Heaven on earth - The Heaphy Track

Walking the Heaphy track was an incredible experience, i recommend anyone travelling to New Zealand to get to this stunning part of the world. With an array of incredible vegetation from the mystical Gouland Downss to the Nikau palms fringing the ferocious west coast.

The 78.4 km walk can be done in 4-6 days (although i did meet two people who completed it in 2!)

Day 1: I started out at the Brown hut end, 4 hours up i reached the Aorere shelter and left my mark (see photographs). Half an hour before reaching Perry Saddle hut there is a look out point, at 915m Flanagans Corner is the highest point on the track. The views were simply beautiful. As the sunlight filtered through the forest it was like a dream world.
I reached Perry Saddle hut, i was the only person staying in this hut which can sleep upto 26 people. I had come prepared with back country cuisine meals recommended by a friend. I slept very well.

Day 2: I walked from the Perry Saddle to James Mackay hut this took about 6 hours 30 minutes. This part of the track led me to the famous boot tree where previous trampers have hung various types of shoes! I stopped for a break at Saxon hut before continuing on. Luckily i reached James Mackay hut before dark and met a very inspirational guy who talked to me about his experiences in Nepal. Wayne was the first tramper i had seen.

Day 3: On day 3 there seemed to be more cyclists on this section. It was a 6 hour walk to the Heaphy hut where i would be spending my final night. The forest was incredible, mainly beech forest, which becomes taller and taller. Every so often you're treated to a glimpse of the Heaphy river. I reached Lewis hut and decided to have some lunch, unfortunately i also started getting attacked by sandflies, luckily Wayne had given me his spray! Over lunch i chatted to a guy called Jerry, he was at least 60, an ex marathon runner, who had completed the track over 300 times! such and inspiration and full of enthusiasm for the great outdoors.
I continued onto Heaphy hut through forest of Kahikatea, rimu and rata, beautiful nikau palms border the Heaphy river.
I arrived at the Heaphy hut as the sun was setting and people were enjoying the glowing surroundings, it was simply stunning.

Day 4: From the Heaphy river mouth i made my way Along the west coast. The waves were the biggest iv ever seen and seemed to give me an energy to continue on and complete the rest of the track, it was breathtaking. All along the track there are beautiful Nikau palms and vines, every so often a fantail bird would dance along the path in front of me catching flies as i disturbed the ground.
I was offered a lift to Karamea by a couple who i had watched an incredible starry Sky at Heaphy. I took them up on their offer and we completd the final part of the track together.

When we got to the car park, i collapsed and lay on the grass with an overwhelming sense of achievement in my mind.

I piled into Chris and Miskas camper van and they dropped me off at Rongo's youth hostel in Karamea.

I tried to take pictures of my journey, hopefully they give you an idea of my time on the Heaphy, but the pictures dont really do it justice, the smells, the textures and the sounds made the whole experience one i will never forget and will always go back to in my mind when im feeling stressed. Along the way i also noticed other pieces of man made creativity, the faces in the tree trunks, messages carved onto the moss, the boot tree and stacks of stones.

Here goes... To see more pictures click on the title of my blog (my tablet wouldn't let me put them into one post)

Kayaking in the Abel Tasman

So we had arrived at the barn, a hostel in Abel Tasman, we arrived to pouring rain, and were hopung to be able to kayak the following morning. I had my fingers crossed. We woke up to cloudy skies, but luckily the sun was attempting to peak through, so we decided to go ahead and do it! It was much harder than we expected and there was lots of safety stuff to remember, "if you capsize..." as i heard this i started to feel a little aprehensive, we were not really expecting to be left to our own devices, but we were and there we were kitted out with life jackets and kayak skirts, pure fashion! We loaded the kayaks onto the trailor and jumped into the tractor! we drove accross the beach and prepared ourselves to hit the ocean. Luckily for us the sea was mirror calm, simply beautiful, afte a bit of practising, our guide left us and he'd collect us at 3ish.

I was in a two person kayak with a Brazilian guy called Jedson, he spoke very little English but luckily we managed to go in a straight line, headed in the direction of a small beach we could see on an island in the distance.

It was so peaceful, every so often we stopped paddling and just looked at where we were and what we were surrounded by, it was so tranquil drifting along on the water. The Abel Tasman park was littered with trees as far as the eye could see, the hills and mountains helped to put everything into perspective and i felt very small.

There's so much to do in this area, its popular for walking and sailing i would definately stay for longer in this area if i was to visit again.

Wine tasting in Blenheim :-)

Blenheim can be found in the heart of the Marlborough region. This particular area is one of the best places in NZ to test some good old wines, i discovered i was a riesling or chardonnay girl, it was delicious.

Hostel life :-)

The Villa hostel in Picton was wicked, very comfortable and quirky, i enjoyed talking to a local Kiwi guy, a traveller all his life who was enjoying a rum and coke at 10am, he then drew some art in the scrapbook, i like the 'flying m's'. As you can see from the picture he's living in 2002, and i still think it's April, He was a story writer and a poet and told me about his latest idea, he was to be sent to another planet to help increase the population etc etc... a funny character.

We then Strayed from the Villa and arrived at The barn , this is a lovely little hostel in Abel Tasman. The facilities are basic but just what you need. We stayed in little log cabins which were seperate from the main communal area. I can imagine in summer this place is pretty cool, with open fires outside and lots of outdoor seating for weary travellers, however we now in the winter season and it's not tropical. The communal area was the place to be, openening the door to a warm cosey heat, with the smell of 2 minute noodles wafting in through to the dining room from the little red and rustic kitchen. Ther was a wicked vibe with travellers from all corners of the globe, France, Sweden, Germany, the UK, USA, Japan, Brazil and many more crammed in around the wood burning stove. The communal area was a renovated barn, with high sealings and wooden beams. There was a large tv, with couches and 100's of DVD's to choose from, it was very relaxing and chilled atmosphere... Then we discovered the 'costume boxes' haha and created new charcters for ourselves, i love a good fancy dress box! we then proceeded to have a game of twister in our fabulous outfits, as you do! Loving the barn antics and wicked people, Photos are not the best as they were taken on my tablet and the camera wasnt clean, but you get the idea!

Stray time, first stop Picton

I boarded the Stray bus in Kaikoura, it was all very easy, we travelled north through Blenheim and through to Picton. The scenery was fabulous, rolling hills and valleys. We arrived at 'the Villa' a lovely little hostel at 11ish am. I decided to do one of the walkways. I walked for about 3 hours to the Snout. Along the walk i had incredible views over Queen Charlotte Sound. As i made my way bac a french couple i had passed a few times asked if i wanted a lift in their camper van as the heavens had opened! i jumped at the opportunity. They kindly dropped me off at the hostel, i then made a lovely meal (pasta of course) and then jumped in the hostels hot tub outside and listened to the rain falling above me! perfect! I Then enjoyed FREE APPLE CRUMBLE! this is the life!

from the largest to the smallest!

So on the last day we had the largest of the dolphin species and the smallest of the dolohin species pay us a visit to say goodbye...here are some photos from our final trip

what an incredible final 2 days, good bye Kaikoura

So the last 6 months have been such an eye opener i have come to believe that anything is possible! There have been some challenges, tears, highs and lows a real rolercoaster!
I've learnt so much, iv met some awesome people, who i've shared some wicked moments with...here are a few pictures from my last 2 days at work...

 and to top it off 7 Orca came for our final trip! It was the best look iv ever had of them, upside down below the boat, tail lobbing, a new born calf amongst them, i shed a small tear and just thanked whoever or whatever had been put into place to give me this incrdible opportunity.

May my travels with Stray now commence. FREEDOM ON THE OPEN ROAD! (sounds good to me!)