Day 10 16/2/13 Franz Josef to Hanmer Springs

We have been so fortunate with the weather and today did not disappoint as it was a beautiful sunny morning so we headed for the Franz Josef Glacier, which is about 4km from the township. This glacier is advancing, which is amazing given Tasman Glacier is retreating. We "tramped" (as the Kiwis say) about 2km across rocks of all shapes and sizes which have come away from the glacier and been crushed and formed by the 16 metres of rain that falls here each year! There are waterfalls along each side and gorgeous vegetation and then as you get closer you see the beautiful blue colour of the ice, this glacier is 14km in length and 29 sq. km at the top, it is hard to take in the immensity and to think this marvel of nature is so close to the Pacific Ocean, not in the fiords of Norway. We travelled along the west coast past pebble beaches at Hokitika, the main coastal town of Greymouth, a former gold mine town and then via the Lewis Pass with more spectacular scenery. While we had a few miles to cover today it was not quite as twisty as previous days and so arrived in the very picturesque town of Hanmer Springs late afternoon. Our motel is quite new and had a kitchen facility so we had a delicious home cooked pasta dinner eating on our balcony and watching the sun set, a most wonderful day, oh and of course another wonderful coffee in Franz Josef after our glacier walk.

Day 11 17/2/13 Hanmer Springs to Picton

The day started grey and misty and that is pretty much how it stayed, even though areas of NZ get a lot of rain this part of the country really needs it, so we were happy for them. We drove the Alpine Scenic Route to Kaikoura , which involved some rally driving by John. We stopped in Kaikoura for our daily coffee and we both agree this was probably our least enjoyable one so far. We continued on the scenic coastal road to Blenheim, but as it was misty the view was not clear. This is where the mountains come down to the sea and the road has been cut through in places, so most spectacular. This is the Marlborough wine region which is a significant wine growing area for NZ and we headed for Giesen Winery and enjoyed tasting their wines, in particular the Pinot Gris. They had a very tasty antipasto platter for lunch and we enjoyed ours with a glass of the Pinot Gris. On our way to Picton we passed Makana Chocolates and tasted a delicious caramel butter macadamia nut crunch and so had to buy some for later! Picton is a small town on the Queen Charlotte Sound and this is where we catch the Interislander ferry to Wellington. We went for a walk around the headland to enjoy the view of Queen Charlotte Sound and back to our very pleasant motel with views of the harbour where we enjoyed our dinner on the balcony. We then watched NZ Masterchef which shown only one night a week on a Sunday night and is quite a hoot as the judges are quite scathing.

Day 12 18/2/13 Picton to Wellington

The roads are considerably better than we remember from past visits and we drove 2868 kilometres in 11 days on the South Island, which we have really enjoyed with such wonderful natural beauty. We travelled to Wellington on the Interislander Ferry "Aratere" which takes 3 hours and was very comfortable as it was a smooth sailing, and they served great coffee! We arrived to a beautiful warm sunny day and after checking in to our hotel on the harbour we took the Cable Car to the Botanic Gardens where there are panoramic views of Wellington. We had a superb dinner of NZ Lamb and Groper after seeing the movie "Flight" with Denzel Washington.