11th – 18th March 2008 Waitomo (North Island) to Kaikoura (South Island)

For our other photos, see http://picasaweb.google.co.uk/findthebinghams/39BlogpixWaitomoToKaikoura


The Waitomo area was so fascinating; its highly eroded karst limestone geology has left it riddled with caverns and ravines, craggy outcrops, potholes and natural bridges. We visited Aranui Cave with a very talkative guide, a Rolf Harris look-alike – we learnt lots and saw some spectacular growths, all Blit. Rick liked the technical commentary (although the Chinese tourists looked very confused).

During our nocturnal walk around the Waitomo/Ruakuri Walkway, we saw thousands of twinkly lights of glow-worms (arachnocampa luminosa), which are actually lavae that mimic spiders by using silky/sticky threads to catch prey –clever stuff, eh?). We also came face-to-face with weta, a hand-sized cave cricket, although ours wasn’t quite as big as this one (Will’s lizard would meet its match!).

This area is also noted for its extreme activities – caving, climbing, canyoning, canoeing – some involving fitting rubber rings to your wet suited bottom.......

Wellington is a delightful capital city of coffee and culture. The highlight was undoubtedly Te Papa, the National museum, on the waterfront – what a super building! Information and ideas were so well-presented that I think I’ve finally grasped volcanoes, earthquakes and continental drift. The Chinese earthquake detector (132 AD!) was intriguing and the Maori version of the creation is much more dramatic and exciting than the alternatives. The Whale exhibition was brilliant – I simply have to see one!

We arrived on the last weekend of the of the NZ Festival, so saw rowing races and Formula One speedboats looking like horizontal rockets. England were also playing the Second Test at Wellington...and won!

About 1 in 4 vehicles on the roads seems to be a campervan - whether car/truck-sized, converted bus or home-made. Most are hired and only have a bed, so we feel very superior! It’s clearly the way to see NZ. Rick has been intrigued by Reg’s book ‘RVs; Handy Hints’ which includes ideas for conversions...another DIY project for us perhaps?

Everyone advised us to head straight for South Island while the weather was fine, so we took the 3 hour ferry from Wellington to Picton, then headed south along the East Coast, through Marlborough Wine country - beautiful scenery.

We’ve been lucky to have such glorious weather for the amazing walks we’ve done - fantastic coastal scenery, dry stony river-beds – breathtaking at times. Everywhere, we’ve met friendly people - this has to be the most welcoming country we’ve visited.

There are plenty of corrugated iron rooves, but cars...?

We’ve found some lovely places to camp, including DOC (Dept of Conservation) sites and free places. One stunning DOC location was at Marfells Beach, with nothing between us and Chile except Easter Island – what a view to wake up to!

The East Coast of South Island is home to lots of wildlife and we’ve been greatly entertained by hundreds of seals, some just 10m away from us – amazing! And tomorrow, we go whale watching in Kaikoura – can’t wait!