Saturday 20th February - Sunday 28th February

Saturday 20th February

Beautiful morning waking up by the lake.

Breakfast outside then off to do a walk from site. About 1.5 hrs (mostly uphill) with notice boards along the way telling you about the lives of the gold miners and how things changed as time went on from basically using a dish, to using gunpowder and mechanical machinery. Their lives and work were extremely hard. I bet there weren't any fat people there!

The scenic route once again was stunning but different from others we've encountered. The mountains are very dark but there's also lots of grass but with wide open views and the most bizarre rock formations. We saw lots of trail bikes riding on tracks right up the mountains then came to a notice saying it was a two day trail Bike event run by the Lions. It looked like it would be fantastic. Some of the trails were virtually none existent going almost vertical up a mountain. So if you're between Lawrence and Beaumont next year and you're into trail biking, look out for this.

Stopped at a little town called Clyde. Nice little place. Built, like so many others, on the back of gold mining. We visited the museum and did a heritage walk around town which told the stories of gold prospectors and how the town was started, basically as canvas and timber buildings and then became what it is still like today

Our stop for tonight is Lowburn Harbour, near Cromwell. Another freedom site with flush toilet facilities, (getting posh now - flush toilets). No fires. No WiFi but a great spot right on the shore of the river/lake. When we arrived we were surprised to see more vans here than we've seen on some of the sites! Mind you, maybe that's not too surprising being rather near Queenstown airport and only 65 kilometres to Queenstown itself.

Sadly it started raining and a rather chilly wind started up so didn't sit out too long. Just had to drink indoors instead!!

Queenstown tomorrow

Sunday 21st February

Headed for Queenstown straight after breakfast.

Staying at Queenstown Holiday Park Creeksyde 55$ per night. Free showers. Nice kitchen and bbq area but vans very cramped together. Walking distance into town

We were very impressed with Queenstown town centre. A bit of a beach, nice harbour area with bars and restaurants. A nice park you could walk around with frisbee golf, bowls, ice rink, tennis court and bmx/skate board track and also a bandstand where they had Latin dance lessons. It was really pleasant down there with a young vibe. People were laying on the grass enjoying the sunshine and in the park, several groups of people had put up tightropes and were practising their skills. On the lake there was jet boat rides, steamers, paragliding and people were swimming. We just enjoyed the walk and a drink in one of the bars.

Afterwards we went on the cable car 32$ each return which was quite busy but not packed. You could also do the luge when you got to the top. The views were spectacular (again) and there was even the opportunity to go up in the cable car, attaching your bike to a device on the car and ride it down. How cool is that! There were also bungee jumps up there but as it was late when we went, the bungee was shut.

Got back to camp and had a chat with the couple in a small tent next to us. They 60+ and had hired a car intending to stop at motels but they saw this tent in Warehouse in a sale reduced from 200$ to 80$ so they bought it along with some sleeping bags and a mattress. They got pans and dishes from a charity shop and had been using the tent for almost 4 weeks! I just love to hear the different ways people go about their trip. The facilities on all the sites are really good in so much as they nearly all have kitchens and somewhere to eat so you don't need tables and chairs either. They usually have dishes as well but not always. Many people, even when they have a fully equipped van, still go to the kitchen and cook their meals there or cook and eat at their van and go down there to wash up. We never used the kitchen or cooking facilities. We always cooked and washed up at the van but good to know you can travel light if you want to.

Winery tour tomorrow

Monday 22nd February

A little chilly this morning but looks like it'll be nice

New Zealand Winery Tour - we were picked up on time at 9.30 by Mathew in a little minibus. They only take a maximum of 6 people per tour so they can give individual attention to everyone. We picked the other 2 couples up from different hotels. One couple from America and the others British

Mat, our driver was very chatty and told us lots about the areas we were driving through. Not just wine related facts either. Our first stop was was the cheesery where we sampled different cheeses and of course you could buy them and also pickles and chutneys.

Peregrine Wines was our first winery stop. We were taken to see the vines growing here and told some details about how they grow them and then were shown the big vats where the grapes were crushed and then where the barrels were stored. There wasn't any wine production actually happening whilst we were there but it was all very interesting. Maybe the most interesting fact that I didn't know was that as this area is subject to very low temperatures some months of the year and they actually have heavy frost's, they use windmills or helicopters through the night to blow the cold air away from the fruit to prevent it being damaged by the frost. We had several samples of wine here, not a lot per glass but after visiting 4 wineries you may be on your back if they gave any more.

After our tasting session there we went to 'The Nose' restaurant where they have an aroma room. They have vials around the room with different scents like blackberry, melon, lime etc and we had large pinot noir and savingnon blanc wines and we had to try and pick our the aromas. For me, it all just smelled of wine!!!! Then we had a very nice mixed platter for lunch which was included and you could also have wine, but you had to pay for that. Pinot noir is their number 1 wine.

We travelled through Bannockburn, which is laden with wine fields although at one time it was just one giant goldfield.

Next was Mt Difficulties winery. It was very busy here with lots of people coming independently and although there was wine tasting, it reminded me more of a shop. Although not far away from Gibson area, where we were earlier, the wine here is ready 3 weeks ahead here, due to the weather conditions.

Our last port of call was in lord of the rings area - Chard Farm Winery. The lady here was really nice and I think the wine here was nicest too. Then back to the campsite at 5.30. All the wineries were in beautiful settings and also had restaurants attached. It was a really good day and we enjoyed the experience very much. Thank you Mike and Gill for our birthday presents.

We headed into town as Mat had told us where we could buy craft beer, which Sam really likes. When we got there Norah and Chris, the American couple from the wine tour were already there. We had a few drinks with them and enjoyed their company then they headed off at 9 as they had a table booked elsewhere. We stayed at Atlas as we'd heard they do a great steak so we had that. 20$ each and a good size but I thought a bit tough.

Lake Tekapo tomorrow

Tuesday 23rd February

We (that's the Royal we) did a lot of driving today. We were going to go to Mount Cook but it's a road that you have to go and come back and that would be been an extra 100km on a day we had already done a lot of miles so we gave it a miss but we did have a fabulous view of it when we did our flight from Fox Glacier earlier in the holiday and also today viewing it from Lake Tekapo was really beautiful. The water in this area is a mind blowing, gobsmacking shade of bright turquoise. I have never, ever seen water this colour. It was beautiful. Apparently it's the light reflecting through the glacial flour in the water. Whatever it is, its spectacular! We went to the tiny church of the good shepherd which stands on the shore of Lake Tekapo and it's said to be the most photographed church in New Zealand. Behind the altar there are plain glass windows and you can see the stunning view if the lake through them. We did take a couple of photos before we noticed the sign saying 'no photos'. Oops!!

We headed for Timaru next as we'd been told it was lovely. It has a nice park along by the water which did look nice but instead of stopping we headed towards Methven.

Stopped at a nice free site Bowyer's Scenic Reserve, right by a river. Lots of space. Long drop toilet which was OK (I believe) but no other facilities. Just got parked up when an Australian couple, Kay and Bernie from Stewart Island, came to join us. Nice couple with family in NZ so they come over here often and have their own motorhome which they leave with the family. They even invited us to get in touch should we ever get to Stewart Island. This was our latest evening as we sat out until after midnight. There was a fantastic full moon and it was really light which is probably why we didn't notice the time.

Heading towards Akaroa tomorrow

Wednesday 24th February

When we were leaving site, we got talking to an English couple. They are here for 4 months. They've bought their own camper using money they were left when one of their mum's died. They've called the van Gladys in her name. Cute! They'd been to South Island a few times and really love it so now with their camper they can come whenever they want and only have their flights to pay for. There's so many great free sites (for self contained vehicles) and they've put solar panels on the roof so, unlike us, they don't need to go to any pay sites unless they want to. We need to go about every 2 stops to fully charge the battery. Everything is made so easy here with dump stations clearly marked along the roads. This couple have a barge in the UK and they entered into one of these swap your accommodation groups. That was their first encounter with a motor home. They got one for 2 months, swapped for their barge! What a great idea!!

Methven was only 25km away (not much there so not worth a detour to go) but we stopped and had a walk. We were going to visit the dump station but it seemed rather busy. We then realised it was a meeting of New Zealand Motor Caravan Association not unlike the camping and caravan club back home. They seem a very organised affair and couldn't wait to tell us all about it and suggested that if we are ever coming to NZ with a motorhome in the future, we should join first as the crossing from Wellington to Picton is a fraction of the price to members and the 'Bible' lists all free sites and other campsites with special member prices. Good to know. They were doing a 2 week mystery tour. The tour leaders gave out the printed itinerary each morning and off they went. Everyone here is so friendly and are pleased to share information to help you have a better holiday.

We were heading towards Akaroa but decided to stay at Okains Bay for the night. Oh my!!! We have seen some views while we've been here and the road to Okains was no exception. It was beyond spectacular. It was like a peninsular road which went very, very high up with views on both sides and I swear the view looked like you were hovering over it in a plane. I wish I knew more words to describe awesome, spectacular, dramatic, beautiful but I don't so I'll just use all of them because it was! The road was full of twists and turns and sheer drops over the edge. Probably not the best road as the brake indication light (the one before the warning, no brakes light) has been on for 3 days. We didn't know what it was until just before starting up the hill!!

We stayed at Okains Bay Camping Ground 24$ per night no WiFi. showers 2$ 4 mins. The toilets and showers were basic but clean and the kitchen facilities looked good too. They also had washing machines. No fires or BBQ allowed so we had pasta for tea

The site is by the beach but there's dunes so you can't park right on it. We parked up and took our table, chairs and wine down as it was only 100yards. Nice safe beach.

Akaroa tomorrow

Thursday 25th February

Another lovely morning. Young girl in the camper next to us was out doing her yoga exercises before breakfast. I would've joined her if I'd had my mat! Honest!

Back down the road with beautiful views to Akaroa and the brakes held out fine. Thank you God :) This will be our last night in the campervan. It's been great. Just a few hiccups when we got it but all got sorted with not too much inconvenience and Sam's done a great job driving us around. We've covered just over 4000 km in 28 days.

We stopped at Top 10 (and hoping it's nearer the 10 than the last one) as it was only 10 mins walk into town. Downhill! Which means the way back is unfortunately uphill!

Got a nice pitch after moving off one which had 2 blades of grass separating the vans. We had a nice view of the sea and could see the cruise ships in the harbour. Lots of room for sitting out too. So after some liquid refreshment we headed downhill into town. We had a bit of lunch there and walked 5 miles part on a trail and partly strolling around town. Several cruise ships in port. A very nice location for our last stop in South Island. Then that walk back up the hill! I had to stop for breath several times.

BBQ tea for the final time, sitting out under a lovely changing sky while the sun disappeared behind a mountain leaving a soft golden glow.

Friday 26th February

Happy anniversary Kevin and Lisa x

Up at 7 this morning to pack and get tidy to return motorhome. It's really warm this morning. The warmest we've had at breakfast time I think. Gave all our leftovers to people in the kitchen but they did have a free food shelf where you could leave anything. We left our BBQ with a note on saying Free so hope someone makes use of it. It's been great for us, (once Sam got the hang of leaving it for 30 mins to get hot) not only for cooking but for putting under the table to keep us toasty while sitting out.

Just seen a vehicle in front of us with a notice in the back warning that it contained hazardous liquid an incase of emergency ring the fire brigade. We had to laugh. Can you guess what it was? Take a look at the photos!

Left campsite at 9.15 and flight leaves at 1.30 . Our flight to Auckland was a little late setting off then the weather conditions weren't great so we were a bit late landing and had to board for Tauranga straight away. We were panicking when we heard over the loud speaker 'final call for Robert and Jean Wright ...' so we had to run to catch the plane. Tauranga is a tiny airport and it was funny when I text Mike to say we'd landed and he text me back and said yes look up I can see you. Him and Louis were standing almost on the runway waving!

Friday night is pizza and movie night at Mike's so when Daisy got back from her water polo match we indulged! Good to be back!

Saturday 26th February

We took Louis and Daisy to the swimming baths for water polo practice then went in for a swim. Baywave is a lovely complex. The water is really warm and there's a wave machine, jaccusi, big slide, sauna and steam room too. There's also 3 different pools!

Had a nice walk along the beach near Mike's and saw the toy libraries that Louis and other students built at school. A great idea. Basically they've made these wooden cupboards and filled them with beach toys for people to use while at the beach then return them when they've finished with them. Buckets, spades, bats, balls, chairs etc... It was great to see some people using them while we were there. People are also invited to donate any toys as well

We stopped for a drink in Bluebiyou then home for tea.

Thunderstorms forecast for tonight

Sunday 28th February

We did have rain last night which cleared the air. Beautiful this morning. After a lazy breakfast we headed off to climb Papamoa Hills. It's not too far from Mike's but we haven't been there before. It was really nice. It's quite a climb but mostly in the shade so it wasn't too hot. Mike took some of Thelma's ashes along as we had intended to take her up the hills when we were here last but she wasn't well. It was nice today as we could also see the Mount in the distance.

Picked some kawakawa leaves. Mike was going to make some tea with them. It's a cure all. We got home and Mike and Gill had to go out on their scooters to source some kanuka to enhance the flavour of the tea

We had lovely fajitas for tea. Story with Daisy before she went to bed, then we sat outside chatting until midnight while Mike tried to sort reception on TV for watching Liverpool play in the morning at 5.30am!! Rather him than me!