Napier, New Zealand

Hawke’s Bay is a sunny wine producing region on the west coast of the North Island. We spent a few days in Napier, a town which is well known for both its 1930’s Art Deco architecture and for being home to New Zealand’s oldest winery (Mission Estate Winery). There are tons of wineries in Napier, you could easily spend a day cycling around and sampling the free tastings. We’d heard good reviews of Church Road’s Wine Tour & Tasting session, so we decided to book it up for the following day.

Mission Estate Winery

Church Road Winery Tour

The tour was really informative; they took us behind the scenes and explained the key factors that influence the wine’s flavour. The best part of the tour was, of course, the wine tasting. We sampled a mixture of red and white wines and decided to treat ourselves to a few bottles of our favourite wines – the Pinot Gris and the Cabernet Sauvignon. Delicious!

Next stop: Lake Taupo, New Zealand

Wellington & Mangaweka, New Zealand

After an incredible 4 and half weeks on New Zealand’s South Island, we took the 3 hour ferry ride through the picturesque Marlborough Sounds before crossing the Cook Strait to the North Island. We arrived in Windy Wellington just as the sun was setting and it wasn’t long before we found somewhere to pull up our campervan for the night.

Leaving Picton, South Island

Sunset over Wellington

We only spent one day in Wellington, so after wandering around the harbour we headed to the Te Papa Museum. The musuem is free and had few interesting sections including an introduction into Mauri culture, New Zealand’s native wildlife, an earthquake simulator and some incredibly lifelike waxworks. Afterwards we headed up to Mount Victoria for a nice, albeit windy, view of the city.

Waxworks at Te Papa Museum

View from Victoria Hill

Our next stop was visiting some family friends, Louise and Mark, who live on a remote hill farm on the outskirts of Mangaweka. When we arrived Mark took us for a ride around the farm in his Ute (aka pickup truck) and showed us some of his sheep, cattle, horses and deer. The view over the surrounding mountain ranges was pretty impressive too!

View from the farm

Mark & Louise

After sunset, we put our ‘togs’ on and jumped into the hot tub. This was such a treat after spending almost 5 weeks living out of a campervan. Louise and Mark were fantastic hosts; it was great to catch up and have a few days of relaxation!

Next stop: Napier, New Zealand

Kaikoura, New Zealand

Kaikoura is one of the best places in the world for whale watching. Just off the coast is a huge underwater canyon system and its nutrient-rich waters attract Sperm whales all year round. Humpback whales and occasionally Blue whales can also be spotted as they pass through the area during their annual migration.

We pulled up at a lovely beachfront campsite and after watching the sunset, we fell asleep to the sound of the waves crashing against the shore. The next morning we headed into town and walked along Kaikoura’s peninsular walkway. There were some fantastic cliff top views and tons of seals lazing on the beaches below.

Instead of whale watching, we opted for the more interactive experience of swimming with wild Dusky dolphins. Dusky dolphins are one of the most acrobatic species of dolphins and they are very sociable; often swimming in large pods of up to 500 dolphins. To attract the dolphins’ attention we were told to dive down, swim around in circles and make strange noises. We might have looked and sounded a bit odd, but it seemed to do the trick! We were surrounded by tons of inquisitive dolphins and even spotted a couple of dolphins mating. It was an amazing experience and it seemed like the dolphins enjoyed the interaction too!

Dusky Dolphins

Once we were back on dry land, we walked along Ohau Stream to a small, picturesque waterfall that becomes a sanctuary for young seal pups in the winter months. The pups spend the day playing in the stream while their mothers are busy hunting for fish in the sea. It was well worth the 5 minute walk to watch the adorable pups splashing around and waddling over the rocks.

Ohau Stream

Next stop: Wellington, New Zealand

Abel Tasman, New Zealand

Abel Tasman National Park stretches from Tasman Bay to Golden Bay on the north coast of the South Island. We decided to explore the area by doing a 2 day self-guided kayak trip, spending the night in a hut on one of the secluded beaches. Aided with a map and a couple of flares (just in case we got into trouble) we paddled off into the distance.

We kayaked passed a few golden sand bays before we reached the northern tip of Adele Island. The island is home to a seal colony and we watched on as several young pups splashed around in the sea. The pups are definitely more playful and inquisitive than the adult seals who seem to prefer basking on top of the rocks. After getting our seal-fix, we kayaked back to the mainland and pulled up on one of the beaches for a quick lunch stop. We didn’t hang around for long though as a few pesky seagulls kept swooping in and trying to steal our dinner. After lunch, we kayaked further north along the lush coastline before we reached our hut at the beautiful Anchorage Bay.

Anchorage Bay

We set off early the next morning, we were keen to make the most of our last day on the water and it wasn’t long before we spotted some unusual activity on the horizon. We quickly kayaked over to get a closer look and we were amazed to see a large pod of Bottlenose dolphins surrounding us. We couldn’t believe our luck; they swam so close to the kayak and often passed beneath us. It was incredible!

We kayaked alongside the dolphins up to Tonga Island Marine Reserve. I’d like to say they were trying to keep up with us, but it was definitely more the other way around. Two dolphins were particularly intrigued by the kayak (and gopro) and kept us company while we were lagging behind. At Tonga Island there were a few seal pups who swam along with the dolphins, occasionally they were flung into the air in what looked like a game of seal volleyball. I think the dolphins were definitely having the most fun at this point.

Just before we were due to head back to the mainland to catch our water taxi the dolphins treated us to a private acrobatic show. They were jumping out all over the place, doing tricks within meters of our kayak, and the more we cheered the higher they seemed to jump! It was an amazing way to end our kayaking adventure and it stands out as one of the most memorable moments of our entire trip.

Next stop: Kaikoura, New Zealand

Arthur’s Pass, New Zealand

Arthur’s Pass is a small alpine village that is nestled between the Southern Alps. The drive into town was particularly scenic, the road snakes its way through the valley and around the mountains before passing over the Otira viaduct. We stopped off at Devil’s Punchbowl, an impressive 430ft waterfall, before heading to camp for the night. This was one of the wildest campsites that we’ve stayed at so far and once night fell, we had a great view of the milky way and the starry night’s sky.

Otira Viaduct

Devil’s Punchbowl

Camping in the wilderness

The next morning we scrambled our way up to Avalanche Peak. Once we had climbed out of the tree line and edged our way past a few sheer drop offs, we we surrounded by mountains and snow capped peaks. We had a quick lunch stop at the top, before heading back down the mountain and driving to the west coast. The walk took us around 4.5 hours in total, it was a tough climb, but it was definitely worth it for the views!

View from Avalanche Peak

On the west coast we visited a glowworm dell and Hokitika Gorge before driving north, along the tropical coastline, to Punakaiki. Punakaiki is a popular stop off due to the famous Pancake Rocks. These limestone formations have been heavily eroded, by the Tasman sea, for thousands of years and the layers now resemble huge stacks of pancakes. There were also some impressive blowholes along the walkway that kept us entertained for a while!

Hokitika Gorge

Pancake Rocks

Next stop: Abel Tasman, New Zealand

Fox & Franz Joseph Glaciers, New Zealand

Fox and Franz Joseph glaciers both descend from the Southern Alps and stretch for around 12km out to the coast (only 300m above sea level). After a brief stop off at the blue pools, we arrived in Fox Glacier town to a day of torrential rain. As the forecast was looking more promising for the following day, we decided to sit it out and wait for the rains to subside.

Blue Pools

Thunder Creek Falls

We awoke early the next morning and started off with the terminal face walks to both Fox and Franz Joseph glaciers. For safety reasons you can only get within 200m and 750m of the terminal faces, unless you pay for a helicopter tour that is! Our next walk was the 1.5 hour circuit around Lake Matheson. This was a beautiful walk and we were really lucky to see the near perfect reflection of Mount Cook and Mount Tasman in the lake.

Fox Glacier

Franz Joseph Glacier

Lake Matheson

We finished the day off with a tough 5 hour trek to Robert’s viewpoint. The path took us over 4 long suspension bridges, crossed waterfalls and streams and involved lots of scrambling over slippery rock faces. It was our most challenging walk so far and probably the most fun too. From Robert’s viewpoint we had a great lookout over Franz Joseph Glacier. We walked for around 8 hours in total, it was a great day and our legs were certainly ready for a good rest afterwards!

Robert’s Viewpoint

Next stop: Arthur’s Pass, New Zealand

Wanaka, New Zealand

Wanaka is a charming lakeside town with plenty of activities on offer. It feels like a smaller, more relaxed version of Queenstown and was particularly beautiful when we visited in May as the autumn colours were really vivid. On the drive over from Oamaru we stopped off at the Elephant Rocks, which are huge boulders that featured in The Chronicles of Narnia films. It was fun spending half an hour or so scrambling and climbing up over the rocks.

Elephant Rocks

Lindis Pass

Lake Wanaka

In Wanaka we hiked up to Roy’s peak which was a really steep 5 hour walk. It was probably our toughest climb so far, but we had great views looking out over Lake Wanaka and the snow capped Mount Aspiring.

Mount Aspiring

Diamond Lake

We also did some back country horse riding on Appaloosa (Native Indian) horses in the stunning Cardrona Valley. Neither of us have ridden much before, but we really enjoyed it and it’s and definitely something we’d like to do again!

Next stop: Fox and Franz Joseph Glaciers, New Zealand

The Catlins & Otago Peninsular, New Zealand

The Catlins Coast stretches from Invercargill to Balclutha. The rugged coastline and deserted beaches are home to a variety of marine life including the endangered yellow-eyed penguins, Hector dolphins and Hooker’s sea lions. We spent 4 days exploring the area and witnessing some of its wildlife.

Sandfly Bay

Yellow Eyed Penguins

Hector Dolphin

Shags

Nugget Point Lighthouse

Tunnel Beach

Hooker’s Sea Lion

My favourite sighting was spotting the adorable yellow-eyed penguins (the rarest breed of penguin) waddling ashore to their nests, whereas James preferred getting up close to the Hooker’s sea lions at Cannibal Bay.

We also visited the quirky Lost Gypsy Gallery which is filled with interactive (wind up and button pushing) creations. For example, there was a piano that was hooked up to various objects around the room, so playing a key would trigger anything from a whirring fan to chattering teeth. It was really good fun looking around and playing with all the amazing inventions!

The Lost Gypsy Gallery

The Quardagurgle – this makes the strangest sound!

An elaborate water wheel

McLean Falls

Purakaunui Falls

Moeraki Boulders

Our last stop on the south east coast was at the Moeraki Boulders. These unusual but supposedly naturally formed boulders are almost perfectly spherical and range from 0.5 to whopping 2.2 meters high!

Next stop: Wanaka, New Zealand

Milford Sound, New Zealand

Milford Sound is one of the wettest places in New Zealand with a staggering 6,813mm annual rainfall (compared to a mere 594mm in London). After checking the weather forecast in Queenstown and realising we had a one day window of sunshine, we decided to push on and head for Milford Sound that afternoon.

We awoke the next morning to perfectly clear blue skies and thankfully managed to squeeze on to the early morning boat trip. We cruised through the fiord, passing several huge waterfalls and the majestic Mitre Peak, before reaching the Tasman sea. The fiord was carved by glaciers during the ice ages and is now home to an abundance of wildlife including seals, penguins, dolphins and even whales occasionally cruise the waters. Despite keeping our eyes pealed we didn’t spot any sea life, but the views more than made up for it!

The drive to Milford Sound

Mitre Peak

Stirling Falls

In the afternoon we walked the 3 hour track to Key Summit. The path took us up through the forest to a picturesque little tarn that reflects the surrounding mountains. We also had a great view of Lake Marian, which we had hoped to walk to the next day, but true to the weather forecast the rains came and we decided to move on. We were very lucky to have seen Milford Sound on a beautifully clear day!

Next stop: The Catlins, New Zealand

Queenstown, New Zealand

Queenstown is well known for being the adventure capital of New Zealand. The beautiful alpine town offers everything from bungee jumping and paragliding to jet boat riding and also becomes a ski resort in the winter months. We were quite tempted by the 134m high Ben Nevis bungee jump, but decided to save our funds for another adventure later in the trip. Maybe next time!?

Whilst in Queenstown we hiked up the Ben Lomond track. We took the gondola up to the start of the track and after around 3 hours climbing we reached the summit and were rewarded with a panoramic view looking out over the lake and mountains. A perfect place to have a quick lunch stop and rest our tiring legs!

Paragliders soaring about Queenstown

Kea

Views from Ben Lomond track

Lake Wakatipu

The following day we drove the scenic route from Queenstown to a little place called Paradise. As we weaved our way along the lake’s edge, we were constantly amazed by the views. This has to be one of our favourite drives so far!

The drive to Paradise

Our camp that night was in a really remote spot about 11km (and 5 deep fords) down a gravel track past Paradise. We had hoped to get some food in when we passed through Glenorchy, but we soon discovered that their local store was more like a garden shed with a few cans of beans. Thankfully we had a few supplies left in the cupboard and didn’t go hungry!

Glenorchy

View from our campsite

Next stop: Milford Sound, New Zealand