New Zealand - Week 2

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Greymouth, Nelson, Abel Tasman National Park, Christchurch revisited

I set off early from Akaroa, with the aim of getting my free hire car to Greymouth by the 2 o' clock deadline. I reached Christchurch in good time and found my way onto Route 73 to the west coast. After a fairly mundane half hour on the Canterbury plains, a wall of mountains appeared on the horizon. It felt like I was playing an old computer game, with the difference that I did eventually reach the mountains and they weren't just a background image. It as easy to see why the day return train journey from Christchurch to Greymouth, which mostly runs parallel to the road, is so popular, as the scenery is worth seeing twice and Greymouth is not the kind of place you want spend much time in.

I stayed two nights at the Noah's Ark hostel, which had nicely decorated animal themed rooms (mine was "penguin") and a friendly dog which guests could take on walks. It seemed like the most interesting thing to do in Greymouth was drink, and so I was pleased to meet Sara, who lived in Leeds and Daniel from Belgium, who were keen to do the Monteith's Brewery tour. We learnt about their methods - their brews are conditioned at low temperature (-1°C), which apparently makes them lagers - then moved on to the bit everyone came for: tasting! I tried four, ranging from IPA to black beer. They were similar in taste to some British ales but seemed slightly thinner and more gassy, presumably as a result of the lower temperature conditioning (brewing enthusiasts?)

From Greymouth, I decided to head to Nelson, on the north coast, where the weather was sunny and stayed warm late into the evening (in contrast to Christchurch, which became chilly after sunset). I found it to be a characterful city with an impressive cathedral and some nice buildings. Another endearing feature is that it is the craft beer capital of New Zealand. Nelson is well placed for exploring the Abel Tasman National Park, which includes one of nine Great Walks, along the coast route. It takes 3-5 days to complete, but I decided to walk part of it over two days, staying at Bark Bay hut. This turned out to be a good decision, as although the beaches and forest were very attractive, they got a bit samey after a while.

At the end of my second week, I headed back to Christchurch, where I went to the Chinese Lantern festival, which takes place 15 days after Chinese New Year (which I experienced in Singapore). The festival featured an impressive gymanastic stage show and cheap food.

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Photos

Abel Tasman National Park
Bark Bay

Pancake rocks of Punakaiki
Seen on the way from Greymouth to Nelson

Abel Tasman National Park
Adele and Fisherman Islands (Adele is the big one)

Abel Tasman National Park
Anchorage Bay

Abel Tasman National Park
Anchorage Bay

Abel Tasman National Park
Crabs

Abel Tasman National Park
Trees on the way to Bark Bay

Abel Tasman National Park
Pinnacle Island

Abel Tasman National Park
Onetahuti Beach

Comments

[Sue Williamson]

Make sure you save something for your Dad to visit with you!
We went for dinner with your Dad last week - delicious food again of course. He is really looking forward to his trip to see you, although he says he isn't excited I don't believe him. You look like you have had brilliant weather so far but your Dad is convinced it will pour down when he gets there. Hope you have a wonderful time together over the next few weeks. Make sure he sees a Kiwi. Sue x

[Graeme Clark]

Hi Sue. Great to hear from you! Apologies for the late reply. Internet was very expensive in New Zealand but I´ll be catching up now I´m in South America. My dad and I had a great time thanks and the weather was good for the most part. Didn´t see a kiwi unfortunately but we saw some good wildlife besides. No doubt he has told you all about it. Pictures coming soon. x

[Neil]

More great pics and blog Graeme. Hope all the blue skies don't cloud over before Dad arrives. Weather still crap over here!!!!! Take care Neil.