Blogs from Marlborough, South Island, New Zealand, Oceania - page 9

After a lovely week with Christina and Bernard, we dragged ourselves up disgustingly early in the pre-dawn, and out into our van for a 5am ferry to Picton in the South Island. We had culled our luggage again, and packed the car before going to bed, so we didn’t have to worry about that, at least. The city was dark and quiet, we passed only one other vehicle on the motorway on our way down to the dock. There were, however, others who had arrived before us and we all waited together in the still darkness for the signal to board. We were traveling aboard Awatere, which is a large passenger and car ferry. The bulk of this vessel is needed to combat the large swells often found in Cook Strait. Paula and Grace eyed the ... read more

After 2 nights in Christchurch, Tiffany recovered from the jetlag...and I was in full gear trying great wines, it was time to pick up our new home for the week. This is something I always wanted to do...a perfect family style holiday...touring the South Island by campervan. Pick up early our new home, made my way with Tiffany to the supermarket to stock on great fresh food, and made our way to the airport to pick up Leslie and Ma'ri, who flew direct from Shanghai via Auckland. There are going to be a lot of great moments during the coming days, but who had the idea to put the Marlborough wine region so far away from Milford Sound. So I've divided this entry in two. For today, you'll have the North part of the South ... read more

On a quitté Nelson ce matin pour retourner en direction de Picton. Rendu à Picton, on a pris un bateau (taxi de l’eau) pour nous amener à Lochmara Lodge dans la région des « Marlborough Sounds », qui est accessible seulement par bateau. On a laissé nos valises à l’auberge et puis le bateau nous a amené à la baie Mistletoe, afin qu’on puisse faire une randonnée pédestre sur une partie de la piste Queen Charlotte. On a donc marché de la baie Mistletoe jusqu’à la baie Lochmara. On ne connaît pas la distance exacte de cette marche, mais ça doit être environ 5-6 km et cela nous a pris environ 2,5 heures. C’était plus court comme distance que dans le parc Abel Tasman, mais la différence de dénivellation était beaucoup plus grande. Et cette fois, ... read more

Late on Christmas Day, we packed up the car and on Boxing Day we headed north, bound for Anakiwa in the Marlborough Sounds. We drove SH1, following the Pacific Ocean's stunning craggy coast and stopped to eat leftovers from Christmas as a packed lunch just north of Kaikoura. In contrast to the rainy Christmas Day we'd just experienced the weather had decided to become summer again and we had a great day road tripping. We passed through the towns and vineyards of the Marlborough wine region (resisting the temptation to stop at Wineries) and then bought provisions in Havelock before driving around the edge of Queen Charlotte Sound. We arrived late afternoon at the excellent Anakiwa Backpackers in time to meet the new owners (plus dog and 12-week old kitten) and cool off by jumping straight ... read more

Wednesday, 2 December 2008 As the Captain sailed off to visit Pelorus Sound last Tuesday, I was on my way to stay with long time friends Mark and Kerry Roberts. The Captain, of course, thought I had mutinied, but all the excitement had just culminated in my need for some time out. I thought of my son Alex, a marine engineer, who goes to sea for three months at a time. I suspect that when he is at sea he yearns for the land, but have noted that when he is on land he yearns for the sea. I suspect I have similar tendencies because after a day on land, having slept well and enjoyed the company of my friends I was ready to get back on board. The Captain was busy trying to catch every ... read more