Waikawa

Before leaving Blenheim we booked ourselves onto the 1:10pm Thursday ferry to Wellington. The drive from Blenheim to Picton was took a fraction of the time compared to most of our recent travels – mainly because a mere 26km separated the two towns. On the way we decided to look at the Backpacker accommodations in the area from our BBH guide. There were a few rated in the 90%+ range and we picked the Buccaneer Lodge to look at first. For $75 a night it offered us a large en suite room with a balcony overlooking the marina at Waikawa. We didn’t bother looking elsewhere.

Better still we were able to check in there an then. Having done that we strolled down to the marina wondering if this was where Inspiration Lady was berthed. As it turned out, Gary and Jackie saw us as they were leaving in their car, called out to us, turned around and stopped to chat for a while. We caught up some, learned of their favourite fish and chip shop and agreed to go out for a curry Wednesday evening (even though we’re also meeting them for lunch). They were off to Blenheim so we parted company.

We decided we wanted to hike the nearby peninsular so returned to the lodge to pick up apples and water. We drove to a car park on the ridge and set off towards the end of the peninsular (called The Snout) via the Queen Charlotte Lookout. It was a fine hike with great views of the sounds. There was a lot of ups and downs which kept our hearts going but we were never out of breath. There and back the hike took nearly three hours so we retired back to our room to shower and read and have a facebook chat with one of the boys.

During the day we also booked dock space in Whangarei from Thursday 17th. That gives us almost a week to make our way back across the north island. We’ve no idea where to go yet.

Around 5pm we drove into Picton to pick up some fish and chips (we couldn’t resist) which we brought back to our lodge and ate on the balcony. There we met our temporary neighbour, Paul, and ended up chatting into the evening.

Today we are planning to meet the A Cappellas and Inspirations Ladies at 10:30am for a brunch. Ed and Cornelia are on today’s 1:10pm ferry, hence the time. We were going to walk into Picton but have opted for a lie in. It’s allowed.