We left Welling ton on Saturday (30th December) in glorious weather so the crossing on the Kaitaki was not at all unpleasant. We stopped in Havelock (where both Ernest Rutherford and William Pickering went to school) and then onto Pelorus Bridge where the boys had a swim. The sand flies were just dreadful there – we were all bitten very badly.
Nelson is as beautiful as ever – the boys had great fun on Saturday night at the “Indy” track – chasing each other around and trying to overtake. Both Ross and Colin crashed into the side barrier though. Sunday we headed for “our” spot on Rabbit Island only to discover that because of erosion, it has been barricaded off and the bbq and picnic table removed. It was so disappointing, so we had drive around to find somewhere else to have a picnic – not an easy task as there were lots of people out enjoying the day. We found a spot, parked the car and headed for the beach. There was a chilly breeze blowing but the kids went into the water. When they came out we headed into the park a bit to find protection from the wind. Just as Adrian was finishing the meat, the rain came down so we ended our picnic in the car!
Nelson is as beautiful as ever – the boys had great fun on Saturday night at the “Indy” track – chasing each other around and trying to overtake. Both Ross and Colin crashed into the side barrier though. Sunday we headed for “our” spot on Rabbit Island only to discover that because of erosion, it has been barricaded off and the bbq and picnic table removed. It was so disappointing, so we had drive around to find somewhere else to have a picnic – not an easy task as there were lots of people out enjoying the day. We found a spot, parked the car and headed for the beach. There was a chilly breeze blowing but the kids went into the water. When they came out we headed into the park a bit to find protection from the wind. Just as Adrian was finishing the meat, the rain came down so we ended our picnic in the car!
On Monday, after the boys all had a go on the Bumpy Cars, we went to Mapua to the little aquarium and then headed back to the Island and still the wind was blowing. A quick bbq, a play on the beach and we headed back.
Tuesday was our trip to Cape Farewell,
the most northern point of the South Island; and Farewell Spit, an internationally recognised wetland. The trip over the Takaka Hill was very windy which didn’t do much for Ross as he was already feeling ill. At Collingwood, we joined our four-wheel drive bus for the seven hour trip first to Cape Farewell, which is on a line with Levin on the North Island and then down to the lighthouse at the end of Farewell Spit. On the way we saw seals basking in the sun; oyster catchers, turnstones from the Artic, godwits, gannets and cormorants. Sadly, we even saw a couple of dead Little Blue Penguins which nest on the Spit. At the Lighthouse, we had our lunch and a very welcome cup of coffee. The lighthouse has a grove of macrocarpa trees growing there – one of the early lighthouse keepers would bring back a couple of bags of topsoil every time he made the two day trip to collect mail and nurtured the trees for three years until the could survive by themselves.
Then it was back on the bus for a play on the sand dunes and on to the other end of the Spit where we saw more seals basking in the sun. The boys even climbed up on a rock to have a better view. After a wonderful day out, it was time to head home again across the Takaka Hill – which is really more of a mountain than a “hill”. At Farewell Point, we were in a direct line with Separation Point
Tuesday was our trip to Cape Farewell,
the most northern point of the South Island; and Farewell Spit, an internationally recognised wetland. The trip over the Takaka Hill was very windy which didn’t do much for Ross as he was already feeling ill. At Collingwood, we joined our four-wheel drive bus for the seven hour trip first to Cape Farewell, which is on a line with Levin on the North Island and then down to the lighthouse at the end of Farewell Spit. On the way we saw seals basking in the sun; oyster catchers, turnstones from the Artic, godwits, gannets and cormorants. Sadly, we even saw a couple of dead Little Blue Penguins which nest on the Spit. At the Lighthouse, we had our lunch and a very welcome cup of coffee. The lighthouse has a grove of macrocarpa trees growing there – one of the early lighthouse keepers would bring back a couple of bags of topsoil every time he made the two day trip to collect mail and nurtured the trees for three years until the could survive by themselves.Then it was back on the bus for a play on the sand dunes and on to the other end of the Spit where we saw more seals basking in the sun. The boys even climbed up on a rock to have a better view. After a wonderful day out, it was time to head home again across the Takaka Hill – which is really more of a mountain than a “hill”. At Farewell Point, we were in a direct line with Separation Point
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