November 21st – November 29th
BANKS PENINSULA/CHRISTCHURCH/KAIKOURA/HANMER SPRINGS
November 21st
Just a little ways inland from where we were is one of the areas where Lord of the Rings was filmed, the site of Rohan. Now, neither of us are avid fans, but the scenery from the film was crazy beautiful, and we were right there, so we decided to venture off on a little hobbit adventure.
It didn’t work out so well as the weather had moved in and again, the views we were hoping for were obstructed by clouds. Plus, the road turned out to be treacherous. It turned into a gravel road with 50km to go. This wouldn’t have been so bad, but it was one of the worst gravel roads we’ve driven. It was covered and deep troughs, washboard, deep potholes, and some flooded sections. We drove 20km/hr for about 25km, realized that it was probably not safe to keep going, and turned around, and drove back.
Rohan
It’s a good thing we turned back, because Bertie was already suffering some injuries from the trip. We nearly had a flat tire. A little longer on that road, it would have been completely flat.
After a brief stop in at a tire repair shop in Ashburton (don’t worry... Bertie just needed minor surgery on his left front tire), we made our way into the Banks Peninsula.
Poor Bertie
This is an area that was formed by two giant volcanic eruptions. The craters opened to the ocean and filled with sea water becoming a large ocean harbour. The roads were as windy as they can get here in NZ, but the views were stunning.
Akaroa Harbour. Still trying to run away from the rain
We made our way to Onuku Farm Hostel, one of the more beautiful places we have stayed. This is a hostel/campground located on 1000 acres farmland with about 2000 sheep! The campervan site had a little shelter with a kitchen, which was a luxury that was well received in a desire to escape the rain.
This is when we met the Dutch family, with 3 children under the age of 7, who were camping their way around NZ for 6 weeks out of a small sedan, in tents. WOW!
November 22nd
We were giddy the next morning when we woke up to a bright blue sunshiny sky. Having been moving around and constantly doing things the last few days, we were both in need of some R&R. We spent the morning lying out in the sun, reading, and napping.
Lying out on the farm. Pretty comparable to lying out on the beach, just with sheeps bah-ing instead of waves crashing.
We went into Akaroa, the small town just a few minutes away from the town. But to our dismay, there was a cruise ship docked in the harbour for the day and the tiny little town was swarmed with cruisers. We screamed, punched one of them in the face, and ran straight back to the quiet farm. Oh wait... we did get some delicious homemade fudge before evacuating the place.
Views of the harbour from our campsite on the farm
Later in the afternoon, when the sun was less intense, we went on one of the many hikes through the farmland. Now, if you are picturing Alberta farmland, which might not seem so interesting. But NZ farmland is anything but flat (can actually get pretty steep) and provides excellent views.
One of Nikki’s favourite things about NZ is the bright green hills
We met lots of sheep along the way
It’s so fluffy, I’m gonna die!
Love the view
After getting back from our hike, we cooked some dinner (not needing the kitchen shelter because it was so beautiful) and hung out until going to bed. It was exactly the kind of chill out day we needed.
November 23rd
At 7:30am, we were up and ready to go swimming with the dolphins. There are more commercialized tour groups that go out in the area, but at the farm we were staying at, the farmer takes people out on his little boat. There were only 4 of us brave enough to take on the cold that morning, us and 2 Swiss girls (it was about 13 degrees and windy). The farmer told us to jump in the back of the truck and drove us down to the ocean.
Wet suits on and hitching a ride in the back of the truck
Our boat with Captain Farmer John
We cruised around further out to the mouth of the harbour, where the dolphins have been seen lately. All the sudden, there were a couple dolphins swimming along at the bow of the boat.
Hector’s Dolphins, the smallest breed of dolphins in the world
They came to check us out, but didn’t stay to play for too long, so we kept on cruising. The winds picked up as we got closer to the open ocean, so we had to veer off to find some protection from the wind for a bit. It calmed down a few minutes later and we went back out to find some more dolphins. Again, they came right up to the boat and started swimming around us.
Farmer John: I think it’s about time you thought about getting in if you are going to.
You don’t have to say that again. We stripped down to wetsuit, got our snorkel gear on and were ready to go faster than you could imagine.
Scott jumped in first. His wet suit was a touch too big for him, so he got a gush of cold water and screamed like a little girl. This made Nikki a little apprehensive about jumping in, but she mustered up the courage and dove right in, and yes, screamed like a girl too.
Snorkelling
We started snorkelling around. We had read before that if you hum while swimming, the dolphins hear it and are attracted to it. So... we both started humming away. Not even a couple minutes later, we found ourselves surrounded by dolphins.
They got remarkably close and curious. Scott even accidently touched one that was swimming beside him. And Nikki had a hard time getting an underwater picture of the whole dolphin as it swam in front of her because they were so close.
They would swim circles around you, and when they were at your head, they would slow down and look right at you. (you can even see his eye looking at me in the one above).
So amazing
We swam with them for about 15 or 20 minutes until we started getting too cold. We all jumped back into the boat, put a toque on, and had some hot tea before making our way back to the farm for a super hot shower and some warm lunch.
That afternoon we discovered some of the other animals they had on the farm besides sheep.
Peacocks
PUPPIES!
Don’t you just want to pinch his cheeks! Oh I mean... aren't those puppies adorable!
After saying goodbye to the great people at Onuku Farm Hostel, we made our way into Christchurch that evening.
November 24th
We spent the early morning cleaning out Bertie and getting him all ready to sell. At 9:30am, we went to the Backpackers Car Market to inquire about selling our van with them. There were only a couple other campervans in the lot, and with the summer approaching, the guy there suggested to us that we shouldn’t have any problem selling at this time. So, we booked him in and by mid-day, he was ready to be shown.
For Sale
We tried to find accommodation somewhere in Christchurch for that night, but because of the devastating earthquakes, many of the hostels no longer exists. The few that are still up and running were completely booked. Luckily, the guys at the car market told us we could leave the van at the lot during the day, but still sleep in it at night (and even better, just park it in their lot for the night). So, this is what we did. Moved out of Bertie for the day, and moved back in for the night.
At the end of the day, Bertie was still For Sale. We were hoping for a better day tomorrow.
November 25th
After getting Bertie all ready for the day at the market again, we decided to head out and maybe run to the mall, or catch a movie or something in town. So we caught a bus to the city center.
The only thing about the sales process at the Backpackers Car Market is that you are still the one who is selling the car (there is no dealer to do the negotiating or anything like that, just a guy who facilitates both parties throughout the process). So, if someone comes in and is interested in your van, the guy calls you up and you have to go there to deal with the potential buyers yourself.
And just our luck... we literally just got off the bus and our phone rang. Sure enough, there were people there interested in our van. So, we jumped back on a bus and made our way back.
When we arrived, we met two American ladies in their 50’s. We showed them the works and all the little tricks that we learned with Bertie. They were very interested and went off to discuss making us an offer.
We were sitting there nervously, not looking forward to the negotiation part of this process, discussing what we would do with their offer (expecting them to give us a low-ball offer). Then they come back, smiling, and offered to pay the asking price (with the condition that we provide a new WOF...which is no biggie). What!?! Of course, we took the offer. This meant that we sold the van for exactly what we paid for it 5 months ago!
Best offer we could imagine
The rest of the day was spent waiting for the mechanical inspection and WOF to be completed. Then by 4:30pm, we handed over the keys and watched them drive away with Bertie.
We were happy to have sold him, but sad to see him go.
It all happened so fast and we realized that now that he was gone, we had nowhere to sleep that night. With all the hostels still full, we were discussing our other options. The guy from the market overheard us and told us we could just sleep in one of the other vans on the lot for the night. Feeling a little weird about it, but not really having much other choice, we took him up on it.
Feeling like we were cheating on Bertie
That afternoon, while doing some things on the internet in the McDonalds down the street, we felt our very first earthquake. It was only a 3.5 magnitude, but still made the building shake. It’s not a good feeling, and I cannot even imagine how the people of Christchurch have been able to cope with almost 8000 earthquakes since the big one in Sept 2010 (that is over 500 a month).
After getting our stuff settled into the new van, we got ready quickly and at 5:30pm, Lucy and Adrian (the couple we met in Fiji back in August) picked us up and we headed out to Somner for dinner with them. It was great to see and catch up with them, and also great to see a little more of Christchurch than the car market and the short little bus ride we went on.
November 26th
The next morning we said goodbye to the lovely people at the Backpackers Car Market and took a shuttle out to the airport where we could rent a car.
Introducing.... Jessica
We had only 4 days left before we caught a flight to Australia, so we decided to head up to Kaikoura for a couple days. We checked into Albatross Backpackers mid-afternoon and spent the day checking out the small semi-touristy town and feeling the relief of not having to stress over selling the van anymore.
November 27th
The next morning, we took the free bikes from the hostel and went for a ride down to the seal colony that was just a ways up the peninsula. Unexpectedly, just along the side of the road right in town, we saw a great big fat one lying out by the sidewalk.
Don’t you just love early morning naps
We kept riding until we got to where the seals are supposed to be seen. There was a nice peninsula walk that started from here, so we parked our bikes and went for a little walk. It was a beautiful day out so we thought we’d take advantage of it.
We started off walking along the rocky coastline.
The amazing thing about Kaikora is the closeness to both the ocean and the mountains
Along the way, we met some teenage seals climbing up the cliff.
It is amazing that they can get up there like that
We also came across a skull (we are guessing it is a seal skull) that was among the rocks on one of the beaches.
Starring contest
The seal colony. Heaps of seals lying out on the rocks. And seagulls too
Beautiful
Sandstone rock formation and a tepee
Then the track cut uphill and we climbed to the top of a viewpoint looking over the ocean.
Loved this bay
Then we walked along the ridgeline and through a farmer’s field where we were rewarded with views of the mountains too.
That afternoon we went to a Sheep Shearing Show at a local farm. It was really nice because there were only about 6 people in the group, so we were able to get right up close.
Feeding the 3 month old lamb Buttons
Holding the 2 day old lamb. She was so soft and cuddly
Feeding Ram Man. The 140kg ram. He was a good eater, that’s for sure.
Then the farmer brought out a 6 month old lamb that was due for her first shearing.
Sheep before. So puffy.
Sheep after. Looking a tad embarrassed to be naked.
We went to a place for dinner recommended to us by Adrian and Lucy, called Hislops Cafe. It was delicious and seeing as we usually cook dinner, it was a nice treat to go out.
After dinner we drove 20 minutes north of the town to a small waterfall full of seal pups. It is amazing that just a 10 minute walk from the highway there is a beautiful waterfall with a small pool of water at the bottom of the falls. This becomes a place where the seal pups come to for several months while they develop swimming and social skills.
It is too bad we were getting there as the sun was setting. We could still see all of them, but it was too dark to get any really good pictures. But here are a few of the best ones we got.
November 28th
The next day, after catching up with family on Skype and doing a bit more Christmas shopping in Kaikoura, we packed up and drove to Hanmer Springs, a small town that is known for its Hot Pools.
Yellow mountains on the drive to Hanmer Springs.
We checked into a cute little backpackers called La Gite, made some dinner, and headed out for an evening soak in the hot pools.
Hanmer Springs
November 29th
We left Hanmer Springs and drove our way through the Waipara Wine Region. We had a pamphlet showing us where all the food places were along the way, so we thought we’d make a day of going around to taste some different olives, cheeses, and whatever else they had to offer.
Waipara Region
Just our luck, the olive farm was closed. But... on the way, we did see a sheep giving birth.
Crowning much?
We didn’t want to stress her out so we carried on and let her deliver her lamb in privacy.
We stopped at a cheese factory, hoping to finally get our tour, and were super excited when they were actually open (if you recall, we have tried to go to several cheese factories and they have all always been closed). But, the lady inside was not very nice and told us that we’d have to pay $70 per person and let us know how much a hassle it was to gown us all up and all that. So, we were willing to just do a tasting then. But the lady’s comment to that was “well... only if you are going to buy some”. We don’t know if she was kidding or not, but we looked at each other and without saying anything, both turned and walked out the door. (Usually people here are nicer than that but whatever, she is not worth our time then).
So without cheese or olives, we made our way to Christchurch. We decided that since we had time, we would walk around the city center, which still remains closed off since the earthquake in February.
I don’t even know if words can describe the amount of damage that was caused, and I don’t even think these pictures do it justice. But here are some of the things we saw as we walked around the barricaded off area.
It took an hour and a half to walk around the entire area, so you can imagine how large of an area this encompasses. The only people allowed inside this area are the people working on demolishing and cleaning up. Many people with houses and businesses inside this area have still not been allowed back inside.
After this we headed out to a mall with a movie theatre and decided to go to a couple movies that night.
The first movie we went to was called “When a City Falls”. It is a documentary about the Christchurch earthquakes that have been happening since September 2010. It was really well done and very emotional at times even for us (and we didn’t even live through it). Having seen the city earlier in the day, and then watch the footage of the earthquakes themselves and the panic and rescue efforts that took place, it was really eye opening.
After that, we went to another movie called Drive. All we are going to say is... Don’t see this movie. It was horrible.
This took us to 11:30pm. We had to be at the airport at 4:30am, so we planned on heading out to the airport after the movies and finding somewhere to sleep for a couple hours. We ended up driving to the drop off place for our rental car, reclining the seats, and having a little snooze there for the night. We woke up early and made our way to the airport and caught our flight to Melbourne, Australia!
After 5 months in New Zealand, travelling about 12000 km (thank you Bertie), and seeing as much as we could possibly see (clouds permitting), we can say that we have truly enjoyed the time we have spent there and have many great memories from it.
Now we are ready for some Aussie fun, heat, and Kangaroos!
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