Driving, kayaking and marine mammals

5 days, 962 kilometres driven, 25 kilometres paddled, countryside, food, company and marine life. A short summary of the weekend away Joanne and I enjoyed. I would have written more sooner but we only got back Tuesday teatime and then had our bible study group and then last night we had the final week of the Christianity Explored course.

On Friday when we set off it was grey and drizzly. Given we had about 450km to drive we were a bit worried that the weather would ruin it. But we needn't have worried. Just north of Christchurch the clouds broke and we were treated to blue skies for the rest of the day.

We drove up north via Lewis Pass, via the centre of the country, rather the coastal road. Again I was blown away by the stunning views and scenery changes, how one minute you're surrounded by mountains or forests and the next farmed plains or rolling hills and scrubland. It was a lovely time of year for driving, with the sunshine but also the odd golden tree scattered among the green, the odd tree that's decided autumn's here already. And then as the afternoons get shorter and the shadows longer the mountains and hills create extra layers of atmosphere.

We stopped for lunch at Maruia Springs Thermal 'Resort'. It's a strange little place, stuck pretty much in the middle of nowhere. But after driving mile after mile of farm, sheep station and scenery, it was just about perfect.

The motel in Motueka was beyond expectations, well above what their website lead us to expect. Although we almost didn't make it. Just driving into town, passing the small field that passed for an airport a plane suddenly appeared overhead. And when I say overhead, I mean that if we had a sunroof in the car we could have reached out and adjusted the plane's flaps. It was that close. And it was fair to say it startled us a wee bit.

If you ever find yourself in Motueka around a meal time you have to try the Gothic Gourmet, what once was a church is not a restaurant. It is a shame that the old church is no longer a church and could be turned into a restaurant but it was tastefully done, even with paint splatters added to make the pristine plasterwork of the walls looked cracked and chipped. Very authentic-effect. And the food was great. Steak served raw on a hot volcanic stone so that you cook it how you like it yourself was the specialty. It was a lovely steak but there was definitely garlic hhiden somewhere in the meal. It meant a fitful, overheated night's sleep for me. I swear this garlic intolerance is getting worse.

Over Saturday and Sunday we kayaked probably 25km in total, which meant maybe four hours of paddling each day. The first day we had really smooth conditions but there was more of a swell on day two. The sun shone both days throughout though, which was a definite bonus. Joanne, sat in the front, made a good navigator. We missed all the rocks, unlike Howard and Dorothy, an American couple kayaking with us, who managed to get themselves balanced perfectly on top of a lone rock in the middle of the water. It took some pretty fancy navigation, I reckon, to get it so perfectly spot on.

We saw seals while paddling around, lazing about on the rocks in the sun. That's all they seem to do. The guide we had, Bruce, was great, filling us in on the history of the National Park and some of the more colourful characters of it's past. Kayaking is such a peaceful thing to do. Just moving and drifting with the waves, or paddling gently disturbed only by the occasional drone of a taxi boat.

The only downside of the National Park were the sandflies. Cheeky little bitey things. They look totally inocuous but their bites itch like crazy and come up in big welts. I missed my legs the first day with the insect repellant and they liked the taste of me. I also got bitten on my finger and half my hand swelled up. Supposedly sandflies are a big problem on the west coast. I'm not sure I want to go there in warm weather now.

Sunday evening, once we were returned to Kaiteriteri, was spent 40 minutes down the coast in Nelson. It seems a nice little town, a combination of a seaside town just off the hills and a port. Trying to find somewhere for dinner on Sunday evening proved difficult though. The place we ended up was just about to close and only just let us in. It was only 7:30. The food was lovely though. I had roast duck followed by an awesome chilli chocolate creme brulee.

On Monday we spent a few hours wandering around Nelson and having a bit of brunch. As I say, it's a nice little town, but a downside is that we got bitten some more. I'm not sure how the sandflies got through jeans but they managed somehow. After that we drove down through Blenheim and on to Kaikoura (well, just outside really, at Hapuku Lodge. On the way along the coast we stopped and saw some more seals but the main point to take away from the trip for me was the miles and miles of vineyards. I knew the Marlborough region was big on wine production, just I didn't expect it to that extent for some reason. The coastline north of Kaikoura is simply stunning. Rugged like the west coast but with added seals. We made the moast of it by stopping for afternoon tea at a lovely little place called The Store at Kekerengu. I recommend it.

We arrived at the hotel (a pretty special place, surrounded by snow-capped mountains and the raw ocean) about four-ish and decided to go for a walk along the beach. A storm was coming and the wind was getting up but it all added to the atmosphere. It did make us worry about whether we'd get out on the boat for the whale-watching the next day though. An exquisite dinner in the hotel (Joanne had to have crayfish, given we were in Kaikoura (translation - kai = 'food', or 'to eat', koura = 'crayfish') took our mind off the weather.

We needn't have worried though as when we woke up the sky was sapphire blue, the air was still and the sea, after we went and saw some more seals, was a little calmer than the night before. There was still a decent swell out on the water but nothing unbearable. Joanne still managed a kip while we were 'between whales'. I can't believe Joanne had never seen a whale before. I though it was something all Kiwis did as a rite of passage or something. We ended up seeing three, and as a bonus we saw plenty of birds (including wandering albatrosses) and Dusky dolphins and Hector's dolphins. I love wild dolphins, me. They just seem to have so much fun.

And then, that's it. We drove home. It was great to have time away with Joanne, just the two of us. It was great just to chat, to catch up with one another, to enjoy each other's company. Life can get so busy sometimes that it's nice to stop and say hello, y'know.

As expected I took loads of photos while we were way. A selection of them can be seen here and here. You shouldn't need a Facebook account or anything, if you haven't got one.


Oh, and while I was away, the 5-a-side team had the final to play. It didn't turn out so good. 5-4 up at half-time, 8-5 down at full-time. Ah well, at least we made it to the final, eh?