Abel Tasman Adventure

Well, sadly, our three week holiday has come to an end, and David and I were both back at work this week. Our Christmas holidays were a whirlwind of visitors, camping trips, lazy beach days, and lots of adventures. I don't want to overwhelm anyone, (myself included) so I'll break it up and write a series of mini-blogs instead of one big one. We'll start with our Abel Tasman adventure with Renata.

After Christmas, my lovely friend Renata came to stay with us for a few days. I can't tell you how nice it was to see one of my friends from home...it was so cool to have her here in New Zealand! We had lots of fun riding our bikes, swimming and lounging at the beach, and eating lots of yummy things from fish and chips, to whitebait, to home-made pancakes with all the toppings, and drinking raspberry mojitos and having Baileys in all our hot drinks..mmmm. (Thanks Renata!)

Happy to have made it in time for the last ferry to Mapua

Lining up to catch the bike ferry

On the ferry to Mapua

Yum! Fish & chips in Mapua

Tahuna Beach

By far, my favorite part though, was our overnight trip to Abel Tasman National Park, where we stayed in the Bark Bay Hut. There are lots of huts all over New Zealand, and I've wanted to stay in one since I first visited last year, so I was quite excited about it. I was a little worried that it would be a little too cozy, as I've heard stories about trampers who have awoken to find their bunk mates a little too close for comfort, having inadvertently rolled over in their sleep. Fortunately, none of us had to worry about it though...we lucked out and got the whole top bunk to ourselves! Aside from a couple snorers (Renata ratted David out as one of them! LOL) it was very pleasant and cozy, and we were all grateful for the roof over our heads during the night-time torrential rains! There were 20 or so people at the hut, mostly families, and we got to know some of them over dinner when our camp stove failed. I came outside to find David, Renata and a guy I had seen earlier playing with his kids, all staring at our little camp stove that was perched on the front porch. I asked what happened and was informed that the propane cylinder was somehow damaged when it was put on the base, and we wouldn't be able to use it because it was leaking. For the next minute or so, the three of us just stared at it and must have been quite a sad sight, because our new friend suddenly said "Well we can't let you go hungry, can we? You can use our stove."As we waited for the water to boil for our pasta, we were all very conscious of how long it was taking, and kept checking it, when suddenly, the gas ran out. Before we had time to react to our new dilemma, his son who was about 7 or 8, came over and announced loudly: "Well, that's our gas gone!" We all stood there mortified for a second before his Dad came over and swapped the old canister for a new one. We were all extremely grateful that we didn't have to eat trail mix, or scroggen, as it's called here, for dinner. It was David's birthday, so that really wouldn't have cut it. For dessert, Renata and I made cupcakes and surprised him by asking our fellow trampers to don party hats and help us sing 'Happy Birthday'.

On the boat to Awaroa to start our walk to Bark Bay..the waves were huge, which made for quite a ride..very rough!

Our awesome skipper who carried all three of us (yes, even David!) off and on the boats at our stopover on the way to Awaroa..what service! :)

My first experience crossing  an estuary! The water was about waist deep.

David sporting our flashy wet weather backpack cover.

Bark Bay Hut

Getting excited about our yummy pasta dinner, thanks to the kindness of our fellow hut-mates.

The hut was also home to a tame paradise duck who had taken up residence outside on the porch, waiting to be fed, and occasionally trying to wander inside and check things out. When the sliding door was closed, he would charge at the glass whenever anyone came near it, which was quite funny. When we woke up the next morning, we heard some tapping at the window above our bunk, so we got up to check it out, and all we could see was a beak, nipping at the window...it was the duck on the roof, peeking in the window at us, LOL!

For our second day, we went on a guided kayak trip from Bark Bay to Kaiteriteri, which was beautiful, but quite challenging. When we booked it, we were told that it was suitable for beginners, but Renata and I were seriously struggling about three quarters through our 6 hour trek. At one point, during a particularly long stretch, we were dead last by a long shot, and one of the guides asked us if we could pick up the pace and go a little faster. I don't think she knew what to say when I told her that we could absolutely not go any faster, and that we were already going as fast as we could. It's a good thing we stopped for a nice long lunch break at one of the beaches along the way, because I was pretty close to giving up and refusing to go any further, LOL! I'm proud to say we made it back to Kaiteriteri though, no rescuing required!

Bark Bay: Ready to set off on our kayaking adventure!

Approaching Adele Island

Checking out the seal colony

Lounging on the beach after lunch

At last! Approaching the beach at Kaiteriteri