We arrived in Christchurch around noon, swaped our tiny car for a giant camper van, filled it with food and drink, met Liz and Jim at the airport at 4.30pm ...they'd come in from Thailand. Tonight we are making pizzas in Liz's friends family outdoor pizza oven and are 'camping on their drive! We arrived in Christchurch around lunch time, swapped the car for the enormous van did a provisions shop, met Liz and Jim at the airport and followed her friend Viv and he...

03.02.11 Kaikoura Whale and Seal WatchingWell, despite the 25knot wind the captain decided to take his speedy boat out to see the whales. Half the proposed passengers decided against going as the sea was rough and the whales were 19miles off shore. It was an adventure trip getting there, and even more fun trying to hang on when the boat stopped beside a big whale…the rocking and rolling meant that photography was almost impossible, but it didn't matter. The wha...

01.02.11 Upper Moutere to Marble Hill Scenic Reserve Camp Site (Lewis Pass)Another beautiful morning. We took our time to pack up the car, sat chatting to Jana and Colin, and left just after lunch. It was a peaceful 4 hour journey with a afternoon tea stop at Murchison, a very small and interesting little village. The information centre there was one of the best we've seen. We've booked to go and see the whales in Kaikoura on the 9.30am boat on Thursday when the ...

It's a bank holiday here today so Colin and Jana took the day off. We had a really fun day. Started out from their house in Upper Moutere, drove over the Takaka Hills into Golden Bay area. There we visited the Ngarua Caves. Very funny in our safety helmets..had coffee and then a guided tour which included scaling a ladder to get out at the end. When I can get the photos on you will see what I mean. After this we drove to a salmon fishing lake where I caught a hu...

The Queen Charlotte Walk 26-30.01.11 We packed our rucksac with 2 sleeping bags, sleeping mats and the tent, and packed our day bags. We travelled by Endeavor Express backpackers boat to Ships Bay, at the far end of the Charlotte Sound. Ships Bay is where Captain Cook landed and lived for a while on the South Island. The boat left taking our bai back pack on to Furnaux Bay, where we were walking to. It was an undulating secondary rain forest walk, 4hour. We were...