Travelling Again Soon

Life has taken a turn for the better and we’ll be able to be travelling again soon. With Aucklanders free to travel anywhere around New Zealand, we’ll be staying a little closer to home this time. Come February we’ll be heading to the Bay of Plenty for a couple of weeks. An annual reunion with fellow Navy friends will be at Ohope Beach during this time. I hope to have some stories and photos to share from there. Then in … Continue reading

Goodbye Southland

Christmas is over and I’m a little sad it is time to say goodbye Southland. I always feel comfortable while I’m in the southern regions. But after more than six weeks away from home, its time to head north. Our very loose plans to tiki tour up the east coast of the South Island have disintegrated. Both hubby and I are keen to get home again. Instead of taking our time and visiting many sights, we’ve decided to “do” the … Continue reading

Last Day On Stewart Island

Today heralds our last day on Stewart Island and its up for grabs what we might do with our last hours in this paradise. With our bags already packed our choices will be limited. The Museum has been checked out. The Bunkhouse Theatre doesn’t open until the end of December. Will we head to the Rakiura National Park Visitor Centre and check out the multitude of videos they have available to watch? The problem I see there is how we’d … Continue reading

Hokitika to Haast

Hokitika To Haast On the drive from Hokitika to Haast I was struck by the number of lakes one can visit. We stopped at some but missed a few out. Being city folk nowadays we feel the need to keep the car pretty much topped up with petrol. You can never be sure where the next petrol station might be. So while the car was getting a drink, I slipped across the road at Whataroa to take a picture of … Continue reading

Hokitika

Our stop in Hokitika This weekend is Westland’s Anniversary Weekend. We did not realise this until I spied an “anniversary sale” sign. Not that it matters too much as most of the shops appear to be open anyway. We’ve wandered around and checked out some of the Jade and possum/merino clothing shops. A nice long walk along the black sandy beach left me with even more stones to carry home. I’m soon going to have to have a sort out … Continue reading

Resting At Lake Brunner

Resting At Lake Brunner As expected, Lake Brunner was a much needed rack out day. We loved the accommodation and felt comfortable just hanging out, playing cards and reading. In fact I was very happy sitting out in the sun reading when I had to give up and go inside our unit. There were a couple of “friendly” wekas who apparently ruled the area. I use the term “friendly” definitely tongue in cheek as we had witnessed their regard for … Continue reading

Heading to Lake Brunner

Now We’re Heading To Lake Brunner I’m not sure what day of the week it is, but now we’re heading to Lake Brunner for a couple of nights. We’re expecting a less hectic time than Westport and I have to admit, I’m looking forward to the chance of doing some reading. Because the high tide is not until 4.28pm we are in no hurry as we want to time our arrival at Punakaiki and the Pancake Rocks – a little … Continue reading

Last Day In Westport

Last Day in Westport We wondered what we might do during our last day in Westport, but the day disappeared very satisfactorily. Our visit to the museum – aptly called the Coaltown Museum – helped many of Jet’s stories fall into place. Watching the videos and seeing the exhibited paraphernalia made sense of much he had shared with us yesterday. As its name suggests, the museum is purely focused on the history of coal mining in the area and is … Continue reading

Westport – Forenoon Excursion

Exploring Westport Our initial foray into Westport’s many attractions included the seal colony and Cape Foulwind. The first thing I noticed as we headed to the seal colony was not the seals, but the wekas. If we saw one weka, we must have seen a dozen on the short walk to the headland where the colony exists. I suspect tourists may be feeding these birds as they approached us with no sign of fear. The second thing obvious around that … Continue reading

Goodbye to Marlborough

Its Time To Say Goodbye To Marlborough. Its now time to say goodbye to Marlborough as we begin checking out the West Coast. We have enjoyed our visit and acknowledge there are many attractions we did not have the time to experience. We’re sad to leave and expect to return again one day. Hopefully in the not too distant future. We had perfect accommodation. Uncle Abel’s Cabin is in a quiet part of Motueka and within an easy walk into … Continue reading