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.

Rarangi and Blenheim

Thursday 15th November 2018

Blenheim's not that far from Havelock and it's so picturesque driving into it through the wide valley with it's vast vineyards  and fragrant roses, planted at the ends of the rows, wafting their scent in through the bus windows. Framed from the south by dry brown hills and to the north by hills covered with green trees the contrast completes the picture of this stony but grape loving valley. Rather than stop in Blenheim, apart from to buy some delicious cherries from the cherry farm and go to Paknsave, we headed straight on out to the Golf Course at Rarangi Beach. On our last tour of the South Island in Debussy, 6 years ago, we had visited the beach here and done a little walk but didn't stay overnight because of the howling wind.
The wind blew us around all night but still not enough to blow us over!

Can you see where that one went?

Well, the wind was still there but we enjoyed a game of golf on the flat links course and had a shower in the clubhouse before crossing the road to walk through the dunes to the beach and down to the far end of the beach, past the DOC camp there.

We decided not to do the hour walk to Whites Bay as we had walked enough already with the golf and we had done the short walk to Monkey Bay on our last trip. Returning to the golf club we stayed their the night which we are allowed to do for no extra charge if you play golf.

The next day we passed through Blenheim again to play golf at the Marlborough Golf Course which looked a very scenic course when we googled it. And it was! Set amongst yet more vineyards and surrounding a long hill with lovely homes overlooking these fields of grapes as well as the golf course it was a lovely course to play. We tried not to let ourselves be phased by the numerous water hazards of ponds and streams and I'm not going to talk about all the shortfalls of my golf at present as it's just good to be out there doing it and Len at least is doing fine! But we did enjoy the course and all it's challenges - so much so that we got up early to play again on Saturday morning before the regulars started their Saturday competition. We had stayed the night on site so that helped give us a head start. After another shower in the clubhouse (always a little more luxurious than our quick bus showers) we finally got to have a walk around Blenheim town itself before settling down for the evening at the Racecourse (which backs on to the 9 hole Blenheim Golf Course) where NZMCA members can stay for $10 a night. Toilets are available there as well as 2 washing machines for $4 a load. Just wish they had rubbish bins to use!

So Sunday was washing day and it was still very windy so no problem to dry. In the morning we had a walk through the relaxing Pollard Park which is very close by as we had already arranged to play golf at the Blenheim course next door around 4.00pm when they expected their 27 hole tournament to be finished.
So tackle the wind again we did on the flat fairly narrow fairways flanked by trees and with some crossing over of fairways to be done - all very well signed though. By the time we had played the first 9 we knew our way around though as most of the tees were in the same place for the 2nd 9. Some cheering for me here as my 2nd 9 was 8 shots better than my first. Some improvement at last!

We stayed a second night at the Racecourse getting back in time to see the Morrison family from Marton on Country Calendar.

The next day we had a few things to do in town where I found a cafe making whitebait fritter sandwiches for lunch so that was a treat for me before we pointed the bus in the direction of St Arnaud's and the Nelson Lakes.

Canvastown & Havelock

19th November 2018

Well, a whole week has flown by and in that week, despite it being spring we have gone from summer to winter - 26° in Havelock and now at 5° in St Arnaud at 6.00pm! More about that later.

Tuesday morning, being parked behind the Canvastown Trout Hotel, we decided to cycle the Canvastown Gold Trail, which is just under 15km each way and starts from the Hotel, going up the Wakamarina Valley Road, historically significant because of the 1864 Wakamarina Gold Rush. In that year the population of Wakamarina was about 4500 but there is little evidence of that now and little to show of the miner's workings. Signs at various intervals along the trail explained what we would have seen there 150 or so years ago. But half way up the road we had cycled up and down more hills than what I was expecting and I started to wonder if I'd get up some of the hills on the return journey so we opted to return. The return was actually a breeze and I think that we must have been gradually climbing all the time on the outward ride. Never mind - we have all the information in a brochure!

That afternoon we returned to Havelock, parking behind the Havelock Hotel and enjoying a beer there before walking a circular route of about an hour up to the Waterfall. A nice walk through the bush with a gradual incline.

We had dinner that night at The Captain's Daughter Hotel as I saw they had a whitebait omelette on the menu. So it was whitebait, the first of the season, for me  and a lamb shank for Len.

The next day we were down at the wharf by 9.15am to do the famous Pelorus Mail Boat run which we had been looking forward to for a few days. We had picked a beautiful day to go - calm and with brilliant sunshine, about 24° by afternoon, although we still had to wrap up well on the upper deck. What a fabulous all day cruise it was. Jim, the Scottish owner and skipper, is so knowledgeable, obviously loves the area and is so passionate about what he does.

First mate giving some advice

The bays are so picturesque and it was great to get an insight into the lives of the people he was delivering mail, groceries and other freight, including canoes, too.

Best Mate!

To live in such isolation with no road access and mostly with no Internet accessibility, would make your days so different from what most of us experience.

Fern, Jim's right hand helper from England, was also great with everything and everyone - capable and friendly, chatting easily with the tourists and locals.

Jim found us some little dolphins on the way out and on our return we swung by one of the mussel boats to get a very interesting close view of the team of men hard at work harvesting their green shell mussels.

Mail boat lunch stop 

We had a lovely hour stop for lunch at the Te Rawa Lodge now owned by a Scottish lady and her husband. The lady in the Havelock I Site was also from Scotland and what a great job all these Scottish people in the Sounds are doing for tourism! We enjoyed our hour sitting on the deck at the Lodge eating lunch, seafood chowder for me, and supping our wine!

Feeling tired on our return at 5.00pm we opted to stay another night in the Havelock Hotel carpark before travelling on to Blenheim.

Picton to Momorangi Bay

November 12th 2018

The strong wind gusts continued through the night on Thursday  but no trees blew down and the bus felt pretty stable as we were facing mostly into it.
It was another bleak day on Friday with rain and more wind so we were in no hurry to leave the farm. We wanted to do some washing so after lunch we headed back to the laundry in Picton where there were cleaner machines than we often find. We enjoyed nice fish and chips from the takeaways next door and stayed another night at the RSA waiting for the weather to settle before we ventured around the bays.

Saturday the skies were clearing and after dumping our waste again we drove the picturesque short distance to Momorangi Bay where there is an excellent DOC campsite with some parks right on the water's edge. When we had seen it 6 years ago we agreed that we must stay there if we ever came back so we booked in for 2 peaceful nights at $42 a night for 2 of us.

Fishing wharf in the background 

Loved our site and it was just a short walk to a little pier, popular for fishing, so it was out with the rods and down to the wharf to join a couple of other guys from Blenheim with their chillibin full of beer. Len had the first catch with his spinning rod - a petite kahawai that he threw back, then I brought in a carpet shark which was also returned to the sea. But better was to come with my catch of a very pretty gurnard - just right for dinner that night.

I showed those boys!

The boys from Blenheim unfortunately had no luck at all but they enjoyed the refreshments!

Sunday it was down to the pier again for Len while I had a relaxing time sitting in the Director's Chair reading my book. He made a match for my gurnard by bringing home one himself - another dinner for us. After lunch we walked up and down the Link Pathway back to Ngakuta Bay - a lovely spot closer to Picton - about 50 minutes each way. Then it was back to our fishing spot before dinner where I caught another gurnard - we're getting good at this! Lots of tiny fish could be seen in the clear water as well as starfish and stingrays.

Monday morning I washed our fishing clothes then we walked as far as we could around the bay westward. There had been a few slips so we ended up on the road for a short time before getting back on the track and walking, before we came to more slips, to just past Aussie Bay, another DOC campsite which is only $8 each but small with no facilities apart from a long drop. A nice spot right on the water's edge  though.

Once back to our bus it was time to get the washing off the line - brilliant sunny day with good drying - and wend our way round to Havelock for lunch and a wander. We are now parked in Canvastown behind the Trout Hotel, free if we have a beer or two which is no problem!

Picton

November 8th

Relaxed on board ship

The sea was calm, as we ordered, and we had a great trip over on the 1.30pm Bluebridge sailing, arriving in Picton about 5.15pm. The RSA which is not far up the road and very handy to town was our destination. We have stayed there before and found it very good - quiet and walking distance to everywhere we want to go at a cost of $6 per night. Their busy nights are Thursday- Saturday and the kitchen isn't theoretically open on the other nights but they do a simple heat-up meal, a small portion of fish pie for me accompanied by a nice good-sized freshly made salad and Butter Chicken for Len. Just $5 each so very very reasonable. We seemed to be the only ones having dinner there - just 3 committee members who we chatted to whilst having a wine and waiting for our meal. Just 2 other motorhomes in the car park.

Wednesday morning we did the easy walk to Waikawa Bay - about 50 minutes along the track and then a little longer to continue onto the Waikawa Reserve. We thought there might be a cafe there but only found toilets, ducks and seagulls so after eating our apples and feeding only the ducks our cores we headed back round to the large marina where The Jolly Roger Restaurant and Cafe is.

Coffee accompanied by delicious muffins, especially the cheese one, gave us the energy to return along the pathway to Picton, stopping again to say hello to the very friendly and beautiful horse all alone in it's paddock.

I had seen a whitebait sign up at a fisheries enroute from the ferry so we extended our walk to go there to buy what would have been my first whitebait for the season only to find that they didn't actually have any in and weren't expecting any over the next few days. Such a disappointment - I could already taste how delicious the fritters were going to be! Hopefully we'll find some whitebait somewhere before the season ends.

We decided to stay another night at the RSA - 4 motorhomes there in total this time - and on Thursday morning after dumping our waste we drove with grey clouds overhead and gusty winds to the Picton Golf Course at Koromiko hoping to get a game before the rain set in. It was reminiscent of when we played there the first time 6 years ago - very windy with very strong gusts so we tried to keep away from the trees! We found both the wind and the greens difficult and my score reflected that though I did have a better patch in the middle. We were a little held up by 2 other players for the last 4 holes so we got some sideways drizzle on us before we finished.

It's a nice course ($20 each) and so hopefully if we get to play on it again it will be fine and calm so we are not blown to bits!

After golf we drove around the corner to the CAP park in Freeth Rd - just $5 a night for each vehicle..  Again, we have stayed in this large farm paddock with the sheep and trees before and the golf course backs onto it. We're missing the goat that was here 6 years ago though. It's mid afternoon and there are huge gusts of wind rattling the bus still so we have kept well away from any trees. We have had a nice bus shower though and feel squeaky clean as we relax and hope the wind dies down soon.

Plimmerton NZMCA park and Wellington

What a great position the NZMCA Park is in Plimmerton! A short walk to the shops (mainly restaurants and a superette), train station and, if the weather is kind or even if the wind is howling and you're wrapped up,  a lovely walk around the waterfront. Parking somewhere in Wellington has always seemed a bit of a nightmare so for the NZMCA to have this asset is wonderful. There were lots of vans already parked but still plenty of room and it's so good to have the dump station with fresh water on site as well as a rubbish/recycling station.

Monday morning we caught the modern train which goes very regularly into Wellington and again we enjoyed one of the perks of being older - no charge for gold card holders. Wellington was sunny and the wind was on the wane so we had a wander through the city, stopping in to see Kirsten in her recently opened St Fabiola Boutique in Lombard Lane. She married my nephew, Bruce, in his newly founded Urbanaut Brewery in Auckland in February - an awesome wedding.
Kirsten is a very talented young lady, very skilled at digital textile embroidery and she has some wonderful work on show. Often being called on to do work on commission she made many magical embroidery touches to about a thousand costumes in The Hobbit. A 9 page article in the latest NZ Life & Leisure Magazine (November/ December 2018) gives a great insight into Kirsten's life and work.

Our next stop was The War Memorial Museum where we were keen to see the recently opened Gallipoli Trench Experience created by Peter Jackson. We could join the tour going through in about 45 minutes time so we just had time to do a quick dash down the hill a few blocks to get a takeaway lunch and drink our St Fabiola beer beforehand.

The trench experience was absolutely amazing - the use of holograms and dialogue made you feel like you were really there, experiencing the horror, blasts and gunfire. What a talented man Peter Jackson is. My Dad fought in the trenches in the Somme in World War 1 but could never talk about the dire, horrific conditions  within.

We managed to catch the train back to Plimmerton before 3.00pm when we could still use it for a free ride. On our return to the campground we managed to find old friends from Tauranga, Keith and Diane, parked there so we joined them for a coffee. After dinner they came to see our bus and have a drink or 2 before retiring for the night. They had a 6.00am start to catch the ferry which we are going on in the afternoon.

On the way passed the bus Keith noticed that our outside back left hand tyre was flat! We hadn't noticed as it is sort of held up by the wheel alongside it and hadn't seem to have affected the driving. How long it had been like that we don't know!! Oh dear - something to deal with in the morning!

So Tuesday morning we were up early to take the bus over the road to  Paremata Auto Services who do everything on motorhomes it seems. Such prompt attention and wonderful service at a very reasonable price  - they have all the right gear of course and found a nail in the tube. After a tyre change and tube repair we still had a few hours for me to write this blog and read before heading for the ferry. It was a very windy night and we are hoping the crossing is not tempestuous!

Marton to Foxton Beach

November 4th 2018

The next day the sun was shining in Whanganui and after dumping our waste and filling up with water  we headed to my brother, Peter's, house in Marton for our first catch-up before carrying on to the Marton Golf Club at Santoft, one of our favourite courses. My mother used to play there and my middle brother Rodger sadly died suddenly of a heart attack whilst hitting the ball out of the bunker on the 3rd Hole 2 years ago.

We have donated a ball cleaner which has been installed just before the tees on this hole, in his memory, and the club has kindly given us a complimentary round of golf for doing this.
The course is in great condition and we were so lucky to actually get such a lovely day to play after a run of bad weather.
We stayed the night in the golf club car park where we were able to connect to power - rain and wind again in the night.
The only downside to staying there is that we had no phone or Internet reception so we missed some calls.

The next morning we popped into Peters again before heading out for lunch at my elder brothers house - Robin and Judy's.  Lots more talking and catching up and it was good to see Chris & Tess again as well as Kate and Robin's great grandchildren. The afternoon went by very quickly and afterwards we headed back into Marton to stay at the NZMCA Park there - quite busy with only a few spots available.  And SO cold, bleak and windy again.
The outside temperature overnight went down to 0.7 and it was 5° in the bus - no heater as we weren't connected to electricity so lots and lots of layers as well as socks in bed!

The next morning we had been invited to lovely  Margarets ( my brother Rodger's partner) for early coffee. She lives out of Fielding near the Hawkestone golf club and so after coffee and doing our washing at Peters we made the most of another sunny day by playing 18 holes on this 9 hole course for the first time.

Nowhere near the fine condition of the Marton club of course but for a little course and only a charge of $10 each to play we were happy. Some interesting holes too though neither of us played well - not much run of the ball which I need!

After golf and collecting our lovely dry washing we drove to the Manawatu Boat Clyb at Foxton Beach, another great place you can stay for free right by the river. There were lots of men fishing off the wharf when we arrived at high tide not long before dinner time and they were catching some good sized kahawai. Our plan for the next morning before meeting up for lunch with good friends was to do some of the same but after a night with howling winds and rain that was no different by morning that plan had to be cancelled. The weather is so changeable right now.

So we met up with our friends, Bruce and Jo, at the Foxton Museum cafe for a nice lunch. What an asset the Museum must be for Foxton with all the information about the Dutch settlers and local Maori. There are also big plans underway for reclaiming part of the river which runs close by with lots of new planting beautifying this area - an added attraction for tourists. We also visited the Dutch windmill and climbed as far as we could to the top.
We had such a fun afternoon with Bruce and Jo, after lunch going back to their son's beach bach where they are staying while their new house is being built. So much to talk about and probably a wine or two too many! We were joined for a little while before going out for a roast dinner at the boat club by their neighbours, John and Janine.  John used to live with his parents next to my mother in Marton when she moved into town from the farm and they were good friends to her. What a small world!

We had our nice roast dinner at the Boat Club and afterwards went back to the house to watch the rugby - All Blacks vs Japan. I think we did a lot more talking than watching! Such a happy day and night. We had a good sleep parked in our bus in front of the house and enjoyed a great "proper" shower in the morning before leaving for Plimmerton - we are booked on the Bluebridge ferry to the South Island on Tuesday so are hoping these huge winds die down before then!

Taupo, National Park & Whanganui

We woke to a wet, drizzly day at the Taupo NZMCA park and a cold wind soon developed but we were able to enjoy a cosy welcome at our friends Sally & Dave's house with coffee and delicious freshly baked cheese scones. They have a  lovely house close to the lake edge and it's always good to stop over when we pass through Taupo.

Being such a bleak day we decided to spend some of the afternoon at the movies - A Star Is Born - which we both enjoyed although it gave me a good cry.

On our way out of Taupo

Then it was on the road again and we made the decision to head down the western side of mountains this time, stopping at the Station Cafe in National Park where we could treat ourselves to a special dinner - lamb for me and fillet steak for Len, both of which were nicely cooked. I just often feel that the plates are short of vegetables and this was again one of those occasions. It was still wild and wet outside so it was great to be able to stay overnight in the large parking area by the restaurant. Being right beside the railway line we did hear a few trains in the night but being light sleepers we are used to waking several times during the night.

The next day, Tuesday, we drove through the Paraparas to Whanganui being delayed not far into the journey by a motorhome with NZMCA wings lying on it's side right across the road.

We could see the tyre marks running along the ground on the roadside and some destroyed white markers and maybe a  sign so it appears they were travelling south, as we were, and lost control flipping onto the road. Nobody seemed to know if anyone had been injured.
Cars could edge their way around the motorhome but there wasn't enough room for us or any of the large trucks in the queues to do the same so it was a case of waiting patiently for the tow truck to arrive. It was a nice feeling to be relaxed about this as we weren't in any hurry. I guess we waited about an hour.

Upon arriving in Whanganui we had trouble finding the free overnight parking in town  by the river and after going around the block a couple of times I went into the I-site to enquire and found it was very close by.  The people in Whanganui and many other parts of NZ felt quite a big earthquake (6.2 @ 200km depth, around Taumaranui) mid-afternoon that day but I think it must have happened just when we were reversing our bus into the space and we never felt a thing!

After a coffee we walked over the bridge, up Durie Hill and up the tower for some great views of the city and river.

We were tempted to take the lift up the hill but fortunately it was closed so we did the 175 steps and about the same again to get up the tower. There were 3 lads from Christchurch smoking up the top and there a strange smell wafting about. When I said 'Hi' a couple of them had a bit of a laugh as we think they were!
We enjoyed a peaceful night in our riverside car park- such a privilege to be able to park in these places.