Christchurch

After leaving our bus parked up at our friend's house on the 20th December, one of their friends, Bill, who is a close neighbour, kindly drove us to the airport from where we flew to Tauranga for the week over Christmas. Great to be with family - we stayed with my daughter - and caught  up with friends again.

On returning to Christchurch, where we are finding Uber a great way to get from A to B, we stayed parked at Helen & Bill's old house for another 2 nights while we did some local exploring. The city and surrounding streets seemed exceedingly quiet which made it easy to bike everywhere. On the Friday we found our way to the cycle path ( love google maps) which runs along the railway line through huge Hagley Park with its lakes and where we never realised there was a golf course, into the city, parking our bikes behind the earthquake damaged Cathedral before taking the tram tour around the city to orientate ourselves. We couldn't believe the number of people we saw riding E scooters - we guess most of them were hired.

Not many people about at all though and most seemed to be tourists. We wandered through the central city which is still very much in restoration mode although we can visualise it being amazing in another 10 years. The eye-catching Art Gallery with it's huge facade of glass panes (no doubt a window cleaners nightmare!) was great to visit as was their big interesting Museum. We ran out of time to see things properly there so will return when we go back to Christchurch.

We had arranged to meet up with Crunch, an old friend of mine from Dunedin university days, at his newly built house about a 20 minute cycle ride from our bus for drinks before dinner. A good catch up. We all had dinner at the local Merivale Pub where we also met some of Crunches regular drinking mates. Then it was back on the road on our lampless bikes before dark descended.

We feel there are more things to see, more cycle paths to ride and many more golf courses to play in Christchurch so we will return but for now we need to meet up with friends from Ohope, who are also travelling in their motorhome, in Ashburton on the 30th. So on Saturday  29th we started heading south, turning inland midway to Ashburton to play golf at the country course of Greendale.

Coringa Golf, Papanui and back to Bryndwr

After checking with the golf pro, we just managed to get ahead of the first group of ladies and onto the course by about 9.00 am.
The green fee of $35, $15 more than McLeans seemed a little expensive as the course wasn't a lot better. Longer though with the fairways being wider and the greens about the same. Trish found 6 par 5's a bit of a challenge but Len had a particularly good round with a net 64!
After a shower ( Trish had to leap out of hers quickly as the drain was blocked and the water was close to creeping under the shower room door into the ladies change area!) some lunch and collecting some toilet "bombs" from the RV Centre we drove on to Papanui RSA and connected to power.
There were 2 other motorhomes already parked when we arrived, one being a large bus which looked set to stay for quite a few days or weeks.
Being so close to the town centre and having a dump station, we decided to stay for 2 nights. Our second day, which was very wet, was spent shopping and watching Bohemian Rhapsody at the comfortable theatre with it's recliner seats in the local Mall. That evening we had a tasty roast beef dinner in the RSA. 

Roast dinner inside, Debussy outside 

Next morning we dumped our waste and headed to  Helen and Bill's old house where we were leaving the bus for a week while we flew back to the Mount for Christmas with the family. The parking was rather tight with the narrow drive, overhanging trees and a newly erected fence creating a right angle hazard - it took a while to get into the right place with instructions coming from 2 directions and often with opposing advice!

"Left hand down" "No - right hand down"

McLeans Island Golf Course & Mountain bike circuit

Again we were welcome to stay the night at the Golf Course before playing the next day - this time McLeans Island course. We were amazed to pass several other courses on our way here - Christchurch seems to be awash with golfers and clubs!
There were very few people playing when we arrived there later afternoon so parking space was plentiful and we had a very quiet, peaceful night - no traffic and not even any planes that we could hear.
No Internet connection though and no blips on the phone. Instead we kept an eye on a cat devouring a rabbit it had caught very close by. By the next day there was very little left of the rabbit even though the cat returned hopefully for breakfast.

Monday turned out to be a beautiful, sunny day with blue sky and no cloud - 27° I think. The course was very quiet like most others we have played at so we had no one holding us up or putting pressure on from behind. McLeans Island had no damage from the big earthquake but they did lose many trees in the 2013 storm. We thought the course was great although the conifer lined fairways were quite narrow and Len found he had to tee off with a smaller club on several holes because of an early dogleg.  In contrast the tee blocks and greens were generous. Quite a number of bunkers around the greens and sometimes in crucial places on the edge of the fairways, however the course and greens were in pretty good condition and were great to play on.

Right next door to the golf course is a good mountain bike track loop so after golf we rode the short distance through the trees to the start of the tracks. We did a 10 km loop with an extra 2 km to go down to the Waimakariri River deciding not to do the other 8 km Coringa circuit seeing we had already had some good exercise playing golf. The circuit we did took about an hour and was a great track, one way only, ensuring that we wouldn't suddenly  meet anyone else around a corner - as it was, we only saw about 6 others. I wondered if my very ordinary bike would be ok on the track, not being a mountain bike, but it was all good- no punctures!

It was good to have a shower back at the Golf club after all the days exercise. The ladies facilities had been locked by then but the lady in the office had told me previously that I could use the men's so I took up that opportunity with Len keeping guard!

We then drove 5 minutes down the road to the neighbouring, busier Coringa Country Club Course where we stayed the night in preparation for playing reasonably early in the morning.

Amber Kiwi Holiday Park and Helen & Bill's 3 day party!

There seemed to be so many vehicles - all tourists- staying at the little holiday park  and I think we were lucky to get a space big enough for our 7 metre bus. After visiting the $2 shop for sparkly things to make us look "festive" for the Saturday lunch we arrived at the campground, after golf, in plenty of time to iron our clothes, shower and get ready for the cocktail party at our friends, Helen & Bill's new house - the first of 3 parties this weekend to celebrate their Golden Wedding - a great achievement these days and both still so happy.

We used Uber to get us there and back which is great - no waiting time, cheaper than taxis and easy payment with PayPal.
It was great to catch up with a few old friends, all their family and also meet others and drink probably too much wine!

Classmates 1966!

The next day we had a busy little morning with lots of washing to be done, dumping and filling the bus and washing down the bus which was very dusty from the gravel roads we had been travelling. Then it was off to the second party - a sit down lunch which was even more enjoyable as we got to know more friends of friends and like- minded people. The food was amazing with the initial large seafood platters followed by chicken, beef, beautiful chargrilled salads, desserts, berries and stupendous cheeses. We don't know how it suddenly became 6.00pm when we had just gone for lunch! Needless to say we didn't need any dinner when we got back to the campground!

Sunday was the third party - a lovely breakfast- and although it was cloudy, unlike the sunny previous day, it was warm enough and didn't rain. This time we drove the bus to the party knowing Len would still be able to drive afterwards.
What a memorable weekend - the first time we have been to a 3 day party! Such a great occasion and we found we knew many more people by Sunday than we knew on Friday!

Time to head for a golf course again after the party so Claudette was programmed for McLeans Island golf course, out past the airport, where we will stay the night before playing golf tomorrow.

Waimairi Beach golf club

Waimairi Beach golf club also has an area where green fee players, with self contained vehicles, can park for free just outside the gate.

Having just played at Rangiora and needing to rest we checked into the club house and booked a tee time for Friday morning. We thought we were the only vehicle in the carpark that night but on waking found another NZMCA motorhome parked close by.  Their blinds were still drawn when we went to play in the sunshine this time. Waimairi is a links course which was badly damaged  and covered with liquefaction after the Christchurch earthquake in 2011. Pretty much all the numerous pine trees were lost and they had to completely reconstruct the course apart from the first 5 holes which we found still rather mushy underfoot in places. by bunkers, sometimes as many as 5. Also water hazards with my ball unfortunately just managing to slip into the far side of the pond on No 17, a par 3! However we enjoyed the course which is definitely one we would like to play again.

A challenging course with many of the greens being protected

After golf and lunch we drove into the city to the Amber Kiwi Holiday Park where we booked in for 2 nights in readiness for our friends' 3 day Golden Wedding celebrations. We decided it would be good to be connected to electricity so we could iron our clothes, dry my hair and have longer showers!

Rangiora Golf Club via Amberley Beach & Leithfield

Wednesday morning dawned grey and cloudy again but before breakfast we walked back up the hill to try to find 'Irene' whose name and address was on the envelope for our $10 overnight fee. Rather wierd, we thought, as there was an iron maiden on the post in the campground. We got a couple of suggestions where to find the road from the rubbish collectors and then from a couple of elderly men chatting over the fence up the hill. There was no one home at Irene's so we ended up putting the money into the iron maiden anyway. Maybe Irene was just a backstop for travellers who didn't have change! We did a circular walk down to the beach and along the mouth of the river which didn't hold much temptation to Len for fishing

No surfcasting today methinks 

So after breakfast it was back on the road again, in fog and drizzle,  to revisit  Amberley Beach where we parked right by the beach and had a coffee whilst watching a dolphin wend it's way down the coast.

From there we swung into Leithfield where we couldn't view the sea from the carpark so we wandered down to the beach and watched the messy waves before continuing on to Rangiora Golf club. We had been hoping that the drizzly rain would clear but no such luck so after chatting to the friendly lady in the pro shop and arranging to play the next day we settled into the carpark for the night.

There was meant to be a ladies social game on Thursday but we were on the course ahead of them - only 6 or 7 players as it happened. Rangiora course, $30 each, stretches over the road, is parklike with wide fairways lined with conifers and was nice to play on.

Poser!?

There were bunkers which we didn't visit and no water hazards that we can remember! We had a quick shower afterwards in the clubhouse - I just needed to move some buckets with things in from the ladies shower first.

We then drove into Rangiora itself to pick up a prescription that had been faxed through for Len, visit the bank and have some sushi for lunch followed by coffee and a very naughty big piece of caramel slice at another cafe - delicious!

Claudette, our Google navigator, was then programmed to take us to yet another golf course - this time Waimairi Beach which is on the coast of Northern Christchurch.

Cheviot Golf Course via Conway Flat; Motunau via Gore Bay & Hirinui River mouth.

After sleeping quite well at the Kaikoura Golf Course we set off the next day in cloudy drizzly weather in the direction of  the 12 hole golf course just out of Cheviot, firstly  taking the turnoff to Conway Flat midway down State Highway 1. We had a cup of coffee overlooking the sea in this very rural area and saw signs for the 2 day Kaikoura coastal walk set up by 2 of the local farming families. The walk starts with a 2 hour 'trudge' along the beach and then turns up into the hills on the farms from where there would be great views.

From there we turned back along the road to continue on to Cheviot, and beyond, to the little rural golf course where there was already a petite caravan parked, it's owners from Auckland and already out playing golf.
We were lucky that the drizzle had eased off and we were able to play 18 holes without getting wet, apart from our socks and shoes. The course was interesting with some drains, bunkers and trees but the fairways had lots of long grass areas ensuring that there was no roll of the ball and sometimes difficulties in finding the ball. And woe betide if you got into the grass off the fairways. However the locals working on the course were all very friendly and welcoming, we played ok, and, we came across some mushrooms that were the biggest we have ever seen - the size of dinner plates!

Fortunately we have always been told not to eat mushrooms found on golf courses because of the chemicals used. Such a shame as even one would have provided us with a big meal!

The next day continued with overcast skies and the promise of light rain. We stopped in Cheviot to dump our waste and use the town's free WiFi - brilliant as it's very easy to chew through our limited data when on the road. The weather, as it was, definitely indicated that it was a pie day so we supported the local cafe by buying one each for lunch which we had out on the coast, overlooking the beach at Gore Bay in front of the little housing settlement.3

A dull Gore Bay

We were really looking for a fishing spot but Len didn't feel the sea calling so after a short walk and getting back on the road we stopped to view the amazing cliffs at Cathedral Gully with the ocean beyond - a truly spectacular sight.

Trish at the cathedral 

The Hurinui river mouth where there is camping allowed for $10 a night was our next stop. Two small camping vans were already there but about to leave. A young French couple were in one and their German friends in the other so we had a good chat with them. They loved looking inside our bus of which they were quite envious of all the space we have!

Len tried spinning for fish in the river for nearly 2 hours but with no luck so we decided to move on for the night to the $10 camping spot beside the river at Motunau Beach.  It was very quiet stay with just one other van - a German family I think - arriving just before dark and parking right down the far end.
We are not great sleepers but we both had one of our best sleeps there.
.

Kaikoura & Len's big win!

Sunday in Kaikoura dawned brilliantly sunny and the golf club was holding their Christmas Tournament. We had already decided that we should enter and play with some other people for a change so we headed on out there in plenty of time in the morning for the midday start. The manager was very welcoming and showed us a good sheltered place to park our bus on the course for the night, a bit further away from the road then their player's carpark.

There were 50-60 in the field, probably similar to their normal tournament numbers. Len and I played with Jenny and Glen, Glen coincidentally being from Tauranga originally and working in the travel industry so we knew quite a lot of people in common. Another lady whom I was talking to there lived, for 35 years, right next door to the Murupara golf course which we have joined this year while we are on the road.
So it is indeed a small world, especially in NZ!

BUT the big excitement of the day was Len playing an awesome game with 65 nett (86 gross) and winning the men's division! He was pretty chuffed and we are both pleased to now have a Christmas ham in our little fridge. Luckily it's deboned and fits in easily. I had quite a good game for me as well and just missed out on a prize by one but that was all good - we didn't want the locals to miss out on their prizes to the visitors!
After a couple of drinks we were pleased to just have a short walk to our bus in the middle of the course and stay the night.

The hunter brings home the bacon 

Kaikoura

Wednesday 5th December, 2018 and the first thing we had to do was find someone in Kaikoura to fix the flattening left, outside (luckily) back tyre on our bus. The same one that we had patched in Plimmerton! We had noticed it going down a couple of days prior but Kaikoura was the closest place to get help. The man at the garage there was so helpful and tried to fit us in straight away until he was called out urgently for a couple of hours to work on a stranded truck. We had plenty to do in the bus to keep us occupied however. Once back the lad replaced the inner tube and cleaned around the wheel and we were soon back on the road after paying a very low amount for the tube and all his work. So low I felt I should have taken some scones in as I wondered how he was earning enough to feed himself.

From there we parked, alongside a few others, at the NZMCA Park at South Bay beside the Trotting Club. From there we walked further along the road to the path that forms part of the circular Peninsula track and heads over the hill into town. We had a wander through the village and into the Isite to check on the walking and cycle tracks. On the northern side of town, at Cods & Crayfish, we had the urge to buy a crayfish at last seeing they are abundant there and should be a good price. I'm not even going to say what we paid for the smallest one they had in the shop but it was totally delicious cooked that night in a mornay sauce. A few days later Jenny, who we played with in the Kaikoura Christmas golf tournament, told us she could have got one for us for $10. We could have bought 7 if we had any money left from buying the one at the shop!

Drizzle and clouds greeted us again the next day but it was a good temperature for walking

Debussy@South Bay

so after parking in the South Bay carpark where all the signage is for the Peninsula walk we set off along the track -

The Peninsula Walk

a breathtaking walk with beautiful views of the coast, rocks, basking and lumbering seals with one or two tourists at times getting a little close for a seal's comfort necessitating their quick retreat when the seal started heading for them.

Seals forever

Once round the point and on the roadside path coming back into town we had to stop at the very popular and busy Seafood BBQ caravan, with it's outdoor seating, and order a crayfish sandwich each.

Great value sea food kiosk 

At $10 each that was a bargain compared to the price of a whole one with the fritter being nice and quite tasty. Not as good as my mornay though! All the time we were keeping our fingers crossed that the threatening rain wouldn't eventuate. It managed to hold off until we got to the path leading back over the hill that we had walked the day before from town. Luckily it stayed fairly light and drizzly in that half hour and we weren't too wet once back at the bus. We then returned to the NZMCA Park down the road for another nights stay.

Friday emerged as a beautiful sunny day and after getting groceries and a haircut for Len we headed south for 4-5 minutes to the Kaikoura Golf Club where it was pretty quiet meaning we could get straight out onto the course with hardly a soul in sight - $25 each. Nice course with trees, bunkers on only a couple of holes and only one little lake as a water hazard. However we did find the greens very hard to read and quite fast after other courses we have played on. We saw that they were holding an open tournament on Sunday so we planned to play in that before leaving town.

Saturday was washing and drying day with a chance to buy a delicious whitebait fritter for lunch at the roadside caravan just along the road from the laundry. Later we rode our bikes from the NZMCA Park along the coastal cycle track which starts off reasonably wide but once reaching the trees becomes windy and narrow with treacherous tree routes. Mountain bikes would be better although we managed fine - just very pleased that we didn't meet anyone coming towards us on a tight bend as it would have been a nasty collision! We actually didn't see any other cyclists at all on the nearly 2 hour return ride which took us as far as under the road at the far end of the golf club. From there on you would definitely need mountain bikes.

Once back at camp we drove into town to eradicate our long held nasty memory of the fish and chips that we bought whilst staying in Kaikoura 14 years ago. I told Len then that Kaikoura would have great fish and chips being right on the sea but what we got were the worst fish and chips that both of us have ever had in our lives - one word only and that was "foul". So bad we couldn't eat them - first time I have ever thrown fish and chips out. This time we bought blue cod and chips at Coopers Catch, a very very busy takeaway and casual eatery right in town, and luckily they were to die for! The blue cod was delicious with good crispy batter and nice chips. These ones were right up there in the ratings, perhaps the best we can remember. So old memories can be cancelled!

So we have done well with eating the delicious kai in Kaikoura - all my favourites - whitebait, crayfish and fish. Who could ask for better treats than that?

Ward Beach, Kekerengu, Koura Bay Lodge

November 6th, 2018

We could have easily stayed longer at Marfell's Beach, a fabulous spot and one of our favourite places on this trip, but Len was fancying a bit of fishing and it was a bit shallow there. So we said goodbye to our relaxing spot and drove slightly further south to Wards Beach, a deep bay between rocks and a stream flowing in a little beyond.

This beach has so many beautiful stones, especially the spectacular rounded sea-moulded white ones.

Could spend hours here!

I really needed another bucket for all my favourites to go alongside the bucket of shells which we also didn't have room for! I so love them! Who needs to look in jewellers shops when we have all these lovely free gems on our beaches?!

The weather had started to really close in and soon we were encompassed within a very thick sea mist, apparently unusual for this time of the year. The sea was also pretty rough but Len tried his luck for a short time before deciding that kelp was the winner - plenty of it clinging to his line and stealing his sinkers.

Some big kelp to be caught!

I had a great viewing spot however from the carpark overlooking the beach having sensed that the fishing conditions weren't great. A couple of motorhomes were parked in the small farm area overlooking the beach where the owners allow self contained motorhomes to stay for a donation. We considered staying but instead opted to drive to The Store at Kekerengu, which contrary to the picture you imagine, is actually a lovely licenced resta

They allow self contained vehicles to park on the vast strip of land with many parking spots beyond the Store for $10 a night. We drove down the hill and parked in the first little bay we came to (first ones there) not realising until later that there were many more private spots further down. This meant that later on we were surrounded by other vehicles, the one right next to us which arrived at dark, being one of those little rental vans with the noisy sliding door which they seem to use many times before midnight and then again early in the morning.

Twiggy

You can only understand what it is like if they have been your close neighbour in a campground!!

The sea mist was still quite thick but we enjoyed a walk down the beach which was well covered with wood and long branches which came down the river in the very heavy rain they had 2-3 days previously. There was a surfer catching the odd better formed wave, something of a rarity apparently before the big earthquake 2 years ago according to an older friend of the surfer who was walking his dog. The uplifting of the ocean floor has made the surfers pretty happy as previously the sea was usually flat.

The wind came up that night so we were rather buffeted about but the next day was sunny again, the sea mist having been driven away.

We really enjoyed the drive from here down the coast towards Kaikoura. It is so scenic driving right next to the ocean with its rocks and hundreds of seals as well as the neighbouring railway line.

Fur seals viewed through roadside fence

Great place for a 30kph convoy

There are still lots of roadworks going on with all the repairs necessitated following the earthquake and the road has only been opened again for a short time. It's only one way traffic in lots of places resulting in lots of waiting time which was great as it gave us plenty of time to watch the numerous seals basking on the rocks and even seemingly trying to surf. Although they were quite close by the binoculars came in very handy.

We were excited to reach the famous crayfish pot shed on the side of the road as crayfish has to be on the menu when you are in Kaikoura but unfortunately because of the rough seas they had no crayfish at all!!

Before Kaikoura we turned off to Koura Bay Lodge which has upmarket accommodation, a licensed restaurant, a subdivision of new houses, a nine hole golf course and offers parking for NZMCA members. The golf was the attraction of course and it is in a beautiful setting - expansive views out to the ocean and the awe inspiring snow tipped mountains behind.
The course itself is quite flat with no bunkers, just a couple of ponds which we didn't go into, so I don't know why my golf was pretty bad again 
I think I'll say it was the heat! The sun was beaming down and it was very very hot - felt like about 27°. The only thing was that Len played as well as ever.

No.1

No.2

No.18

No.19

I enjoyed the beer and relaxing in the sun afterwards. It was definitely the lull before the storm as that night boy did the wind get up - it felt like hurricanes buffeting the bus. The amazing thing was that when I peeped out the window the sky was sparkling with thousands of huge stars - so pretty!

Blenheim again, Awatere/Seddon, Marfells Beach.

December 4th 2018

After a lovely drive from Nelson to Blenheim, initially over the steepish windy hills, and then through the picturesque Rai Valley, we headed again for the Waterlea Race Course where NZMCA members can stay for $10 a night. We picked a scenic spot right between the Racecourse and the 9 hole golf course so we had views from each side of the bus. The horses come out early in the morning to train and at first you wonder what the pounding noise is when you awaken. Then on the other side we could watch the golfers teeing off.

After breakfast we walked into town to wander through the huge market that was being held in all the streets in the centre. Lots of people and diverse stalls with the sun beaming down - it was a very hot, sunny day.

It was then time to head down the coast, our first stop being the Riverlands Truck stop where we needed to fill up with water, the race course having had a private function on which prevented access to the tap, apart from the fact that we needed another size of hose fitting which necessitated a trip to Len's favourite shop, Bunnings.

Friends had suggested we visit Peter Yealands vineyard as they have an interesting "white road" scenic drive through the immaculately maintained large property.

We thought we could just "do it" but after driving for a few minutes from the cellar door we come across a large sign saying that permission must be gained before proceeding. I was all for just continuing on but then our consciences kicked in and we decided we should turn around, which we did. After all our bus is rather conspicuous- you can't just sneak around in it! However we got a good feel for the extremely well kept and well planted vineyard. There seems to have been a phenomenal  expansion of the wine growing area in Malborough in recent years. Beautiful vineyards stretch in every direction.

Mid afternoon we arrived at the 9 hole Awatere golf course at Seddon - right by the main road on the right before you get into tiny Seddon but we missed it and had to retrace our steps. Being Saturday it was Club Day and both 9 and 18 holers  were playing, but not very many so we were able to tag along behind. Quite an interesting 9 hole course and well maintained - trees which didn't trouble us too much, some humps and dips and some bunkers. The tees for the second nine were the same as the first so we easily knew our way round after the first nine.

What a shot!

We had checked with some players before we started whether it was OK for us to stay the night in the carpark and it was. Being close to the road and the railway line meant our sleep was punctuated by trucks, cars and trains but that doesn't happen too often as we can just move on!

Marfell's Beach with it's DOC campsite was not far away so we were there well before lunch the next day.

What a fabulous spot with the camp stretching right along the edge of the beach with trees and shrubs as well as toilets and showers for those who need them. We found ourselves a nice site with great views and good access onto the beach next to the elderly camp manager's caravan and tent.
The landscape of the area will have changed a lot since the huge and complex 7.8 Kaikoura earthquake in 2016 as the sea bed with all it's mussels and other shellfish was lifted up by 1-2 metres.

We had a good walk down the beach fossicking amongst the mass of beautiful shells and rocks. I wish we had room to take a bucket load of shells home - there were so many I loved!
We could have done the 4 hour return walk to Cape Campbell which surprisingly is the Southernmost point of Cook Strait but the fossicking seemed like more fun.

Great to be lulled to sleep that night by the sound of the waves instead of the traffic!

Rabbit Island, Totaradale / Wakefield, Nelson

December 2nd, 2018

Before leaving Ruby Bay we had a walk around the large campsite - beautiful with trees, the beach, barbecues, toilets and cold showers - just $12 a night for 2 - and then back along the beach.

Cute & simple bbq 

We hadn't been out to Rabbit Island before so on the way to Wakefield we bypassed off the main road to explore. No houses on Rabbit Island  apart from one over the bridge at the  entrance, presumably for a worker, but lots of bike/walking trails, picnic areas with trees as well as open spaces for playing games. We had a coffee while it was drizzling in a lovely spot overlooking the beach before walking along the shoreline cycle track for about half an hour. If we had kept going we would have reached the ferry landing where the boat crosses over to Mapua.

Bush transport!

Then it was back on the road to head for Wakefield  and the 9 hole Totaradale Golf Course where the men and ladies were just finishing playing on their club day. It would have been mid afternoon before we teed off but the drizzle had disappeared and we stayed dry for the whole 18 holes, not predicted.

Getting golf gear ready 

On arriving we thought the course was pretty flat but once out there we found there were quite significant slopes to go up and down so it was more of a workout than we expected. Lovely scenery looking across to the mountains and the course was in quite good condition although the greenkeeper apologised to us for the greens being slow. We just found them a little difficult!

We stayed the night at the club - just a donation required - and the next day, after slipping in another 9 holes, we drove to Back Beach at Tahunanui in Nelson where Len did some surf casting.

A hopeful Fisher!

  He caught a small kahawai which he returned to the sea though he did get some good bites. Back beach is a very popular spot for people to exercise their dogs so there were cars coming and going into the small parking area all afternoon. I had a good walk down the beach, in each direction, while Len fished.

Can you believe it?

Our stay for the night was at The Honest Lawyer Pub, on the outskirts, but by the estuary and the excellent Nelson cycle track which we rode last time we were here as far as Richmond. The Pub has a system where overnighters pay $20 for a voucher which you can use there for food and drink so we put that towards having dinner. The Pub was very busy, even on a Wednesday night, and there were 3 other motorhomes staying in the carpark.

Tahuna Motor Camp was our destination the next morning as we had a pile of washing to do and the weather was glorious - perfect for getting the washing onto the line to dry. Len was also able to charge up his Bose speaker for improving the quality of the music in the bus. We had a large corner site and it felt quite luxurious to be staying in a campground especially with the great showers  - powerful and no extra fee to pay. After settling in and getting the washing on the line we walked to the nearest bus stop to catch the bus into town which is of course free for us goldcard holders. It was good to wander the many criss-cross shopping streets and climb the steps up to the Cathedral where they had lots of different Christmas trees on display, all created by different clubs, organisations or schools.

Tower must have been designed by fireman!

T with  the trees

We feel we know Nelson a little better now as on our last trip we didn't spend much time in the town.

Tahunanui Golf Course in Nelson had just been host to a 3 day ladies tournament so Friday was the first opportunity to play it. We booked a tee time for 10.15am and had a very slow, relaxed game on their links course following a 4some and a 3some. At least they helped us find our way around the undulating, bunker filled, interesting terrain with nice views of the estuary and surrounding hills.
I think the slow pace of the game helped me with slowing my own game down and I had a reasonably decent score compared to the pretty terrible games I have been playing lately. All I have to do is slow down and concentrate on the ball it seems! So that was quite satisfying and I equalled Len on match play.

After a coffee we were on the road again this time heading back to Blenheim through the Rai Valley, stopping briefly at a couple of free parking areas by the river, just to have a look. If we needed to stay in that area again we would stay at the Pelorus DOC camp which we loved on our last trip.

Motueka, Kaiteriteri, Mapua & Ruby Bay

Monday 26th November 2018

We enjoyed the drive through to Motueka, the countryside afresh with apple orchards, newly planted fields of hops and glimpses of the river flowing over the grey stones.

First stops in Motueka, after filling up with water at Tapawera, was the I-site for Len where he bought an annual Trout fishing licence and the hairdressers where I had a good cut from the lovely Jacki.

It was still early afternoon and a beautiful, sunny day - T shirts only - so we drove round to the Blenheim Golf course for a game ($35 each) and an overnight stay $10 extra - (if you play golf at most other courses they allow you to stay for free). The course was flat and great - a few too many bunkers for me and not a good score but I would love to play it again to do justice to both the course and me!

Kaiteriteri - beautiful!

However we resisted the temptation to play again the next day, instead driving up to Kaiteriteri, a bustling tiny seaside village with some large new buildings containing a grocery shop, eateries and apartments above, a huge campground and many tourists in their motorhomes and camper cars. Very pretty outlook from our bus on the edge of the sandy bay. We had a stroll around and I had a whizz on the flying fox while Len was stung by a bee on the top of his foot.

Flying Foxy Trish

It was my idea to drive on up the coast road to Sandy Bay / Marahou which is the start of the Abel Tasman great walk - I have done the whole walk before whilst Len and I did half of it together when we were last down in the bus. We hadn't driven the coastal road before however and Len was probably regretting taking up my suggestion as the road very hilly and windy all the way with the bends proving quite tight for the bus. Luckily the road was reasonably quiet so it was all OK. Sandy Bay / Marahou was again full of tourists with many many going out in kayaks - a very popular activity.

Relaxing at Marahou

There were a few whitebaiters out fishing in the stream at Sandy Bay and I felt tempted to stop and see if anyone was selling them as I can't find any in the fish shops!

We travelled back towards Motueka, stopping at a CAP ( charges apply parking) close to the river on the edge of the town for our nights stay. Just $5 a night if you're not needing power. They have a toilet and you can pay $2 to have a shower and $4 to use the washing machine. Len took his spinning rod down to the river to try to catch dinner but unfortunately the one ending up on the lure managed to get away.
Whilst he was there who should drive into the campground but friends from Tauranga, Jen & Pete! It is a small world - we knew they were heading down to Christchurch around this time but not where they were meandering first. So we had a good Happy Hour, another little catchup after dinner and then coffee with Jen's Christmas cake before we all left in the morning. They were on their way to Kaiteriteri whereas we headed towards town to another part of the river to fish. Len should have had the whitebait net instead however as he could see a shoal or 2 in the water!

We stayed the night behind the Motueka RSA (donation) and enjoyed the carvery along with other overnighters from Wanganui.

Sunday came and we had forgotten it was Market Day in town but we soon remembered when we took a side entrance into the main carpark and ended up with our bus right in the middle of the market and nowhere to go until an obliging man moved a no entry sign for us!

Motueka coastal path

After browsing through the market and buying some fruit and veges we walked along the coastal path from the golf club down the the port which has a good, specially constructed by Talleys, fishing pier. A couple of people there but they were only catching weed.

We watched the All Blacks vs Italy game on Prime at 12.00 after which we drove to a CAP (just one spot available behind a house in Mapua for $10)  from where we walked to The Smokehouse at Mapua where we had arranged to meet my nephew, Mark, and family, for fish and chips. It started to get cold and rainy while we were waiting but the drinking spots there are all happy for you to eat your fish and chips inside while you are having a drink so it all works well. A great evening catching up with tasty fish & good chips.

It rained all night and continued when we woke so we didn't put much on the agenda. After a wee drive around Mapua, a chat with Tracy who was helping to charge the battery on their work ute and buying the Best Ever Gourmet Pies, rogan josh lamb for Len and mince for me (it being the perfect pie day - rainy and rather dismal) at the Mapua Village Bakery we finally made the decision to retrace our steps a little and ride out the wet day at Ruby Bay Memorial Reserve ($12 a night for 2) - a beautiful spot, even in the rain, right by the sea.

Ruby and Trish 

From here I have a great view of Len surf casting in the drizzle while I write this blog and wait for my fruit cake to cook. Shallow water does not usually make for successful fishing however so I'm also roasting some veges to put in a curry for dinner tonight.

St Arnaud's and the Nelson Lakes

20th November 2018

Yesterday afternoon we left Blenheim for the Nelson Lakes where, 6 years ago, we just had a brief stop at Lake Rotoroa and a shortish walk of 1 hour 30 mins around the Peninsula at Lake Rotoiti, being driven out by the notorious sandflies which were driving us crazy. This time we're hoping that the wind and incoming cold will keep them at bay. We were amazed how much spread there has been of vineyards along the Wairau Valley compared with when we were here last. Not many cattle and sheep to be seen any more. I guess we are all drinking more wine and eating less red meat!

Coming close to the Nelson Lakes and St Arnaud's we stopped for a coffee at the little Kauri Scenic Reserve DOC site with the temperature seeming to do a nosedive with some accompanying hail and sleet.

There was snow to be seen on the hills for the rest of the trip. At least we have a heater while we are travelling! But not if we are parked unless we are connected to electricity.

At the quaint little settlement of St Arnauds where you can buy necessities and takeaways we parked at the POP behind the Clinker Cafe - $6 a night - and we were the only ones there apart from a little car which came later with a young couple in it. They sort of hid out of sight beside us and goodness knows how comfortable they would have been!

Ready for bed!

It was a freezing cold night at 1° and we had many layers of clothes as well as woolly hats on before going to bed where I needed my hot water bottle and socks. At least our bedding is cosy. It was very difficult to rise this morning with the temperature at 4° inside the bus although the sun was trying to shine through. Our neighbours moved off early however.

After breakfast we started to warm up with the nice unexpected sunshine and drove down to Lake Rotoiti to do the 1.5 hour Loop walk. To go around the lake itself would take 7-9 hours. After completing most of the Loop we extended the walk by going along the lakeside to Rata Bay

Woohoo- no sandflies!

I'm sure it's this way 

then back to Kerr Bay where we started from. Altogether it took us about 2.5 hours - a good length for us these days.

After a BLAT lunch rather than doing another walk we decided to complete this blog and chill out by the lake which was literally what happened - the rain came, the temperature dropped from 14° to 4° in half an hour and the rain almost turned to sleet with snow settling quite low on the surrounding hills - brrrrrrrr - freezing!!!
Out with extra layers and hats and back to our same camp spot behind the café in time to watch The Chase. This time another motorhome has parked on the other side of the gravel carpark. Too cold to go and say hello. At least the sandflies are scarce!

It was another freezing cold night with the inside temperature of the bus going down to 2°. We must be getting very hardy! Very hard to get up in the morning though even with a blue sky and the sun shining beautifully.

After breakfast we drove to Lake Rotoroa to do another walk.

Leaving Rotoiti

Beautiful Rotoroa

The lake was so picturesque with the surrounding hills topped with snow. We parked in the main carpark and walked back across the bridge and up the gravel road to the start of the Braeburn Walk which goes up through through lovely beech and podocarp forest to a narrow but reasonably high waterfall and returns via a circular route - just under 2 hours from the carpark.

Top up there, bottom down there

It was a bit muddy and slippery in the odd place because of the rain we have had but an enjoyable walk nonetheless.

From there we drove on to the Motueka Valley where we stayed the night in the large McLeans Recreation Reserve by the river.

Relaxing at McLeans.

Fortunately it was in the process of being mowed as the grass had been very long beforehand. Apparently the toilet there is disgusting, if you can even find it,  which we didn't. However it would explain why there was evidence of toilet paper etc in the long grass, some of it chewed up by the mower. The river itself is beautiful with very clear water and Len is getting the urge to get his fishing licence so he can bring home the dinner again.

I haven't had any Internet or cellphone coverage for the last 3 days so, for that reason, it will be good to get to Motueka.