South Island trip with Lisa and Jake

Jake, Lisa, Trevor and I hopped into the car to see what kind of trouble we could make on the South Island. We only made it as far south as Kaikoura on the east side of the South Island and up to Nelson and the Able Tasman National Park….but rest assured…trouble we found! Too many photos so just going to highlight the super fun stuff….

On the road again…..we saw so many types of landscapes throughout our road trip, here is a snapshot.

“You looking at me?”…lots of cows. This was taken while waiting our turn at road construction on the north island. They were all staring at us…like we were the reality TV show : )

Lake Taupo – a huge lake in the middle of the north island… totally landlocked but saw some larger sailboats around the lake which was pretty cool.

Wonderful reserves with lush native vegetation….and curvy roads going up and down the hills with some really large trucks (ekkks)

After driving through a gorge, we drove by the Tongariro National Park with alpine/plains like landscapes…this is Mt. Ruapehu, 9,177 feet tall, last erupted on September 25, 2007 and is the largest active volcano in New Zealand. We were so high up the air was chilling when we got out of the car to take some photos.

South Island – between Blenheim and Seldon is called the Marlborough area…the largest wine growing region in NZ and home to the beloved Sauvignon Blanc….my favorite!

Rolling fields of grass blowing in the wind…

Kaikoura’s coast line….this town and surrounding areas endured an 7.8 magnitude earthquake back on November 14th, 2016. The sea bed literally came up about 6 feet . You can see the rugged “new” coast (use to be underwater) as we drive along side the “new” highway 1. We were told that all the local seafood you can harvest (Paua, crayfish, Pipis, etc.) were all exposed and dying in the open air after the earthquake and there were hundreds of people collecting them to eat because it was all going to perish and you hate it to go to waste. However, now there is a ban on harvesting in the area to let the species make a comeback.

North Island – Rotorua Feeling excited…we had to check one thing off the list for me…seeing a live Kiwi. These protected, nocturnal native birds are almost impossible to see in the wild so we paid to visit Rainbow Springs Nature Park to witness these cute birds in real life.

The Kaka-also protected in New Zealand and I guess they have a sense of humor.

This guy let me come pretty close to him…it was a stare down ; )

The Sacred Kingfisher…or in Maori “kotare”, It is called “sacred” for it was said to be a holy bird for Polynesians, who believed it to have control over the waves.

I wish this photo gave this guy more justice but they are a really pretty bird.

Have no idea if you can read this plaque but it basically states that male Kiwis do a “dance” for the female Kiwis when mating. I like this idea!

Because Kiwis are nocturnal, the live exhibit was dark..I assume at night they actually turn the lights on so they can sleep. You can barely see it but it’s there.

At the end of our tour there was a water ride called “The big Splash”…..it was a super cute ride in a “log”…but at the end of the ride there is a short but steep drop…it was “extreme!!!”….this is our “extreme” faces.

North Island – Lake Taupo We stopped to stretch our legs and grab a quick beverage (adult versions for all the non-drivers) and ran into some funny sights!

Literally ran into a pie eating contast. These are not dessert pies but MEAT pies! All was good until we literally saw someone puke in a bucket!

A soon to be married couple getting their photo taken by a professional photographer….not me of course : )

Due to it’s beautiful scenery…Lake Taupo seemed to be the place to get married….we saw this guy on the side of the road where we stopped for a beverage. I guess it is customary for the groom, the night before his wedding, to stand on the highway, mostly naked to “humiliate” himself…sign optional….act of love?

Stopped to peek at Huka Falls….the water was glacier blue!

On our way to Huka Falls, our curiosity got the better of us and we had to check out the Huka Prawn Park. By the way…the prawn’s name is “Shawn the Prawn”…..

Huka prawn park were a series of ponds with umbrellas and more than we expected visitors fishing for prawns…you could cook them or have them cooked at a restaurant there. Stranger things?

Well, the town of Turangi, where we stayed at was very small….we found a bar and SLOT MACHINES?

North Island – Wellington The capital of New Zealand and at the very bottom of the North island….this was a biggest city Trevor and I have been to since…..I have no idea when!

Vibrant downtown Wellington boardwalk along the water….kids and adults jumping off into the water from this platform. Lifeguard was on duty

Then they would climb back out and do it all over again…super fun to watch.

Lots of food options on Cuba Street….a mostly pedestrian street with shops, restaurants, and bars…just our style!

Visited the free museum called the Te Papa. There was a Lego exhibit but that cost $20 each so we decided not to go as we only had a few hours to explore 5 floors.

A giant squid! There was a video too about how they caught this Enormous thing!

View of downtown Wellington from the Te Papa roof top

View of Wellington’s harbour from the Te Papa roof top

Hummm…the Bank of New Zealand building with a Burger King?

Still can’t get away…Deloitte is EVERYWHERE! For those of you who don’t know, Deloitte was my old employer….and they have 2 building in Wellington!

Ferry time – Crossing the French Pass between the North and South Island, the ferry was extremely plush: A movie theater, 2 cafes, beer and wine served, 5 levels, couches, and a kids zone. You get all this for a price…it cost Jake about $750 for a car and 4 passengers, round trip but still….pricey!

Can you see the semi-trucks? On the way back we actually saw a train car drive onto the ferry. You can’t stay in your car for the 3 hour trip.

South Island – Kaikoura – After lots of driving from Picton, the town the ferry drops us off at, to Kaikoura, we decided to check into a holiday park where we decided to stay 2 nights.

The holiday park – Trevor and I camped near the beach and heard waves crashing all night.

The holiday park also had a huge Connect Four game…Lisa totally won!

AND…put-put golf? man this was a cool holiday park! We seriously played mini golf for about 1 1/2….we should of brought the wine.

More activities at the holiday park…”The Flying Fox”….we each took turns and videoed each other…totally like kids!

Kaikoura town had an interesting “knitted” theme to it. Some of the lampposts had knitted sleeves on them, handrails too….even entirely knitted benches…here is a knitted bike just outside the outdoor shop.

There was a store front in rememberance of the 2016 earthquake. The town is still in desperate need of revitalization..we were happy to contribute to businesses here.

Kaikoura is known for a sea lion colony….here is a resident

At the sea lion colony the seaweed we saw was none like I have seen before…it was so thick…like leather

A well written tourist spot is Nins Bin who specializes in crayfish…basically lobsters. Trevor and Jake tried to catch some for dinner but no luck…so we stopped on our way out of town for a Crayfish Brunch.

each crayfish had a price on their tail depending on weight. Some of these were priced well in the $70-$90 range. We opted for the smaller version.

Brunch – cooked crayfish with butter, fish and chips, and champagne!

Trevor at Kaikoura point lookout…top of the WORLD!

South Island – Nelson and the Able Tasman National Park Driving back up the east coast of the South island, we stopped in Nelson for 2 nights. The highlight was our day trip to the Able Tasman National Park.

We booked with Able Tasman Sea Shuttle, who we learned gives back a potion of their profits to the National park system, unlike many other companies who operate in the area. The shuttle has multiple boats and has a schedule of pick up and drop off times. They transport hikers on the Able Tasman trail (3-4 day hike), kayakers both overnight and day, and tourist like us who just want a day adventure.

It was like a choose your own adventure…. we got dropped off at one location, hiked a small portion of the trail, then back on the shuttle back home. easy peasy!

These shuttles were so cool. They just ran up on the beach and you just walk on or off.

Then they just lift up the ramp and off they go to the next stop.

Me taking a photo of Jake taking a photo

Hiked about 4km….suspension bridge included…

We arrived at the Tonga Quarry an hour and half later…ready to take a dip in the ocean!

This use to be a quarry..hence the name, Tonga Quarry, tough have no idea why the name Tonga…but there were large builders from the old operations here.

Man o’ war jellyfish (the blue thing) on the beach…ekkks

Freezing cold freshwater streams to rinse off in

This guys is called a Weka….it looks like a Kiwi but more like a chicken….. NZ style

Back on the North Island – Lisa’s birthday in Napier It is near the end of January and my sister’s 40th birthday was coming up. We planned our stay around Hawkes Bay where there are many wineries to check out…we were sure we could find somewhere special to celebrate her birthday!

We stayed in an AirBnB…there was a resident rabbit, named “Rum”….we made sure it had food and water

Pre dinner wine tasting at Te Mata Estate winery. They offered 8 different tastings…we needed some food after that.

Dinner out for Lisa’s birthday…we took a cab to the town of Napier….there was hardly anyone on the street and lots of small restaurants were either full or closed…we liked our little hidden gem…

Napier-It’s the art deco capital of the WORLD? Just kidding…but it is notably a unique concentration of 1930s Art Deco architecture.

Home bound – We pretty much blazed through all the way home and of course took less photos on the way back…funny how that happens…. but these couldn’t be missed!