Two for the Road

Boarding our ferry a bit later than expected due to some unexpected maintenance, we enjoyed a very rocky, windy, and scenic crossing to New Zealand’s South Island.

Arriving as the sun was setting, we grabbed a Subway (the only thing that was open at the port town of Picton at 8.30pm) and hit the road, chasing the dying light as we made our way west to Nelson around three hours away, where we were staying for the next couple of nights. By the time we arrived and wound our way up a steep hill and a very narrow road, we got to our place, collapsing into bed, slightly disorientated and not sure of our pick of our first stop on this leg of the road trip. We woke up to a gorgeous day the following morning and driving back down the hill we were greeted by a lovely scene of a bustling harbour, with sailboats, paddle boarders and dog walkers abound.

We made our way to a café close by (Tahuna Breakfast Club) and had a delicious coffee and breakfast sandwich to get us going before we went for a nice long walk along the Maitai river.

Naturally, following this exertion, we felt compelled to enjoy some local oysters before having a quick wander through town and a relaxed evening back at our lodgings. It’s important to refuel, after all.

The next morning we hit the road again, moving south for around four hours, to stay in Westport for a night. This town is one of the first places to be settled in New Zealand as part of a burgeoning gold rush in the mid-19^th century. Unfortunately, there was no gold left.

We arrived in the afternoon, did some food shopping, and went for a run before settling into our room in a lovely old clapboard inn.

Moving on again, today we drove around 5 hours south to arrive at Fox Glacier, travelling along the very scenic Highway 6 along the west coast. We stopped to eat a packed lunch at a seaside town called Hokitika, where we took in some beautiful driftwood sculptures and enjoyed a proper Kiwi delight – real fruit ice cream. We went for mango and mixed berry and both were absolutely delicious.

Pressing on south in the afternoon, the coastal views gave way to incredible mountains and our first glimpse of Mount Cook.

A rustic B&B with a very handy shared kitchen is our home for the next two nights. Tomorrow we are going on a guided walk to see the glacier and experience one of the only places in the world where a rainforest and a glacier meet!

Iris & Matt