We have made our way to Wellington with a brief stop in Martinborough to explore the Pinnacles and Cape Palliser. Along our travels we discovered the Tui brewery, a craft beer of New Zealand, and their “Frank the Tank” beer...some good laughs in the brewery shop for sure!

The Putangirua Pinnacles, located in the Aorangi Forest Park, are some very cool rock formations. For those that are Lord of the Rings fans you may recognize the backdrop!? We took the riverbed track, which gave us an interesting perspective as we strolled. Cape Palliser lighthouse was another stop in the Wairarapa area. The lighthouse is at the top of the hill with some 250 steps to climb to see the views. The road way along the cape is filled with one lane bridges and single lane stretches (no worries mum...all good) it’s a beautiful drive that deserves to be taken slowly, for safety and sheer distraction. We checked out the seal colony on our way back and were pleasantly surprised to discover a mama and her babes. They were hanging our in a mermaid pool section of the rocks, with mama “supervising” from above...well more like sleeping.

We headed for Wellington early in the morning to drop off our rental car on time and take advantage of the full day in our new location. We have learned that driving in New Zealand can take some time with winding roads etc...but the day was clear and the drive scenic! Wellington is a cross between San Francisco and Victoria. We were reintroduced to being a pedestrian, remembering to look right when crossing the road, and welcomed the change of transportation for a few days. We took in a couple of walking trails as well as a tour of parliament and Te Papa Museum.

We are on the ferry today for our three hour sail (insert Gilligan’s Island music) to the South Island and although the day is grey and misty I’m sure we will fare better than Gilligan! All of the locals we have met to date have explained that the South Island is spectacular - and we thought the north island was pretty awesome. Stay tuned!