We left Blenheim in beautiful sunshine and were soon back on the open and, as usual, almost deserted roads. We passed through Havelock and shortly after that we were climbing through twisting and turning roads and many steep bends as we crossed the beautiful mountains of the Richmond Range on our journey to Nelson.

As we decended into Nelson the road took us right next to the sea which was flat calm and sparkling in the sunshine. In the distance you could see the majestic Southern Alps and, as usual in the South Island, the view was stunning!

From Nelson, with the help of our trusty sat nav, we passed through Motueko and then on and into the Abel Tasman national park and down to the beach at Kaiteriteri where we checked in for our 3 hour kayak trip. We were the only people booked in on the afternoon trip so we were lucky enough to be getting a private tour.

Our guide, Avrile, handed out equipment and took us through some safety rules, then we were into our double kayak and away. While we were getting ready the sea looked flat calm and we were looking forward to a gentle paddle along the coast. However, before our very eyes the breeze picked up and the sea became noticeably choppy, not at all what we had ordered!

As we paddled out Avrile told us that, if we wanted to go along to see the famous Split Apple rock, we would have to battle against a head wind and heavy swells all the way there, for around one and a half hours. It sounded very daunting, and Amanda's arms were tired already! However, Avrile was prepared to take us and we decided to give it a go on the understanding that we could turn back at any time.

First we headed for an island which was apparently half way. It was a hard paddle but we gave it our best and were soon eating up the distance and the island was looking closer. We rested in the lee of the island for a few minutes. Avrile asked if we wanted to turn back but having come this far we were determined to reach our destination. We struck out for the Split Apple rock with renewed vigour and seemed to cover the second half of the distance, past several lovely sandy beaches and many craggy rocks, much more quickly.

We stayed near the rock for a short while and Avrile told us the Maori legend about how it was formed. We also saw plenty of the pied cormorants or shags which are one of the very few birds with webbed feet which nest in trees.

With the wind behind us the journey back to Kaiteriteri beach was much easier and we were soon back on dry land. However, it felt like a pretty good achievement, especially as Avrile told us that she wouldn't have been able to take a larger group in those sea conditions. What stars we are!!

After drying off we made our way back to Motueko and into the hills behind where we found Edenhouse, our home for the night, and were met by our hosts Peter and Bobbie. They showed us to our cottage, a short distance from the main house, which was full of charm, not to mention every possible luxury and comfort, and many lovely touches such as the sprig of lavendar on each pillow and the floppy sun hat in the wardrobe.

We went up to the house for pre-dinner drinks and met our fellow guests, two Irish couples who, like ourselves, are on the RWC rugby trail. We all sat down together with our hosts for a wonderful dinner and an altogether fantastic evening. It was a real dinner party atmosphere, very entertaining and the conversation flowed freely along with the excellent wine. It was lively company and by the end we were in full voice singing Irish songs and our new Irish friends were surprised to find that Amanda knew more of the words than they did!!