Don't worry, it's just around the corner....

Preparations for the great Abel Tasman adventure were in place. The evening prior, we were good little campers, and snuck off to bed after a few beers at the Victorian Rose, a pub in Nelson. We could have stayed for a few more beers and a few more hours listening to the sounds of Boogy Train... an awkward looking, yet great sounding blues band....... but in hindsight, our decision to get some shut eye was best. Anyway, we woke up at 5:30 in the morning to catch the bus to the trailhead looking like hobos itching for a cup of coffee.



Yes, we made it to the trail head at last. We did get a quick caffeine dose and a bear claw muffin at the cafe that was literally at the start of the trail. This will be a piece of cake we thought.....




Here is a picture of us at the start of our journey with our wits, sense of humor, an optimism at its peak. It was a bit rainy at that time early in the morning, but we were excited to get the tramp started. We were well on our way, blazing the trail with only a few wet outburst from mother nature. Other than that, the stormy weather headed south and for the most part, we stayed warm and dry.
It seamed that with every step further into the park, the weather changed for the better, the views seemed more beautiful, and our cadence got a bit more rapid. As advertised by our bus driver Chet, the trail was fairly easy. Chet says Abel Tasman track is for 4-84 years olds, and he might be full of shit, but then again, I don't think his name was actually Chet.

We continued at a good pace, taking in the beauty of the golden beaches and crystal blue water.



We picked the right time of year to hike Abel Tasman as we would later find out. We were the only ones on the track, and for being the most famous track in New Zealand, that is a rare thing during the school holiday and summer time.

About 3 hours into the hike we stopped to take a break and have some lunch. There was a Department of Conservation (DOC) cabin where we stopped to have some grub. I use "grub" as a term meaning delicious cheese, sausage, bread, smoked fish, and hummus dips. We were in no danger of starving, that much I can tell you my friends. We weren't about to go thirsty either. I've adopted the theory created that beer shall be enjoyed on every adventure, and at any time during the day. This adventure would be no exception. Lunch in the wilderness without a trace of civilization in sight, not without a beer I say....

Lunch and beers, job done! Now on to more hiking. Honestly, the views from the trail were spectacular! The mid day skies turned bright blue, and the beaches below reflected gold.



We were still making good time, although we did miss the short cut across the bay that can only be crossed at low tide. no worries though, it took us about 30 minutes to do the round about way, and we got to see Cleopatra's Pool shown below. If you look closely and use your imagination, you can pick out a figure in the rock laying on her side. Very cool!

It was about 6 hours into the hike at this point, and our dogs were getting tired. In my most reassuring voice, I would tell Denise, "It should be just around the corner, just up ahead." She managed to call my bullshit, and it was a battle to see who could keep their sense of humor.

Towards the end of our hike, we did get to traverse this huge swing bridge.

As the map had indicated, we were getting close to our destination, and my efforts to announce that "it is just around the corner" started to make a bit more sense than 2 hours ago....

The Nelsons in Nelson

Denise and I had our first chance to get down to the south island a week ago. The area was beautiful and flashbulbs from our camera were going off like the paparazzi chasing Madonna just trying to snap a memory of all the lovely landscape. Therefore in an attempt to not bore the audience, I will be making several installments of our trip to keep you interested.

So lets get started! Our first stop on the week long trip begun ironically in a town called Nelson. Being well known for its sea food, artistry, wineries, and breweries, it was the perfect place for us to start our adventure. Although we were not greeted with a red carpet as we got off the twin propellered plane, I gave a distinguisted wave to the grounds crew on the tarmac much like the president does as he exits airforce one. Not a kings welcome at all, but we were happy to be on the ground. The flight was a rough one, and to be honest, we could have landed De Moines Iowa for all I care, just as long as we landed safely.

So we had arrived. The first thing we did on the following day was experiencing the Saturday market held right around the corner from the hostel we stayed at.

The market was fabulous! Intermingled amongst booths and tents of fine artisans and jewelers, there were cheese, sausage, fresh fish, and meat pie vendors. Meat pies are a huge thing down here and are sold not only in bakeries and grocery stores, but you can find them in gas stations as well. Denise found a specialty meat pie vendor that was selling a vegetarian meat pie.......interesting. As we strolled along, we bought loads of breads, cheeses, sausages, and smoked fish for our travels. I took a picture of this guy who was singing Sweet Caroline at the time. He sounded great, and he had the intricate facial tattoos to let us know he was a native Maori.
After the market, we set off to explore the rest of the town. I would call it a city, but the size doesn't constitute the title of city. There are only a few streets to fill out the down town grid.

Nelson is the home of The Ring. You know which ring I am talking about....you know,....the halflings.....hairy feet.....crazy adventure. Yep, one of the local jewelry artisans was commissioned to create the Lord of the Rings ring for the movie. This was the Jens Hansen's headquarters.

We didn't get a picture of one of the real one in the shop, which was almost big enough to be a wrist band, but I did get a picture next to this enormous replica. It makes me look like I am as small as Frodo Baggins himself. Or am I really in Middle earth....watcht out for the Orks!.... I'm a dork!

Anyway, we continued our trip to the cathedral which adorns the hilltop overlooking the town. It was amazingly elegant in side and contemporary, goth on the exterior.

The park surrounding the cathedral was full of blooming flowers and Denise's favorite trees in New Zealand (below). I am not sure what it is called, but we see them all over the place, and they are beautiful.

This is one of our favorite pictures taken while in Nelson
We walked most of the town streets popping in some of the shops before they closed. It seems that on a Saturdays everything shuts down at 4:00PM, and the city becomes a ghost town. But before everything did shut down, we found a brewery and a winery to help cope with the situation.


That as our first day of the trip, and it was a great one. We settled into the hostel which apparently has a problem with travelers steeling the wine corker.
We had to get a good nights rest to get ready for our next days adventure, a day long hike, an over night camp, and a kayak in Abel Tasman National Reserve. Tune into the next entry...

Kiwi Spotting on Motuora

Denise and I, and a few friends took a overnight camping trip on an island called Motuora a few weeks back. The island is a wildlife refuge and a indigenous tree sanctuary.

The island used to be used for farming, thus the indigenous trees were clear cut for grazing and farming. A conservation group has now taken over the island and is trying to replant the indigenous trees to provide a safe haven for the Kiwi birds that are also being introduced to the refuge. History lesson over!


So here we are arriving on the island. A water taxi took us across the open waters where we had the island to ourselves. Notice the heaps of gear that everyone brought for a one night stay..... You would think we were staying for a month.

Anyway, we made camp and settled in that morning. The whole purpose of the trip was to help the conservation group plant some trees the next day, but the day we arrived was for exploring the island and having a bit of fun.

Not to worry, no one got hurt even though it took several shots to get a descent action shot. Yep, we were acting like a bunch of teenagers.... I particularly like my perfect ten point dismount. Nice!

We tramped around the coastline exploring every little nook and cranny. Denise discovered these little sea creatures a low tide.
The rest of the day was great. We played a little bit of coed touch rugby, a bit of soccer, and then had a pasta dinner feast. We even had the chance to go on an evening hunt for the ever illusive nocturnal Kiwi bird, but none were ever spotted. We had everything to get us ready for a hard days work planting trees the next morning.


But as fate would have it, the weather took a turn for the worse, and a huge storm was brewing over the near by seas and was heading our way. We had to take the early water taxi home the next morning for fear that the water would be too treacherous to navigate in the afternoon. So no trees were planted. But a good time was had by all, except for one or two people on the boat ride back. The size of the boat, and the size of the swell made me ask twice where the life jackets were hiding. The seas were all ready angry with a swell up to about 8-10 feet! Small boat plus angry seas equals shat in pants....
We made back to the dock safe and sound a little disappointed by that fact that we were unable to help out planting trees, and unlucky that we could not catch a glimpse of a Kiwi. But we did have a blast, and I am sure there will be another opportunity to go back.

Opoutere

We decide to get out of town this past weekend. We left Auckland for Opoutere on Saturday afternoon after my soccer game was over. We were a little bit bummed at the time because it was raining and dark when we got to the hostel where we decided to stay. But there were some older couples staying there as well that we had polite conversation with while sitting next to a wood burning fire place.

Then we woke the next morning to see this view from the hostel. It was so dark the night before, that we had no idea what was around us at the time.

Over breakfast, we were contemplating what to do with our day. We both decided that really there should be no rush, schedule, or itinerary. We would just do what we felt like doing. Luckily, the hostel had a bunch of kayaks for us to use, and at that moment, we felt like going for a paddle.

We spent a good two hours on the kayaks, racing up the river near by and cruising across the delta to the spit that was directly across from the hostel.

After the long kayak, we traded in our boats for walking shoes, and headed to the beach. There was a little trail from the hostel that meandered through small section of pine forest leading up to the beach front. Both Denise and I thought it was strange that there would be pine forests so close to the sand, but i guess it is something we are just not accustom to seeing.

We finally made it to the beach to gaze over the clear blue ocean water of the Pacific.

Denise said it best while we were walking the beach. She said "this is how I want to remember New Zealand", and I think she was absolutely right. It was a gorgeous afternoon on the east coast of New Zealand's North Island, and we were lucky to have the 3 miles of beach to ourselves. We were the only people out that day.

We walked the entire length of the beach and then came back to where we started. Beaches are fantastic. You never see the same thing twice even if you were to walk the same section one hundred times. The tides, waves, and shifting sand mold the beach differently after every crashing wave. The picture to the left was an area of sand near a stream feeding into the ocean. We decided that it looked like nature was making us an enormous batch of chocolate peanut butter fudge. And you never know what is going to ride a wave onto the beach. I found this empty clam shell washed in by the salty water. Symmetry brought to you by nature....

We had received a good tip from some friends we met in Auckland that there was a neat little art gallery in Opoutere called the Topadahil. If you say the name slow enough, it describes where the little gallery is, on top of the hill. The gallery itself is actually the artist's house oriented on one of the highest hill tops over looking the delta leading to the ocean. The view from her house was amazing. Anyway, the artists name was Guity (French), and even though we could not afford any of her original works (need to take out a sizable loan), she was nice enough to invite us into her house so we could view her works. We spent about an hour talking with her, and she even gave us a back packers deal on some prints of her original works. We bought a few, and left her home feeling inspired. I don't have any pictures to show you of her works, so you will have to see the prints when we get back the the States.

Anyway, this is how we will remember Opoutere, and we are sure to reccomend this little paradise to others. We may even come back to visit again.

Devonport

Auckland City is great, and we like the hustle and bustle....sometimes. Other times Denise and I like the slower, fudge and ice cream beach town pace. That is why we went to Devonport. The great thing is that Devonport is just across the bay from the city. We spent the afternoon walking the main street, ducking in and out of various art galleries and boutique shops.

The Devonport peninsula is home to two volcanic caps, Mount Victoria and Hauraki. We walked around the perimeter and up to the summit of both to capture a great views of Rangitoto, the Auckland City skyline, and the small town of Devonport.

On Mount Victoria, we discovered this interesting sculpture just off the footpath (below to the right). There was no explanation of its significance, how it got there, or who the artist was, but it reminded me of Auguste Rodin's famous sculpture "The Thinker" with a bit of a Kiwi twist.

Anyway, he was a great discovery that most people I think pass up because it is located just off the foot path.

I got an extreme close up of his mug. Maybe not as inquisitive as "The Thinker", but I love the expression anyway.

We moved on to North Head where Hauraki Gulf Maritime Park is located. This park was once an important base for the New Zealand military forces during the war times of the 20th century. Many tunnels, bunkers, and huge gun turrets were built beneath the mountain to help ward off any attackers during World War I and II. Fortunately, the fortification did not see any action during its time, and the area is now just a recreation park.

The cool part about the now abandoned fortification is that tourists can explore some of the tunnels and bunkers left behind by the military. A few of the large guns and munitions structures are still there as well to explore. We made sure to bring our flashlight in order to explore the tunnels. Some were long, dark, and kind of spooky.

Anyway, we hiked all around the mountain and the beach surrounding

Then we ended up on the summit to catch the sunset. It was a spectacular afternoon.