Moon Mountain

After seeing Daniel off it was time to get back out to the bush and relax. Moon mountain was a remote and distant place we heard good things about. A nice long hike up rocky terrain in bright sunshine. It surely felt as if we were transported to another place. Our cabin was blazing hot during the day and chilly at night, making it very lunar. Strange dreams though...

Hanging out in the tub on the way up.

Savoring the few drops of winter's sunshine.

Cabin on the top of the mountain.

Cozy cabin.

Peace out Daniel!

This is a tribute to Daniel, who stuck with 19 days of intense touring. From trail to town, blazing sun to frosty ground, sprawling plains to cramped car rides, sleeping in hostels to the back of the van, combing beaches to scaling dangerous cliffs . You lived it and we hope you love it like we do.

Come back soon! Aotearoa will be waiting with it's wonders.

Daniel and Ben with some of Dunedin's fine urban galleries.

Kurow

With just a few days to spare we worked our way out of the city and back into the cozy country. The warm home of Bally and Bianca awaited us, despite the frosty ground and freezing wind. Nights by the brazier and late late world cup soccer games (3am and 7am) gave us some time to recoup from busy city nights. Ha!

Bally and B's cozy home in the shire.

A crisp ride out to an overlook on the back of Bally's truck.

Set up for sundown.

Light lingers.

Sundown sets the conversation.

Dunedin

With Wanaka and Queenstown cold and snowy, we skipped from the west coast down to Dunedin in one night. All that time in the bush deserves a good drink and great company. We were excited to introduce Daniel into a group of kids so loving and laughing. Here's to you Dunedin!

John

Mandy and Hazel

Lydia and Prue

Geoff and Celia

Holly, Reuben, Gareth, Daniel, Benjamin

Barrytown Knifemaking

If we're gonna make it all the way around the island, we're gonna need knives. On a pristine stretch of the west coast we did a knifemaking workshop with Steve, a charismatic and excited instructor eager to share his trade. From 9 in the morning till 4 in the afternoon he tirelessly taught us how to make the 'knives from hell'. Not only that, he shared with us the seceret location of his jade pebble beach, and some freshly brewed moonshine. Should you find yourself on the west coast, please stop by! The pictures say it all.

A quick stop for tea along the Buller River.

Our foundry workstation with Steve.

Shaping the steel.

Grinding out the curves.

Roughed out.

Before and after.

Grr.

They say you don't find greenstone, greenstone finds you, and this beautiful piece found Daniel.

Ugh, more rainbows.

Harwood's Hole

Next stop, Golden Bay. With a quick visit to Takaka, Bo's family, and the Mussel Inn, we spent most of our time in the area at Harwood's Hole. This is a hole in the earth about 50 meters wide, and 200 meters down. Professional abseilers can descend to the bottom and cave all the way out of the mountain. But being the amatures we are, we decided to just chuck rocks down it instead. It took about 7 seconds before a thundercrash echoed back up the hole. Just count that. Climbing to the top lip of it involved no path, but steps of razor thin marble and trecherous traversing of sink-hole forests. The view from the top however made it all worthwhile with a gaping hole on one side, and breathtaking gorge on the other. We should call it Daniel's Danger tour.

A beautiful walk through slippery forests.

Looking down the razor stairway of marble steps. What kind of adventure is this? Dangerous beauty.

Sitting atop a marble mountain.

Hanging off the edge trying to see the bottom.

King of the mountain...and hole.

Looking down the gorge towards Takaka.

Nydia with Daniel

After picking Daniel up in Christchurch, thus finally looping the south island, we backtracked to Nydia bay. It was so amazing we had to share. We had beautiful weather on our way in, and let's just say 'dramatic' weather on the way out. A storm whipped up the water into small tornadoes as we hunted blindly in turbid waters for our evening's meal. An exciting start to a rapid-fire 20 day tour of New Zealand's south island. I hope we can hold it together.

The office.

Stopping for a drink at the nearest waterfountain.

A picture.

Our secert oyster bar. Pirates only.

What's the count? 18? 20? Two dozen? Pass the tabasco oysterface.

Wading for mussels in windswept waters. Dangerous conditions make all food taste better.

Dry and undrowned.

Nydia Bay

Taking advice given to us by a craft gallery owner, we ventured to the Marlborough Sounds. Down a long and twisting road in the dark, to a campsite occupied with sheep we crept into unseen territory. As the sun rose we found ourselves staring at lush treeferns, hanging gardens, and mirrored bays at the quiet start to a remote track. An hour in we came across exposed mudflats teeming with cockles, mussles and oysters. A lunch of fresh oysters, just out of the water, and cockles dug for dinner, we crossed a saddle of wet trails and misty birdsongs. We camped by the sea, wich was calmer than a lake...not one lap of a tired wave. We rose early with the mist to make sure we would reach our bay of bounty by low tide. We took our limit of fresh greenlip mussels (50 per person per day! 150 for cockles and 250 for oysters by the way.) and hiked out to find a gift of fresh feijoas waiting at our van. This country is so generous!

Looking out at the glass bays of the Marlborough Sounds.

Looking back up the trail/creek.

Light rays and leaf sprays.

A cloud pounces on sleeping islands.

Sun finally breaks through the sounds.

Aargh! Check out me mussels matey!

Abel Tasman

Having Bo's house as a base, we ventured off to one of the more popular tracks. The Abel Tasman Coastal Track runs along the peninsula which divides Golden Bay from the Marlborough Sounds. This is a 51km journey from top to bottom which should probably be done in 5 days. We did it in 4. As you can see, there is a huge range of terrain to cross, making each day full of new challenges. Not exactly the remoteness we enjoyed above Ohau, but still a stunning walk.

Glimpse of a golden sand beach further down the trail. Combing the numerous beaches made this walk very distracting, but a retreat into the cool jungle was strong encouragement to get moving again.

Back to our roots. A prehistoric looking tree strangled in vines and occupied by various other clingy plants.

Twisty swingbridge over rushing waters.

The sun is going down, and the tide starts to pull out. If we don't hurry, we'll loose sight of our destination in the dusk. Quite a finish for a 20km hike.

We've comitted to the crossing. The bay is cold and the water is high.

Out to sea.