(Lewis Pass)
From viewing the Fox and Franz Joseph Glaciers, we headed further north (on the east coast) through Hokitika and Greymouth and headed inland over the Lewis pass (as the famous Arthurs Pass was impassible that day) where we literally drove through a winter wonderland...... the mountain roads were covered in light sprinklings of snow and it snowed for over an hour as we went up one side and down the other side of the pass. Once we dropped to the lower valleys, all signs of any snow disappeared (other than the snow capped peaks behind us) and we continued our journey stopping overnight at Hamner Springs - a place made famous by its hot springs and thermal baths.
(Enjoying the balmy conditions in Christchurch)
We spent one day touring around the Banks Peninsula - east of Christchuch and spent the coldest night of our trip so far in a Christchurch hostel called "Boulevard Backpackers" where it was warmer in the corridors than in the bedrooms. That night we got dressed for bed by layering up (*3) - locking overselves into the sleeping bag under the duvet.
Needless to say we left the next morning and headed north for Kaikoura where we headed out on a boat to do some whale-watching - and we did spot some pretty big whales, dolphins and seals. The sea was pretty rough with swells of 1.5metres but the sun was shining, blue skies so we got some pretty cool photos and the ginger tablets also helped ease the queese !Moving north again, we passed through Blenheim and Picton before hitting Nelson where we were to spend a few days. Outside Nelson (a very nice town) is the Abel Tasman National Park where you can trek / tramp (NZ trekking), camp etc. In the last week, we also have picked up a Lonely Planet for South America as we will heading for Chile on 9 Sept and need to do a little planning to maximise our time.
Next stop - Ferry from Picton to Wellington in the North Island.
(Abel Tasman National Park - northwest of Nelson)
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