Caught the 1pm Blue Bridge ferry to South Island. The forecast had been for gales in the morning, but we had a lovely smooth crossing in the sunshine. The staff were very friendly and chatty on the boat; we got free hot chocolate as too much had been made and a free paper, which told us that the skin burn time was 9 minutes!

It was only the day before that Andy had finished reading the guidebook on South Island and drawn everything out on the map, and it was only when we were on the ferry that we decided where we were going; this lack of preparation is very unlike us! Unfortunately the time we had available for South Island would mean we'd have to leave several things out, but we're sure we'll get to do them next time...!

Once off the ferry we took the steep, winding coastal road to Havelock, a very scenic road, and then drove to Nelson where we stayed the night.