Firstly, we just wanted to say thank you again to Paul and Caroline for putting us up for the night. We know we said yes to absolutely everything you offered us in the way of food, so we just wanted to say again how grateful we are!

After leaving Paul and Caroline's, we decided to stop off in a petrol station in Amberley even though we had half a tank of fuel left. As Alex went to fill up, I noticed the people in the camper next to us waving wildly at us. I waved back thinking they were just happy campers, but then realised that it was Kath and Jon! For those of you not aware, Alex grew up in Leicester with Jon - he lived just a few houses away!!! After a quick catch up and a few "oh my gods" at the pumps, we established that they too were headed for Hanmer Springs and so we set off in convoy!

The pools at Hanmer Springs were amazing (if a little smelly with all the sulphur!) Then that evening (Friday) we were able to test the capabilities of our van as an entertaining venue... and we succeeded... a few beers, a curry (cooked in the van) and a few games of cards - great!

On Saturday morning, we decided to trek the "Waterfall Trail" in Hanmer Springs (yes, I donned the walking boots!) It was a fairly challenging walk (for me and Alex anyway!) but well worth it to see the waterfall at the top! We then headed to Kaikoura in the afternoon. We followed the State Highway 1, which is the coastal route so had some amazing views along the way!

Yesterday, we headed along to the Peninsula Walkway in Kaikoura where we were told we would be able to see a number of fur seal colonies, We were not disappointed! We saw several colonies out on the rocks at sea and one seal coming into shore from a distance - which we were chuffed about. However, when we got back to the car park, there were 3 or 4 seals right up on the shoreline next to where the van was parked! We got some amazing pics of these.

Today was an early start, but it was well worth it - we went swimming with the Dusky Dolphins! They're wild and the boat that you are taken on does not feed them so it's amazing to find yourself surrounded by hundreds of dolphins that are just there out of curiosity, because they want to play with you! When you start snorkelling with them, they come right up to you - they have no fear - and they like you to make noises through your snorkel to entertain them! It was a great experience. No photos of us actually swimming with them, but plenty taken after the event when we were back on board the boat.

We're planning to head north this afternoon (stopping off for crayfish at the side of the road - as recommended by Dan!) We don't actually know where we're staying this evening yet - we'll probably stop at somewhere we like the look of! We're definitely getting the hang of life on the road!