It was a beautiful morning so we decided to take a walk in the woods. Pelorus Bridge Scenic Reserve is one of the last remnants of lowland alluvial forest in Marlborough. Early settlers decided to save this island of native forest alongside the Pelorus River, instead of cutting the trees for their buildings and fuel. We hiked through majestic kahikatea trees, massive old Totara trees, beech podocarp and large tree ferns.

This is also the site of a bat preservation project. They are saving the remaining two species of bats in NZ by trapping predators such as possums, weasels and rats.

After our hike we drove through farming communities of the Rai Valley and across a cloudy mountain pass over the Bryant Range. We drove through the city of Nelson, which has many art galleries. Nelson used to be called Whakatu ( wh is pronounced as F in NZ).

We were looking for a picnic area when we reached the Moutere Region, which is another wine-producing area. We happened upon a lovely small vineyard called Himmelsfeld, which was a lucky find. Beth Eggers, a retired nurse of German descent, established it in 1991.  

Her vineyard sits high on a northwest facing hilltop suitable to traditional wine growing methods. She has one acre each of Sauvignon Blanc, Chardonnay and Cabernet Sauvignon; all produce award-winning wines. She was thrilled to tell us that her wine was chosen for a top restaurant near London, The Fat Duck, which was a huge boost to her reputation.  

Her Romney sheep are responsible for the green philosophy of her vineyard; they keep the grass and vines trimmed and enjoy the apples from her trees. This is boutique winemaking at its best, and we splurged on a bottle of 2007 Sauvignon Blanc.

When we arrived in Motueka, we stopped at the grocery store to stock up and then checked into our campground. We've been back in NZ for 9 days, and this is the first place that we are re-visiting from our trip three years ago. It is our base camp for the Abel Tasman National Park experience that we booked for tomorrow. A shuttle is picking us up tomorrow morning, so we can leave the campervan in this spot for two nights.