Wednesday 20th March

Levin to the ferry terminal in Wellington was uneventful - until we got to the ferry terminal. We had booked the 14:30 crossing from Wellington to Picton on the South Island but when we got there at 13:30 we were told it was cancelled! We were re- booked on the 18:25 instead, not a train smash as we went to the Te Papa museum in Wellington for the afternoon which was fabulous - free and plenty to do and see, so we are all fully dosed up with New Zealand history and culture, particularly from the Maori point of view.

The ferry boarded late and we ended up in Picton at 10pm and just as well we decided to book as there was a flotilla of motor homes waiting at the motor home park gate! It was quite a cool evening, the first one where we have felt a little chill.

The irony of the visit to the museum was that I got motion-sickness from one of the 'rides' in the museum!! It was an experience of the activities on offer in New Zealand from the viewpoint of a bird - so lots of swooping down, sudden falling and flying into things. Fun - till I felt sick!! After that, the ferry crossing was no problem. Lyn

Thursday 21st March

A late start today sees us decide to head to Abel Tasman the national park named after the Dutch explorer of the late 1700's. The area between Picton and Marahau (the furthest point you can drive to in the park via Motueka) is known as the Treasured Pathway due to the 17th century gold strikes. The area is also famed for timber exports and there are a few ports along the coast dedicated to timber export.