Kaikoura to Wellington

The journey to Picton was straightforward, initially hugging the coast but then turning inland through rolling hills with deeply incised valleys and little or no habitation. Almost without warning we reached the Marlborough vineyards, which yield the most famous wine in New Zealand.

The ferry crossing weather started off rainy but the skies soon started clearing and the views of both South and then North Island were much better than on our original crossing.

Jean

Eating Crayfish in Kaikoura

Yummy! I trust the food on the plate looks delicious to all readers, especially Ruth, who enjoys her crayfish/lobster!

Kaikoura is a Maori word for “Eat crayfish” so how could I leave the town without doing just that? Well, I’m rather partial to crayfish, so the answer is, I couldn’t! Although this part of the coast is well-known for its fresh fish, particularly crayfish, it’s rather pricey in restaurants but we found a roadside stall selling it so I enjoyed half a crayfish for my dinner last night.

Jean

Crossing back

Three cheers for the car which has completed over 3,200 miles of completely trouble free motoring. Final leg took us 120 miles from Kaikoura to the port of Picton where we picked up the ferry (sister-ship, left) for the three-hour crossing to Wellington.

The Demio will be collected by company guy from our motel tomorrow morning rather than us have to return it to some out of the way depot so that’s good service. All that said we have opted for a bigger 1.5 vehicle for when we are in Tasmania. The 1,3 Demio struggled at times in the mountains. Dave