New Zealand 62 Just In Case

 The just in case turned out to be a yummy chicken salad (well, the meat was a bit suspect but it was organic "something"), a $5 8 ounce coke (I was absolutely yearning for a coke) and an $8 Monteith's brew for Matt. We could not have been more pleased. We had to hurry because the tide was rising and the latest we could get back across safely was half 5. I will take a moment here to discuss the tides of Abel Tasman. These tides are not anything even remotely similar to what we know as "high tide" or "low tide" in the states.

Matt and Cynthia (to be continued) 

New Zealand 61 Walking Distance

 we found out that there was a lodge with a café within walking distance (what isn't walking distance, right??) We cleaned up quickly (sadly, no cold shower here) and headed out for the hour and a half return to the café. It was superb! 

Even though everyone said we wouldn't need cash on the track (there aren't exactly shops around every bend) I asked Matt to bring $40 "just in case".

Matt and Cynthia (to be continued) 

New Zealand 60 Onetahuni Bay

 We woke early as usual but by the time we got everything together it was nearly 8am. We made really good time to Onetahuni Bay which is where we had decided to stop for lunch. The bay was just beautiful, a great place to relax for a couple of hours on the beach. So relaxed, in fact, that the last thing I wanted to do was walk anymore so the last stretch was particularly grueling for me. We arrived at the next hut, Awaroa in good spirits because we had made good time and glory to god!

Matt and Cynthia (to be continued) 

New Zealand 59 Bark Bay Hut

 Bark Bay Hut was quite nice, it was larger than our previous hut and had a hot gas stove for heating which Matt engaged right away. By 6pm we were snuggled into warm clothes and Matt made instant cheesy mashed potatoes for dinner (they were so delicious). 

It was a different crowd tonight; our group from the previous night were headed in the opposite direction. With not much else to do and no inclination to do it anyway, we were in bed by 7pm.

Matt and Cynthia (to be continued) 

New Zealand 58 Soooo COLD

 It was soooo COLD. Matt and I decided it would be most wise to take our showers early so that we could warm up in the sun for a few hours before the chilly night air set in. 

Luckily, most of the overnighters had not arrived yet so there weren't many people milling about when we stripped down and danced around in the shower, screaming and laughing, trying to stand under the water but gasping every time we touched it. We were so happy to have our thermies (thermal silk underwear) with us to layer under our clothes afterwards.

Matt and Cynthia (to be continued) 

New Zealand 54 Absolutely ecstatic

 The next three hours would not have been too hard if we weren't already so tired but we made the best of it. This piece of the walk was mostly inland and, thankfully, mostly shaded. 

We arrived at Bark Bay around 3pm and I dropped my pack and headed straight for the beach with my "new" Agatha Christie (They Came to Baghdad for you readers, excellent read). Eventually made my way back to the hut and was absolutely ecstatic to find that there was an outdoor cold shower. Absolutely ecstatic..... until I stuck my big toe under the tap.

Matt and Cynthia (to be continued) 

New Zealand 54 Dead Tired

 We trudged through and by the time we reached the other side of the crossing around noon we were simply exhausted. But the fun had just begun because we still had 3 solid hours walking ahead of us. So, if we had lain on the beach until noon and crossed (the crossing takes less than 10 minutes) we would just be starting our walk completely fresh instead of dead tired. Oh well. Torrent Bay was absolutely beautiful but we could not stop to enjoy so I quickly snapped off a few pics and we were on our way. We had already stopped for lunch at a bridge crossing so we were at least a little rested.

Matt and Cynthia (to be continued) 

New Zealand 55 BIG mistake

 This morning we woke very early (just before 6am) because we had to walk around a tidal crossing. With the tidal crossings we had two choices: wait for the bay to be at low tide so that the bay (torrent bay) was low enough to cross OR walk around it. As low tide was not until 2pm and you can only cross 2 hours either side of low tide, we decided to walk around rather than wait until noon.

BIG mistake. For one thing, our shoulders absolutely ached from the previous day's measly haul of a couple hours. And, the walk around was quite steep (which we were not aware of, all uphill) so that what should have taken us 2 hours took 4 hours.

Matt and Cynthia (to be continued) 

New Zealand 54

 She had had all sorts of adventures all over the world and as she was coming from where we were going to, it was cool to get her insight. We also met a sweet couple from Auckland and we all found lots to talk about until it got dark. The huts have no electricity so after the first candle burns out it is pretty much bed time. We were all in bed by half 7, exhausted. As the hut was directly on the beach, we were lulled to sleep by the ocean waves. Fantastic day....

New Zealand 53

 I was SO GLAD I brought them, they proved to be essential. Regarding dinner, almost all of meals we brought consisted of "Backcountry Cuisine" which is basically freeze dried food to which you add boiling water. I know it does not sound appealing and maybe we were just really hungry but it was fabulous. Anyway, during dinner we met a girl named Deidra ("D") from Ireland and she was great, really fun to chat with.

Matt and Cynthia (to be continued) 

New Zealand 52 Anchorage Bay Hut

 We were so tired, we just wanted to lie on the beach motionless so that is just what we did. After awhile I got cold from the breeze so I went inside, crawled into the sleeping bag on the top bunk and was dead to the world for about 2 hours. Matt woke me around 5pm and he made dinner while I cleaned up. I was a bit distraught about the lack of shower facilities but I managed to clean up alright with wet-ones.

Matt and Cynthia (to be continued) 

New Zealand 51 Anchorage Bay

 Basically there was no one there, save the 20 or so people staying at the hut that night and a docked overnight boat that did not come to shore. We had absolutely no idea what to expect with the communal hut and we were pleasantly surprised. It had a nice kitchen area, bathrooms, an outside wash area (no showers though) and a couple of bunk rooms with mats placed side by side.

Matt and Cynthia (to be continued) 

New Zealand 46 Anchorage Bay Hut

Lunch basically consisted of trail mix and crackers because that is what Matt was able to access without emptying all 40 kilos in his pack. According to the map guide, we only had 1.5 hours to walk to get to our first hut.

We arrived at Anchorage Bay Hut at about 2.30pm, very tired. The hut was beautifully situated on a very, very desolate beach.

Matt and Cynthia (to be continued) 

New Zealand 46 Poor Beast

 My pack essentially held my clothes and the daily supply of drinking water. My camera equipment was in a separate pack I carried on my front. Matt carried everything else, poor beast. So we set off around noon, eager to get on the track. At first it was a pretty easy walk but it didn't take long for the weight of the packs to make what should have been easy not quite so. We stopped for lunch at a beautiful beach spot, secluded except for a few kayakers and day walkers.

Matt and Cynthia (to be continued) 

New Zealand 46 The Saucepan

 Today was the first day of our first overnight hike and we were so excited! We had a very short walk to the first hut so we took our time packing the backpacks and getting everything ready. Matt had to pack and re-pack his bag several times because we had more stuff than he had room for. 

We decided the best thing to do was to tie one of the sleeping bags and the saucepan (not the lightweight, camping kind but the heavy, kitchen kind that came with the van) to the outside of his pack. This proved to be the center of endless jokes, laughter and lots of strange looks to come.

Matt and Cynthia (to be continued) 

New Zealand 46 Lots Of Food

 Relieved, we re-focused on the walk preparations and found a very nice girl at a place called Wilson's Experience who could actually help us get organized. We booked a water taxi with their company, rented the necessary gear and bought lots and lots of food at the local supermarket. I think we kind of spaced out because we weren't really thinking clearly that one of us would have to carry all that food. Apricots and walnuts sound cute and yummy but, believe me, they are heavy. And I didn't even have to carry them.....

Matt and Cynthia (to be continued) 

New Zealand 46 Portfoliooooo

 You can not imagine my delight when I walked out into the street to see Matt, proudly holding the leather portfolio high in the air, waving it around madly and smiling. Someone actually turned it in to the police station! We could hardly believe it. He even left his name and address. Apparently, it fell out of the van at the Swinging Sultan (I swear I don't make this stuff up!) kebab restaurant. The van was locked so it must have fallen out. We promptly went to the post, bought a thank you card and dispatched some cash to the very honest person.

New Zealand 45 Portfolioooo

 No worries, they said (if I had a dollar for every time we have been told this.....) it will turn up at the local police station. Yeah, right. We drove back to Motueka and we were both so upset we just didn't speak. We were beginning to feel that maybe the New Zealand leg of our tour was cursed and we were going to get the hell out. Matt drove straight to the local constable (police) station while I went across the street to use the restroom.

Matt and Cynthia (to be continued) 

New Zealand 44 Portfoliooo

 Both in a state of complete panic, we decided to remain calm and retrace our steps. We had it the day before and we had not been to many places. I was sure he must have left it at the DOC. So we called and they insisted that they did not have it.

Not willing to take their word for it, we decided to make the 45 minute drive there and make sure. No, they assured us in person, they did not have it.

Matt and Cynthia (to be continued) 

New Zealand 43 Portfolioo

The panic set in when I realized what, exactly, we were missing. I said a little breathlessly, you mean, the leather portfolio that houses all of our documents, copies of our passports, credit cards, social security numbers, drivers license, checkbook and passwords to all of our financial banking? Do you mean that leather portfolio? Matt just looked at me.....I knew it was bad.

Matt and Cynthia (to be continued) 

New Zealand 42 My Leather Portfolio

 We awoke early but really took our time getting ready this morning.

We were determined to get everything sorted out with the walk and had every intention of getting on the track. Around ten or so, Matt says, have you seen my leather portfolio?

No, I said, nonchalantly and unconcerned, for I was still plucking and applying eyeliner. 30 minutes later when Matt was frantically turning everything out of the van with an exasperated look on his face I decided maybe I should look around a bit.

Matt and Cynthia (to be continued) 

New Zealand 41 A Nice Fat Kebab

 
We were just trying to get to the basics like, where can we rent sleeping bags?, do we need a pot to boil water?, how much food and water should we carry?

Unable to get answers to any of these very important questions, we decided to call it a day, get a nice fat kebab for dinner and try again tomorrow morning.

Matt and Cynthia (to be continued) 

New Zealand 40 Cryptic

 Speaking with these guys can be cryptic at best and we were struggling a bit with their instruction. 

For some reason they treat you, very cordially, as if you are an old pal who has walked the track many times in the past and you already know exactly what to expect. 

 "Now, mind the sandflies at Totaranui (wherever the heck that is?!) , you'll need to put on your insect repellant at that picnic bench rest area (oh, that one, of course) before you get to the campsite (what campsite?).

Matt and Cynthia (to be continued) 

New Zealand 39 Motueka

 We arrived late afternoon on the 15th in Motueka, a small town of little consequence but a good place to make preparations to get on the Abel Tasman Track. Matt and I were really excited to get on the walk as it is classed as an "easy" walk with outstanding views. We spent some time at the local DOC (department of conservation) trying to understand exactly what we would need to be fully equipped for the walk.

Matt and Cynthia (to be continued) 

New Zealand 38 Double The Usual Cost

 The sign postings were infrequent and uninformative so we really had no idea how long we had to go when Matt informed me that it would be best to drive the rest of the way down the mountain in neutral so as not to burn any more fuel. About 17km later we pulled into a petrol station in the middle of nowhere and happily paid double the usual cost of fuel.

We made it to Nelson and kicked around the shops for a few hours. Ate lunch and we were back on our way to Abel Tasman.

Matt and Cynthia (to be continued) 

New Zealand 37 Empty Petrol

Today we headed towards Abel Tasman National Park but decided to stop along the way in Nelson. Nelson is a really cute, funky little town with lots of good shops and eateries. Not particularly scenic but a fun drive all the same. Matt decided (he claims it wasn't deliberate) to kick up the excitement just a bit by testing the van to determine when empty petrol really means empty. We happened to be on a road with absolutely no signs of human life (there were lots and lots of sheep) so whether we made it or not was of dire consequence- to me at least.

Matt and Cynthia (to be continued) 

New Zealand 36 Blenheim

 Not much to write about, the country side is beautiful but not a very interesting day. We bought a couple of bottles of nice wine from the local vineyards in Blenheim and then spent some time at an internet café. 

Spent the night at a holiday park in Blenheim and ate good ol' KFC for dinner. This is rather comical since neither of us would care to eat it in the states. It is amazing how desperate you become for foods from home. It was good too.

Matt and Cynthia (to be continued) 

New Zealand 35

 
Everyone smiled politely the next morning but I know they were dying to ask what the hell we are doing in there all night. The answer? Sleeply, soundly as kittens. Thank the good lord we had the forethought to buy sleep shades for the long train rides (and the glowing vans).

The weather was poor this morning when we woke so we decided to spend a leisurely day checking out the various wineries.

Matt and Cynthia (to be continued) 

New Zealand 34 Our Gypsy Van

I can only imagine what the people in the other camper vans must be thinking, truly, our gypsy van must glow for miles. It is hard not to laugh when you are walking back to the van from the restroom in the middle of the night and you see the van bursting from every crevice with a warm glow.

It seems we are operating some sort of 70s disco inside.

Matt and Cynthia (to be continued) 

New Zealand 33 - It GLOWS All Night

 We spent the evening in a very nice family-run park in a farm setting. It was quite tranquil.....and then we plugged in our new heater. Now, I will say straight away that this heater will warm up a joint (any joint) in about 5 minutes flat. 

 It is hot and, I think, quite a fire hazard. But when you are cold (and we were) you tend to ignore the obvious. But the funny thing is, the halogen lamp heater is SO bright- it literally GLOWS all night long.

Matt and Cynthia (to be continued) 

 New Zealand 32 Marlborough Sound - Decided Against It

We discussed doing the Queen Charlotte Track, supposedly a very easy walk around Marlborough Sound but decided against it because all of the places to stay along the way were quite expensive and the area was expecting a great deal of rain.

Matt and Cynthia (to be continued) 

New Zealand 31 Wineries

 
We arrived in Picton, South Island and went straight to the Visitor Centre to get pamphlets on the various Great Walks. Apparently, the Tongariro experience wasn't enough for us. We headed out onto a very scenic drive towards the wine district so that we could check out a few wineries tomorrow.

Matt and Cynthia (to be continued)