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18 February to 2 March 2003
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Left the bus station almost on time. Just as we were about to leave a couple of girls turned up with cases, a selection of carrier bags and an uncertainty of where their tickets were. Every thing was sorted out and we were off but by the time we had made a tour of Nelson picking up passengers it was 10.15 - half an hour later.
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Another change in the weather. The previous blue skies had become overcast with clouds on the hill tops. A light drizzle coated the buses window screen as we drove along the side of the bay on our way to Havelock.
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Although not good for us, the rain was welcomed by the locals where the fire risk indicators by the side of the road showed 'very high'.
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Climbed gradually up into the hills cloaked in plantations of fir in regimental order until we reached the Ria Saddle and the base of the cloud layer. Stopped briefly at the top to allow the traffic caught up behind to pass and then descend the other side into Ria Valley to follow the Ria River down to its junction with the Pelorus River and on into Havelock.
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Havelock is not very big, just one street with quaint old buildings, a small supermarket and a high proportion of coffee shops.
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The hostel we were staying at was the former 122 year old Havelock School. In 1882 the 11 year old Ernest Rutherford started his four year attendance there before going on to Nelson College and fame as the scientist who split the atom.
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The wooden hostel was friendly but some of the internal adaptations have become ungainly and could do with taking out and starting again whilst still maintaining its character.
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The afternoons weather was not good with gusting wind and rain. Between showers we ventured down to the visitors centre to discuss our tramping plans and check email.
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As the afternoon wore on the sun came out and the outlook seem brighter, though the forecast was for more of the same.
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Woke to beautiful blue skies, we were told that the forecast for the next few day was good.
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Caught the InterCity Bus for the last time on this ticket for our drive to Picton via Blenheim on the SH6. Not the most direct route but the one which the main road follows. Despite the heavy rains the area had over the previous few days the grass was still yellow. The route took us through yet more vineyards, wine making has really taken off in New Zealand and is still expanding. We had been told that in order to prevent bringing in diseases that all new vines have to be cultivated in New Zealand and that there is such a demand that there is a wait of up to four years.
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From Blenheim we turned back north on the SH1. The sky clouded up and we had a few spots of rain before we reached Picton, a small town that was once home to whaler and metal workers but now more used by travellers as the gateway between North and South Islands, and as a place for retirement.
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Spent the afternoon at the Visitors Centre sorting out our arrangements for the Queen Charlotte Track . The problem was that there were so many options of how to get their, how to travel along the track and where to stay. One option that caught our eye was the Tramping Track Boat which would have taken us out and met us at the end of each day so we could sleep on it, unfortunately it sailed on Fridays and Mondays and so didn't fit in with our schedule. Other options that we didn't consider were kayaking and mountain biking or combinations of the two along with tramping.
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The tramp can be down over 3 nights/ 4 days but the arrangements of the stopping places means that you either walk 2 short days followed by 2 long days or the other way around. Or of course it can also be walked in the opposite direction, but the transport arrangements mostly assume starting from Ship Cove.
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We opted to walk 2 short days and 2 long days starting at Ships Cove. We used Beachcomber to get us out to the start of the track, their package also included free baggage transfer between each nights stop and so we only needed to carry a day pack.
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Walked back to the hostel via the wharf to check out where we would be catching the water taxi the next day and then up the High Street. A chill southerly wind blew straight in from Antarctica.
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The Wedgwood
Picton YHA is an associate backpackers made up of a couple of nondescript adjoining properties. We stayed in the annex in a mixed dorm with its own common room, kitchen and bathroom. In total the annex slept six and all of us spent the evening talking about where we had all been and the best places to go.
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Drove out of Picton heading south on the SH1 first stopping in Blenheim to do some shopping. The day was hot and sunny but the girl on the checkout said it wasn't as warm as 2002.
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Continued south over coastal flats containing wineries, with hills to our right and the sea to our left. Climbing up to Dashwood Pass parched grass give a desert type landscape of yellow rolling hills with oasis of green trees. Small billboards beside the road advertised more wineries and craft outlets.
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At the Awatere? River, just north of Seddon we came upon a two-tier bridge. On the bottom tier was the road and overhead was the railway line. Travelling in the opposite direction were the train and buses making their way up to Picton for the 1pm ferry.
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Sea salt is one of the products of the warm sunny coast with large lagoons of sea water drying in the sun and reflecting the colour of barbie pink.
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On the hillsides all there was were a few sheep and cows, it was a wonder that they were able to find enough sustenance on the parched grass.
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Until we reached the Wiama River we had no views of the sea but from then on the road competed with the railway for the best position. Sometimes the road took the coastal side and some times the railway would win out. In front of us Mount Te Aowhekene poked through a few clouds hugging its sides.
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Just before Rakautara, at Ohau Lookout we pulled in to eat our lunch and at the same time watch the fur seals on the nearby rocks. Young pups played on the rock ledges and swam in the shallow pools while older ones sunbathed close by. A few braved the swirling waters - were they playing or feeding? By their antics it would appear to have been the former. It was amazing they weren't dashed on the rocks by the large rolling waves.
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Continued down to Kaikoura and the Maui YHA where we would be spending two nights.
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Maui YHA is a purpose built timber hostel about 30 years old which has undergone a number of enlargements over time and was in the process of being refurbished. The section we were in was modern and well decorated but three rooms in another wing were being gutted and remodelled. The kitchen was also in some need of improvement to the plumbing with only two sinks with hot and cold water (the other had the hot tap blanked off) and the taps being a little temperamental.
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After we had settled in we took a 2km walk back into town along the beach road and passed numerous motels B&Bs and lodges. Pleasant though the town is there seemed to be more accommodation than was required but many didn't have any vacancies. Possibly its greatest attraction is that it's the largest town between Picton and Christchurch, many other places on the map were just that, a name given to a few scattered houses.
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History
About 80,000 years ago periods of rapid uplift raised the layers of limestone and siltstone, laid down on the seabed about 60 million years before, to form the twisted and weathered outcrops that today make up the Kaikoura Peninsula. Originally an island, the peninsula has since been joined to the mainland by steep plains built up of debris swept down from the mountains in the Hapuku and Kowhai rivers.
In Maori lore the peninsula was the place where Maui braced his foot when he fished up the North Island and was named Te taumana o te waka a Maui; the thwart of Maui's canoe. The name Kaikoura, meaning meal of crayfish, was given by Tamaki-te-rangi when he stopped over to eat here while chasing his runaway wives. It is likely that Kaikoura was first settled by Waitaha followed by Ngati Mamoe and then the Ngai Tahu tribes.
As Moa numbers declined crops and settlements became more important so they built lookouts and fortifications around their hilltop pa sites. Although they were only occupied for short times there are at least fifteen of these pa sites in and around Kaikoura with fierce battles occurring at some of them.
Robert Fyffe, reputed to be Kaikoura's earliest European settler, established Waiopuka, the first shore whaling station near where his house, started about 1845, still stands on it's whale bone piles. Other whaling stations soon followed at South Bay but after 1850 whale number steadily declined and the exploitation of them became uneconomic.
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The weather of the previous day had been gorgeous and we had no reason to think that today would be any different. As the sun was in the wrong position we had left photographing the panorama of the Kaikoura Mountains across the bay until this morning but when we awoke we found grey skies, drizzle and no views.
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Armed with our waterproof and umbrellas we decided to follow the Peninsula Walkway. By the time we left to walk down the road to the Fyffe House, the drizzle had stopped so we were able to proceed without any rush. We stood for a while near Fyffe House looking over the sea shore and watching a shag diving under the waves. Passed by the old wharf and round Armer's Bay with its flat rocks and beech, which were being used to launch boats, until we reached the car park.
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Fur Seal
Kaikoura
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On the car park wall, oblivious to all the tourist lay a dozing seal which allowed us all to obtain the best close up photo we are likely to get. From the car park there are two choices, if the tide is low to follow the tidal platforms around the base of the cliffs, as the tide was coming in we chose to climbed up the path and follow the cliff top walk. The peninsula was once an island that rose up out of the sea and is now connected to the mainland by debris that has washed down from the Kaikoura Mountains. The top of the peninsula is a plateau with a few rolling hills with Maori pa sites.
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Fourteen pa sites are on the peninsula, its steep sides and large flat areas made ideal lookouts and retreats in times of danger. Most had palisade fencing (stakes driven into the ground) and were ringed by deep trenches or bluffs.
Two of New Zealand's oldest known archaeological sites are visible from here. In 1857 a human skeleton clutching a Moa egg was found at Avoca Point. Very ancient middens (shell dumps) lie at Clarence (Waiau-toa) river mouth.
Many archaeological sites succumb to natural weathering, others are destroyed by land development. You may be surprised that the sheep which graze this peninsula actually protect the old pa sites by controlling deep-rooted plants. By "mowing" the pasture they also keep the features visible.
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The views over the sea were good but no better than many others we had seen and the wild life was sparse though varied with gulls, shags, goldfinches, and even a kingfisher. Descended into Limestone Bay and continued around to South Bay from where, after a short walk through the village we turned right and headed back over the hill to Kaikoura, via Nga Niho Pa.
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Shags
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After lunch at the hostel we drove out to Kaikoura Winery which offered tours of their cellar. Felt that at NZ$7.50 each we could give it a miss but did buy a bottle of wine before returning to the hostel to relax among the workmen.
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Drizzling again - quite heavy at times, so dashed in and out with our bags to the car.
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Followed the SH1 along the coast again, through tunnels and round rocky headlands before drifting inland. The weather tried to brighten as we moved south, but without success. We entered the Cheviot Hills which indeed did have the appearance of the British equivalent. Just before reaching the town of Cheviot we passed by a cemetery with the amazing name of 'Homeview Cemetery'!
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The subdivision of the Cheviot Hills run was a major event in New Zealand land settlement. In order to divide the estate among the Robinson family, the trustees invoked the 1891 tax law and sold over 34,000ha at their valuation of #260,000 to the Balance government in 1893. Under John McKenzie, Minister of Lands, Cheviot Hills was cut up in 1893-4, mainly into small farms and grazing runs on leasehold tenure. Subdivided in the depression, Cheviot prospered in better times from 1896, providing a successful precedent for numerous farm settlements on land repurchased by the state.
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Turned left at Cheviot and headed our to Gore Bay with its claim to the wonderful Cathedral Cliffs, but in the drizzle we weren't able to see them at their best.
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We had planned to drive down as far as Waipara before turning north again on the SH1 but as we weren't getting any views along the coast we decided that perhaps we should cut the trip short and head in land to Hamner Springs. Returned to Cheviot for a drink and then up to Parnassus before heading west to pick up the SH7, the weather improved with every mile and dried out completely by Hamner Springs.
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Booked into the excellent, purpose built hostel which only seemed to be about half full. After lunch we took a stroll up Conical Hill, a vantage point just outside the town but the views weren't great, being partially obscured by trees and bushes.
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Return and for the rest of the afternoon took our selves off to the hot pools, for which the town is renown.
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Another change in the weather, we were back to clear blue skies though mist still hung in the river valleys and in high, secluded mountain valleys. With the sun still low creating deep shadows on the faces of the hills we headed west on the SH7 following the ? River upstream. As we got closer to Lewis Pass we could see pockets of snow on the mountain tops. Just after Engineers Camp the road swung north to take us up the ? valley.
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Stopped for a photo shot of the forest clad mountains just passed the top of Lewis Pass and then dropped down the other side to Maruia Springs and Springs Junction where we turned up the SH65 and head up the broad Maruia valley.
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At the SH6 we turned left for a short while to visit the Buller Swingbridge, claimed to be the longest swing bridge in New Zealand. Paid our NZ$5 each and walked across. Didn't swing very much, though the walkway did tilt a bit. returned back up the road and followed the SH6 into Murchison where we stopped for a break.
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The Buller Gorge Swingbridge is 160m long from anchor to anchor and 110m long between the two gantries. This bridge was built in 1988 after the previous bridge, built in 1974, was washed away by floods.
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Continued east taking the SH63 through St Arnaud and following the broad Wairua River flats down to Renwick. After a break in Renwick we took the SH6 north to Havelock to pick up the Queen Charlotte Drive, part of the Treasured Pathway running across the north coast of South Island. The road was twice as long as it would be, as the crow flies, with many twists, turns, climbs and descents.
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Stopped at Momrangi camp site for the night, booking in to a chalet about 2 metres square with four beds - cosy but comfortable. Sat out in the sun for a while and then walked down to the bay.
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Just a short journey back to Picton. Checked the bags in at the ferry terminal and returned to town to drop off the hire car and have a drink before walking back to the ferry to await the 11.30 departure.
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After nearly 3 months on South Island we returned to North Island.
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