Queenstown.

Day 165: Thursday 11th December - Walking in Abel Tasman national park

The bus picks us up at 7.15am to take us to Kaiteriteri, the entrance to the Abel Tasman national park along the northern coast of the South Island. Once at Kaiteriteri a water taxi shuttles us further up the coast to Te Pukatea bay where we are starting our two day walk/kayak in the park. Along the way the boat stops at split apple rock which is cool and so named because it resembles a apple cut in half. Myself, Henrik a Danish guy and James & Tim, two Americans are also doing the same trip. James and Tim are walking the same route as me, whilst Henrik decides to take the longer route along the coast to Anchorage bay. The shorter route which the three of us take is a 15 minute walk. From here it takes us another 5 hours to reach our campsite for the night at Bark Bay. Along the track to Bark Bay we take a sidetrack to Cleopatra's pool and pass Torrent Bay. We only walk about a quarter of the 51km Abel Tasman coastal track but the section we do walk is supposed to be the best section. It is simply stunning. The path passes through dense native bush which overlooks golden beaches lapped by gleaming azure water. The various bays you pass are straight out of a travel brochure.

When we arrive at Bark Bay our camping gear is awaiting us on the beach. First job is to pitch the tent at the campsite which is right next to the beach. At high tide the water surrounds the campsite from front and back, leaving only the small patch of raised land the campsite sits on above water. The evening is spent cooking my tea and sat around a campfire with James, Tim, Henrick, Jo and Meghan. The two girls are from the US and the six of us have a good laugh. In the dying light I head down to the beach to watch the sunset over the Tasman sea with the Malborough Sounds in the background. It is a beautiful sight and a great way to end one of the best days I've had in New Zealand. Just the relaxing tonic I needed after a hectic week on the Kiwi Experience bus.

Day 166: Friday 12th December - Kayaking in Abel Tasman national park

The four of us meet our kayaking guides on Bark Bay beach at 9.45am for our day kayaking back to Kaiteriteri beach. We say cheerio to the two girls who having kayaked up to Bark Bay are walking back. They are on the stray bus (similar to Kiwi Experience) and are following a similar route down the west coast so who knows we may bump into them again? We are paired into double sea kayaks - I'm with Henrik, with me in the back looking after the rudder - for our day trip. The Abel Tasman sea is quite calm as we paddle from Bark Bay, passing seals on Pinnacle Island before we reach Observation beach for lunch. Along the way we have a lot of fun disabling James & Tim's rudder (they do the same back to us in return), splashing them with our paddles and generally just messing about with the two American's. Lunch is spent chilling out on the beautiful Observation beach before we start paddling again. After a short while the guides get the 4 kayaks together and we attach a sail to the outside back paddles and start sailing past Adele Island towards Split Apple Rock bay. The wind remains strong and blowing in the southerly direction we need it to do for an hour. Sailing along the Abel Tasman coastline in kayaks is so cool although holding one of the back paddles for an hour is hard work in the strong wind. We stop off for some photos at Split Apple Rock bay before continuing down to Kaiteriteri beach, where we arrive after 4pm. Kayaking along the coastline has been as special as the walk and the whole trip although expensive at $212NZ (80 pounds) has been one of the highlights of New Zealand and well worth it.

Our transfer back to Nelson gets us back at around 6pm. Tim & James are staying at a different hostel outside Nelson but hopefully they'll be on the Kiwi bus departing tomorrow. Myself and Henrik head back to our hostel which is full with all the people who've just arrived with the latest Kiwi bus, the one I'll be getting on tomorrow. Walking through the bar I see some familiar faces from my original bus. Candice, the Canadian girl who was in my raft at River Valley and Lea, a Dutch girl who both spent an extra few days in Wellington. They are both leaving tomorrow, so along with Henrik and the two Americans I already know a few people on the new bus, which is good. Getting on a new bus is similar to a new arrival in the Big Brother house as relationships and groups have already been formed and you are seen initially as an outsider. I quiz Candice and Lea about the Te Papa museum in Wellington. They both said it was good and the extra stay in Wellington was well worth it. However, after a great couple of days in Abel Tasman I can't have any regrets. I spend my evening sorting out my backpack with all the stuff I'd left behind in Nelson, and catch the end of a movie. I also get to know two of my room mates, Carl and Carolyn from Northern Ireland who are going to be on the bus tomorrow.

Day 167: Saturday 13th December - Joining another bus and the Nelson Lakes national park

Get back aboard the Kiwi Experience bus for the trip down South Island. Our first stop of the day is at Nelson market which has loads of good foodstuffs which I could quite easily spend a fortune on, but keep reminding myself I'm a backpacker on a budget! I hear my first Christmas carols as I walk around the market but in the hot morning sun it certainly doesn't feel like Christmas. From the market we drive south to Nelson Lakes national park where we have lunch. Lake Rotoiti where we stop is a clear glacial lake bordered by beech forests and mountains. Its beautiful looking out on the lake but I'm not among the brave few who try out the icy cold waters.

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