We woke to cloud and sprinkles, and though the clouds remained with us all day, we never had rain. Leaving the campground, we crossed Marine Parade Rd to check out the beach. Then we headed south on Hwy 6 following the Tasman Sea coast. From Fox River to Runanga the coast reminded us of Big Sur Country, very rugged with spectacular views.   We stopped at Punakaiki and the Paparoa National Park. In this pretty area are the famous Pancake Rocks and Blowholes....

Yea, the camera's working! Good thing, because there were lots of photo opportunities today. Plus Bob is feeling much better; the meds worked!We worked up our courage and crossed NZ's longest swinging bridge. The scariest part of the crossing was when you'd meet someone coming from the other direction and you'd have to pass each other.There was an interesting hiking trail on the other side which led down to the Buller River and then past the ear...

Motueka was voted the best town in NZ, probably for its proximity to several national parks, but also for all the town offers its residents. This morning we walked through town and visited the Sunday Market, a combination farmer's market, flea market, and arts and crafts fair. There was live music and stands selling produce, fruit, whitebait fritters, plants, coffee, ice cream, tarot card readings, and assorted crafts, clothing, books and junk. We did buy s...

Abel Tasman National Park has 56 miles of coastline with clear, turquoise sea, more than 50 sandy beaches, and a very popular hiking trail. The park has no roads so visitors access the trails by taking water taxis, kayaks, or hiking in from either end. We hiked part of the track three years ago, but this time we chose a combination sailing trip with two sea shuttles and a little beach walking. We were picked up by a bus at our Motueka campground which transport...

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 preserva...