Back to our porridge for a more sustained energy breakfast, as it was going to be a long drive in the van.  We’re hoping to make the west coast with a few very interesting stops along the way. The drive isn’t without its challenges, as it takes us through this beautiful country and it’s sprawling mountain ranges.  There are a lot of twists and turns on the way, with some very narrow passes as well.  On the whole though,  the roads are fabulous. They are constantly being maintained as we pass so many small roadworks sections.

We got on the road early and headed for Richmond, the last big town, with the last ‘Pac n Save’ for some distance. This is especially true as we were heading westward to big mountain country.  A full trolley of food for a week, so it was off to have some more adventures. The fuel was really expensive here, so we put enough in to ensure we didn’t run out as there are fuel stations in Westport where we will be in a day.

Under the boardwalk

We arrived for the Abel Tasman Coast Walk and were not alone.  With a huge car park full of motorbikes, campervans and a host of other vehicles.  It was obviously a great pitstop for the travellers or a day out for the locals. There were a few eateries and activities on offer,  such as kayaking. A row of tractors and trailers  were parked ready to transport the boats in and out of the sandy beach to deeper waters for people to go on their excursions.

There was also a range of walks in all different directions,  so we chose  The Able Tasman Coastal Track which passed Stu’s Lookout. This entailed crossing a series of boardwalks across the creeks and river before ascending up the hillside through some lush vegetation and passing Porters Beach on the way. Someone had kindly left some organic mandarins on a bench with a sign to help yourself.  It would have been rude not to, so we took two and ate them on Porters Beach. Somehow on the walk we both managed to have a fall.  I cut my finger, whilst Sarah grazed her knee and hand.  We carry a first aid kit everywhere, but on this occasion it wasn’t required as it was just pride that was dented.

Our next planned destination saw us follow the Buller River, again with some great viewing platforms for the valleys below. We had passed a fair few with Maui names, but every now and then and English or Irish name pops up like Stu’s Lookout or  Kilkenny Lookout. All have breathtaking views.

Due to the lack of Internet some of the pictures aren’t uploading, so we’ve had to reduce the resolution of some.  We can rectify this later if we ever get back on WiFi.

Fall number three

Next stop, Maruia Falls. We’ve seen some interesting wildlife signs on the way. There was a duck crossing sign just before the falls.  Other signs when we got there included our usual death warning signs that we have become very accustomed to.

So after a small trek through the shrubbery and signs at every corner highlighting the dangers we came out at Maruia Falls. It was surreal how tranquil the walk had been  compared to the almighty roar that greeted us as we turned the last corner. Again we are in low rain season,  so one can clearly see how dangerous this would be during the height of the rains. The river was flowing so fast that logs were swirling around the basin at a high speed, another reason not to swim here.  At full flow, we’d imagine the current would take you miles and you’d be white water rafting without the raft.

Gorge on that

We continued to follow the Buller River as we passed through the gorge. We arrived at the famous Buller Activity Gorge. It’s here that the first bungee jump was done.  One of the brothers, after practicing here, did the notorious Eiffel Tower bungee jump that gained attention from all over the world.  Although he served a year in a French prison, he and his sibling went on to start a business out of it.  They now have locations around the world with over 100,000 people taking the plunge yearly.  Other activities included the Jet Boat, white water rafting, and kayaking down the Buller River. Unfortunately we had to skip these as we’re heading into more adventurous and dangerous waterways.  Who knows what another week may bring.

Unwanted seaside smells

We knew once we got to our destination at Kaeatiri Beach in Westport we wouldn’t be secluded.  Free beach sites are well sought after for the evening.  Sure enough it was fairly packed already,  but we squeezed into a  small space with enough room to do the cooking out the back. We were greeted by a pair of Weka birds, New Zealand’s answer to the brush turkeys or the bin chickens of Australia, that hang around waiting for food scraps, sorry guys nothing giving here.  We agree with the locals that these birds shouldn’t be fed, plus we like all of our food ourselves. 

A trip to the amenities before cooking was the wrong choice, though it would take much more than a foul stench to put us off a meal.

Driftwood sunset

With seventy potential mobile homes and campervan pitches,  and the likelihood that they might all be taken, we decided to go for a walk along the beach and catch the sunset. Again the beach was half packed with driftwood.  Much of this was scorched, obvi

,ously from campers lighting fires when permitted. Though there were amber warnings with restricted prearranged fires only at the moment, we did see one smouldering in the distance.

The stars come out at night

For the second night on the trot we were lucky enough to see the Milky Way, (pictures to follow).  All the other campers seemed to have nested down for the night, so we did the same.