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Published: November 18th 2008
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Picton
....Our day started with an early morning walk along Picton's waterfront and marina Our day started with an early morning walk along Picton's waterfront and marina, where we seen the Inter Island ferry off on its voyage to the North Island. It was very encouraging to see a clear sunny sky after the rain and overcast conditions yesterday. After an hour or so it was time to begin our journey down the east coast.
A short drive from Picton is Blenheim, the Marlbrough district largest town. The area which surrounds the town is well known as a centre of New Zealand's wine industry. It enjoys one of New Zealand’s sunniest climates, with hot, relatively dry summers and crisp winters. On the outskirts of the town we stopped at one of the many wineries in the area where we had some delicious breakfast in the restaurant, and picked up some fine NZ wine for later. Marlborough can lay claim to starting the modern New Zealand wine industry. Here in the late 1970s, Marlborough produced Sauvignon Blanc, among other varieties, which led to confidence that New Zealand could produce exciting wine. Today, the Marlborough wine region represents 62% of total vineyard area in the country. The king varietal here is Sauvignon Blanc, closely followed by
Blenheim
.....we stopped at one of the many wineries in the area where we had some delicious breakfast in the restaurant,up some fine NZ wine for later Pinot Noir and Chardonnay.
Leaving Blenheim, we headed south on Highway 1 into lush rolling hills covered in grape vines as far as the eye could see. It was good to be travelling on a wide open highway after days of driving on narrow steep, winding mountain roads. We had travelled about 40kms through lush green open farm land that only a week prior were struck by floods from torrential rain in the area. Even though there was still minor evidence of the flooding, the area had recovered remarkably. We were fascinated by lush green growth in the passing fields, something that we have not seen in Australia for a long, long time.
It was not long before we arrived at the tiny coastal town of Wharanui, where the road meets and then follows the spectacular eastern coastline for 70 kms down to Kaikoura. The drive along this stretch is absolutely spectacular with high snowed capped mountains spiralling down to the magnificent pristine coastline. The road and the TranzCoastal rail line follow the coastline side by side all the way to Kaikoura The TranzCoastal travels daily between Christchurch and Picton where it connects with the InterIslander. This journey is also
The Coast
......Wharanui, where the road meets and then follows the spectacular eastern coastline for 70 kms down to Kaikoura very scenic, with the Pacific Ocean on one side and high coastal ranges on the other. The TranzCoastal travels through 22 tunnels and crosses 175 bridges, one of them being New Zealand's only road-rail bridge. The road also travels through many of these tunnels carved through the mountain sides. But most intriguing is the beach with
black sand, caused by the iron content derived from the ancient volcanic activity from the mountains towering high above the beach below. The drive along this scenic coastline was so enjoyable it was no time before we arrived at Kaikoura.
Kaikoura has a strikingly beautiful setting, as the Seaward Kaikoura mountains, a branch of the Southern Alps come nearly to the sea at this point surrounding the town. Kaikoura has now become a popular tourist destination, mainly for whale watching (the Sperm Whale watching is perhaps the best and most developed in the world) and swimming with or near dolphins. After a wander through the delightful shopping precinct on the beach, and a bite for lunch we continued our journey southward.
Not far out of Kaikoura the road left the coastline and climbed into more rugged mountain ranges. The scenery through here is spectacular,
Black Sand
......most intriguing is the beach with [b]black sand[/b], caused by the iron content derived from the ancient volcanic activity from the mountains but the driving again gets hazardous as the road narrows and becomes very winding. We leave Highway 1 at Hawkswood, and head inland toward the alpine village, Hanmer Springs, our overnight stopover. Leader Spring Rd is a very narrow road winding through some of the most spectacular countryside. We were reminded of the country lane ways that are common through the English moors. Even as we passed through a tiny town called Waiau, there was a reminder of a quaint English hamlet.
Soon we arrived at a tiny settlement, with the quircky name, of Mouse Point, where we joined Highway 7. The highway is the main route from Christchurch, on the east coast across to Greymouth, on the west coast. This route takes in the infamous and treacherous Lewis Pass that takes you over the Southern Alps. We only travel about 30 kms on Highway 7 before we turn off for the 10 km drive to alpine resort town, Hanmer Springs.
Hanmer Springs is a popular tourist destination, and the population swells greatly during holidays. The town is built around a popular hot spring which was discovered in the late 19th century. Set in a breathtaking natural landscape, surrounded by
Road Tunnels
...... The road also travels through many of these tunnels carved through the mountain sides. forests and mountains, the award-winning Thermal Pools offers visitors a wide range of experiences, from soothing indulgence to exciting family fun. The Thermal Pools & Spa has nine open-air thermal pools, three sulphur pools and four private thermal pools, as well as a sauna/steam room. A fresh-water, heated pool and a popular family activity area, complete with water slides and water toys and picnic area. As we drove up the main street of Hanmer Springs we counted at least 30 mobile homes parked in a car park near The Thermal Pools & Spa centre. With all these travellers possibly looking for a site overnight, we decided to book into the Mountain View Top 10 Holiday Park first up to avoid missing out. We were lucky, securing the last mobile home site.
We returned to the Spa centre to enjoy the warm, relaxing and soothing thermal pools.
Mountain View Top 10 Holiday Park is close to the Spa centre and has excellent amenities in a relaxing atmosphere. Next door is a pub with an inexpensive, but very good, eatery.
After a good feed and few beers it was good to hit the sack for our last "sleep" in New Zealand.
Kaikoura
.......After a wander through the delightful shopping precinct on the beach, and a bite for lunch we continued our journey southward
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Rebecca Milner
non-member comment
Query on travel time.
Hi, I wanted to know how long it takes to drive from Picton to Hanmer Springs. Thanks, Rebecca.