Arthur’s Pass and the West Coast

31st January .

Thought I had better start dating these blogs as most of the readers will be in UK/Europe! As when I talk about yesterday it will your today, and our today is your tomorrow......NZ being 13hrs ahead of the UK at present.

So! The day before yesterday (work that out!....it was our Monday) we drove over the most famous mountain pass in NZ. The mountains approached with the areas old snow and two glaciers in view.

 After stopping in the village to look at the Information Centre we made our way to the car park for the Punchbowl Falls. The walk which took 25minutes each way, went up steeply via steps and wooden ladder, levelling out from time to time, through the bush. Wonderful rain forest with mossy tree bark, and the sound of the waterfall. Of course if you go up, you have to go down again, and so we did to the lookout point. Worth the walk to see these 131m falls.

Once back on the road heading for the Otira Gorge, I kept noticing signs about steep gradients and it not being suitable for towing vehicles, but this is a main east-west route with some trucks on it, so it can’t be that bad, I thought!! Oh Wow! Quite quickly I felt as though I was driving off the end of the world! The road is good, but the 16% incline went on for several km,  the steep assist function was engaged once again!  Suffice it to say the drive down was spectacular, but I do not have any photos!!

We were aiming for Greymouth, but took at the Lake Brunner detour stopping at the Brunner Industrial site, a self guided walk around  site of the 1800s coal mine site  At one time there was major industry there, not just the mining, but coke ovens and brick making too. Well worth a look if you are in the area.

We then drove on to Greymouth did some shopping, filled up with fuel (very cheap, especially as we had 40c/litre off coupon from New World) then we drove across the Grey River, turned immediately left and drove out to find another ‘Wildernesst’ by the sea.  There are several camping spots along this road, but they were not easy to access in this van so we ended up at the road end.  This coast line is wild with stony beaches and lots of driftwood, and the sunsets are amazing.

     
Weather: warm and sunny

Total km 153.

Yesterday morning we walked from the van along the Point Elizabeth Lookout trail, 45min each way. The path went out up onto the cliff then through native bush. There were interpretive signs along the way with info about the plants and trees. Black Tree Fern, a special form of cress etc.  A decent little walk to begin the day.

We set off about 11.0am back to the Grey River Bridge then left and north toward Westport. We had been driving about 10 minutes when I saw a sign for Cafe and Quilt Shop, and had to stop, we needed a coffee!!!  The Pink Possum Quilt Shop is amazing, a full range of quilting paraphernalia and lots of fabric. The ladies there design and make kits. An American lady from Texas was there and was learning to do her first English pieced patchwork and was making a crazy log cabin quilt inspired by an Andy Warhol print. Her colours were fantastic. We had a coffee and I bought a couple of fat quarters, then we were on our way again.

    

 The West Coast is a ‘must see’ in our book, I think we have been over here at least three times. The scenery is stunning. High rocky forested  cliffs  and dark blue/grey mountains to one side the the rolling sea, sandy and pebbly beaches to the other.  

We drove through Punakaiki, home of the famous blow holes, as we have seen them before.  Eventually the road leaves the coastline to cross farmland to Westport. We stopped for lunch by the river and the found New World which has a public dump station in the car park. Thank goodness for the internet, we needed to dump our waste again before moving on. I did the small amount shopping we needed and left M to deal with that department!!

We needed a washing machine and rather than stay in a very commercial  holiday park we drove north up the Karamea coast road to a delightful place called Gentle Annies. It is located on the north side of the mouth of the Mokihinui River and that is exactly where we parked. This campsite has been voted the 3rd best in NZ apparently. Certainly the welcome was very friendly, there is a lovely relaxed atmosphere with honesty boxes for the washing machine and shower. The cafe does delicious baked goods, there is a bbq and a pizza oven!! The site has good sheltered spots for tents. 

   

Weather: very warm and sunny

Total km: 154

Today, Wednesday, we plan to have a slow day.......

Okains Bay to Upper Waimakariri Riverside

Sunday 28th January 

Try to say that after a drink or two!!

We left the campsite circa 9.0am having  filled the fresh water and dumped the toilet waste. However the grey water waste would not drain, so when we got to Little River we phoned the Wilderness base in Christchurch and arranged to call in for them to check it out, needless to say when we got there it was draining fine.....possibly there had been an airlock which cleared en route. It wasn’t far out of our way and Tania was please to see us again. She did our briefing on Friday.

So, I drove up and out of Okains Bay with no trouble, the steep hill assist function was engaged and worked a treat. Once on the ridge we drove from cloud to sun, back to cloud and I stopped for an atmospheric pic of Akaroa Harbour. 

At Little River we had a coffee and tried to catch up with the internet, but the internet at the cafe at wasn’t working much to Michael’s frustration, I was alright as the mobile network was functioning!!

After leaving Wilderness we did a bit more supermarket shopping, then set off towards the West Coast over Arthur’s Pass. It took about an hour to drive, on very straight roads, across the Canterbury Plain, with farmland on weather side. The fields here have high windbreaks of leylandii, so the views are limited. We stopped for lunch at Springfield . Soon we were approaching the hills, really great views, and these are only the foothills. 

The road is good but I have to concentrate hard especially on what is behind me. I hate to be the cause of a hold up, so pull over or indicate left so that cars etc can pass. On the good roads we roll along at 90km/hr, but need to slow down considerably for corners and hills. 

Lake Pearson

We rolled along over hills and down dales and over hills again until we reached the turning to Mt White Roadbridge. The Wilderness Freedom Camping booklet indicated that there was a ‘Wildernesst ‘ 1km along the road.......and so there is!  A delightful riverside spot surrounded by mountains. We parked up about 3.30pm . I had driven well over 4hours with the detour to the Wilderness base, so I was ready to stop.

Confession: we were on our own to begin with but now have a Maui Campervan neighbour .

The sun was out and felt very strong when we arrived, but shortly the clouds gathered over the mountains and we heard the rumble of thunder. Scattered thunderstorms were forecast so we weren’t surprised. The black clouds and thunder rumbled and rolled along for a while, then a very heavy shower. The first real rain since we arrived. Needless to say it cleared and we were rewarded with a rainbow then some lovely evening light on the river. 

   

As I write this, the thunder is rumbling again so we may be in for a disturbed night. No worries, we are dry and safe in our earthed vehicle!

I love this type of campsite! 

Total km today : 225.

Okains Bay, Banks Peninsula

Yesterday, we flew north from Dunedin to Christchurch on a twin prop plane with circa 30 passengers. It was a smooth flight, but unfortunately it was too cloudy to get views of the mountains. We collected the motorhome from the Wilderness base in Christchurch. After a thorough briefing which took about 1.5 hours we set off!  The first task was the shopping, and we found our way to the nearest New World supermarket. New World is a bit more expensive, but it was convenient. After working through my preprepared list we eventually got to eat a bought sandwich in the van at about 2.30pm. We set off about 3.0pm, following the google sat nav out of the city on the SH75, signposted for Akoroa. 

We stopped at Little River for a cuppa and to suss out the deli, we will probably shop there on the way back. They’ve got lots of pies, cheese etc. Also some very good craft items and art.

Banks Peninsula is a very hilly peninsula south of Christchurch and it provided some challenging driving for the first day especially as this is the biggest vehicle,I have ever driven! The first part of the route is on the level then it goes up a very twisty steep road. Our route took us along the ridge with beautiful views down the the Sound with a Holland American cruise ship anchored on the bay. 

Eventually we turned off south down another narrow steep twisting road, lots of hairpin bends!!! Fortunately this van has a button to presss for steep up and down, and I used it! Hopefully it will work well when we have to drive out tomorrow!

The van is much more spacious than we have had before, with fixed beds at the back. There is plenty of storage including a huge ‘garage’ at the back, utilising the space under the beds. We could have brought big suitcases! We have been supplied with outdoor table, chairs and gas bbq, gps and a Wi-fi router, but we are off grid here at Okains Bay. It will come in useful later on.

       

   

As you will see from the pics, we have already made ourselves at home. It took a couple of hours to unpack when we got here, but now we don’t have to unpack or pack for three weeks!

The Okains Bay campsite is located on land with the beach on one side and the tidal river on another. We are camped near the river. The site is big, with lots of families here, but it is not too noisy. It is ideal for kids with safe bathing, sand and good playground facilities.

The weather today has been sunny and cloudy.

We walked into the village this morning and visited the Museum which is crammed full of Maori and Colonial artefacts. About 4.5 miles round trip.

     
A busy Saturday morning on the beach!                                                       Old fencing, typical countryside 

Total km so far:  Not sure!! 

Sunday: Just driven back to Christchurch. Made it up and down the hills without a problem! Our grey water wouldn’t drain, so we are back at the base for it to be sorted.

Taieri Gorge Railway

Today we took the Taieri Gorge Railway trip to Pukerangi from Dunedin station. This is reputed to be one of the most scenic railways in theworld and it didn’t disappoint.

Dunedin Railway station

We left at 9.30am, at first the train followed the main line out of the city, then branched off onto the branch line, across the Taieri Plain before beginning to climb up the gorge. The Gorge was tree lined to begin with then the trees gave way to rock.

 There were 10 tunnels and a number of trestle bridges and viaducts. In places the Gorge is very narrow, it is a real feat of engineering and it hard to believe that the line was built in the 1860s. It climbs from sea level up to 254m.

       

We were in one of the older carriages built in the 1920s, it rattled and rolled a bit but felt more authentic than the more modern ones. We got back to Dunedin at 14.15hrs. 

     

I have checked in for our flight tomorrow morning and this evening we are going out for a meal. I may not have Wi-fi for a few days as we are planning to drive to Okains Bay on the Banks Peninsula.

To Dunedin

Yesterday we drove with Wyn and Dorothy from Wanaka to Dunedin following the Clutha River. We stopped near Cromwell in orchard country to collect 20kg of apricots which Dorothy will bottle. This is half the usual amount, but she is going away so won’t have time to process 40kg!! The packing shed was busy, processing fruit from local orchard, peaches, and apricots mainly, but I bought some beautiful cherries too.

We stopped at Clyde for coffee, having seen the dam which holds back the Lake Dunstan reservoir. This was gold mining country and the town even had an assay office as part of the general store. We had coffee at the old bank.....!

Onwards and downwards, through Alexandra stopping off at Gabriel’s Gully where we think the first gold in NZ was found. A picturesque spot for our picnic lunch.

Today has been a Dunedin day. Michael and I walked down to the city centre, which took about 40 minutes.  The land around Dunedin harbour rises very steeply, so all the residential areas are very hilly! We went to Toitu, The Otago Settlers Museum, which traces the history of the city from its beginnings.  We visited about 10 years ago, but it has been extended and modernised since then and is now an excellent museum. We found Mrs Andrew Chirnside’s portrait (Michael’s mother was a Chirnside) and another Chirnside on the WW2 war memorial. We then went next door to the Chinese Garden, a baeautiful tranquil place beside the railway line. The Chinese have a long history here too, coming from the Californian minefields. Dunedin is known as the Edinburgh of the South being settled by Scots. The Chirnsides came on the ship, The Three Bells, in 1858. Dunedin now is a thriving city of 120,000 population

Later we visited the Botanic Gardens, and then had a quick cuppa out at St Clair beach. The gardens had some spectacular eucalyptus trees, along with a Mediterranean garden, Rock Garden etc etc. 

Tomorrow we off on a train trip up the Taieri Gorge, then on Friday we will fly to Christchurch  to pick up a motorhome and take off for three weeks. We will have Wi-fi but it may be intermittent.

This blog had lots of photos, but the speed here appears to be to low to upload them

Wanaka Days

This is the 4th time I have started this blog, the app keeps crashing on me, maybe there were too many photos. Yesterday we woke to a beautiful sunny morning and I got a panoramic pic with my phone camera. It gives you an idea of the views from this house.

Michael and I walked up the Clutha River from Albertown to the Wanaka Lake outlet which is the river source. The Clutha is the longest river in NZ and reaches the sea at Dunedin. We are driving there tomorrow with Wyn and Dorothy.

The walk was beautiful, along the river bank, through tall tree heathers then out into an open lake view. The path is well used by walkers, runners and mountain bikers, who were very polite, they all greeted and thanked us as the passed. Not like the cyclists we meet on the Lake District Hill!

      

I walked about 4.5 miles, but Michael did a longer loop, I was struggling with my feet, particularly the left one.

Later in the afternoon the four of us walked up a local knoll for more magnificent lake views.

This morning we woke to cloud and some rain. We are having another fairly lazy day with a little retail therapy. There is an excellent merino hear where I made a planned purchase 😉.

Tomorrow we are off to Dunedin until Friday. Various activities are planned including a train trip up the Taieri Gorge.

Wanaka - Lavender and Lake views

Very hot today, 30C!  Fortunately there is a good breeze most of the time. This morning we went to look at the Lavender Farm, a touch of Provence here in alpine New Zealand! It was beautifully laid out! Some lavender had been cut but there was still plenty to enjoy,lovely perfume and lots of busy bees. They had a super garden too, full of roses, summer daisies and sunflowers. 

                  

 This afternoon we walked about 3miles down to the lake and along the shore. It was H.O.T.

                 

Wonderful views!

We didn’t anticipate such high summer temperatures at this stage of the trip, but we are adjusting as fast as we can!

Out for dinner this evening to a French Bistro. 

Christchurch to Wanaka

Well, we made it today! After a fairly good sleep we were up at 6.0am ish making a cup of tea. We checked back in at the airport at about 8.45am, bought a NZ SIM card fro my phone, and then flew to Queenstown. The flight was about 40 mins over the Canterbury Plain then over the mountain and through the Kawaru gorge into Queenstown Airport, it was quite spectacular.

Wyn and Dorothy were there to meet us, it is great to see them again. The drive back to Wanaka was ove the Crown Range, we stopped at the fampous Cardrona Hotel for a light lunch,.

             

As you can see, the weather is lovely! Wyn took us up to the Cardrona ski field where there are some good summer activities taking place......a quick visit to Bradrona, which is a fence covered in bras, and a collection time for breast cancer. A novel idea! 

               


The forecast is good for the weekend,  not sure what the plans are yet! Meanwhile we have enjoyed wonder evening light on the mountains.

40hours later - Christchurch!

We should be in Wanaka, but we got delayed!  All went well for the first two flights, but we were delayed by 2hours in Sydney. This meant that we missed our flight down to Queenstown, however things could be much worse. Air New Zealand have put us in the Commodore Hotel, which we stayed in five years ago, and we fly at 10.10 in the morning. The Queenstown ticket was booked separately from our Manchester - Christchurch ticket so we expected we would have to find our own accommodation, however they volunteered to accommodate us as the delay is their fault and not due to weather. We have got a very comfortable room and dinner bed and breakfast. Full marks Air NZ!

We are not impressed with Etihad and will not fly with them again out of choice. Abu Dhabi Airport is not up to the numbers going through it, and the general service is not a patch on Emirates. The inflight food was poor. We have both coped pretty well, I got about 7 hours sleep in total, Michael less than that.

Battery running out, so this will continue tomorrow.

Ready to go!

Just waiting for the taxi. Decided to leave early in view of the snow forecast 

Hall landing stairs and our bedroom cleared in preparation for the decorator.