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Published: March 22nd 2011
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Up at 06:00, quick shower, cuppa and were off!
We use the GPS to find the ferry terminal, as we don’t want any mix-ups. Being early we miss the worst of the Wellington morning traffic, although it is starting to build up and you can see that it will be gridlock a little later. We find the ferry terminal and check-in and board immediately – all quite painless.
We make a beeline for the café on the ferry for a full cooked breakfast before the masses arrive. We eat breakfast and Di makes the comment that she hopes that is the last time she sees it as I have read in the Lonely Planet that the Wellington to Picton ferry crossing can some times be a little choppy!!. We sit and read the morning newspaper for a while and think about going up top to take Photos/ videos – we are feeling a little lethargic after the early start.
The papers show rain for most of the North Island, with the west coast of the South Island sunny. The weather is cloudy, and Di’s analysis of the weather forecast is that the weather is set to deteriorate.
I bought Wi-Fi
access on the boat and I can at last update my blog. I have been buying access at the last few campsites, but although I pick the signal, I can’t seem to access websites. Anyway I spend some time catching up. We then go “up-top to take videos and photos, I have been so wrapped up with my laptop that I think we are just coming out of the North Island when in actual fact we are approaching the South Island, and the ferry is gingerly making its way through some fairly narrow straits towards Picton. – That’s 3 hours that just flew by!
We drive off the ferry at Picton at around 11:30 and we want to make our way to Motueka, which is northwest and about 180 km. I have set the GPS on the ferry as we were waiting to disembark. The first 20km or so is on secondary roads and steep and winding and progress is slow. When we hit Havelock we pick up the highway 6 and the road starts to get better. As we get to Nelson, we are mostly travelling on coastal roads and we are able to travel at 90kph. Nelson
looks like a nice place with lovely beaches and azure sea, I push on but make a mental note to stop there when I pass through it on my way back to Kaikoura.
First impressions of the South Island is that it looks more rugged than the North and the mountains appear to be higher (and more of them).
We arrive at Motueka at mid-afternoon. The campsite is good, and by this time there is not a cloud in the sky and it is hot and sunny (Looks like Di’s forecast was wrong!) I book in for two nights. I also book a “Water & Wine” tour for tomorrow. This is a scenic cruise along the coast of the Abel Tasman National Park in the morning. Followed by a wine tour in the afternoon, which delivers us back to the campsite at around 17:00. (I am going to need 8 weeks to “dry-out” after this vacation)
We spend the rest of the afternoon chilling out – and you’ve guessed it! –having a glass of wine. Around 17:30 we get showered and changed and go for dinner at a nearby establishment called Hot Mama’s Café – the food is pretty good and we both have Banana Splits to finish!
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