A windy night ensured some light sleeping in the swaying van over night but waking to find a seal outside your van is a nice morning surprise. This is perhaps the most scenic spot we have camped at looking straight out toward huge waves crashing in. We were hoping to hire surf boards but as we couldn’t get any cash from anywhere we just packed up and went onwards along the Caitlins scenic route.

We ended up having quite a sightseeing day starting with a much needed coffee at the Whistling Frog Cafe on the road toward the McLean Falls which is where we were headed next. We walked up to the base of the falls which at 25 minutes return was a little quicker than the 45 minute forest walk advertised on the Southern Scenic Route info. We soon found out that they were way off on their timings after walks to the Matai Falls and the Purakaunui Falls, we also felt like we were suddenly on a tour of New Zealand’s waterfalls. They’re all lovely though with Purakaunui coming out top and also attracting the most tourists.

As we followed the route round we came across the Lost Gypsy Curios shop and gallery in Papatowai. This place is very intriguing and full of surprises and quirks. Containing old and the forgotten we spent some time playing with the gadgets, reading the funny signs and taking it all in. You can’t miss this place as there is a dummy outside holding a ‘Curios’ sign and the main gallery is housed in an old bus. Before making our way all the way round to Pounawae we decided to back track and visit Cathedral Caves, open only 2 hours either side of low tide. So we got there not long after 3pm and paid the $5 entrance fee, we were the first people on the beach which is private access only and along with a few other sight-seers we went to explore the caves.

It was only just low-tide so we had to climb onto rocks in order to get into the caves and make sure we were far in enough to avoid the tide coming in. We were able to loop round to another cave entrance where more shallow waves were splashing in but it was getting less and less. They were fairly impressive caves and the walk to and from the car-park is equally as enjoyable. We had a good chat with the warden about the caves and local birds and the like, the carpark was full so whoever is running this attraction is certainly doing okay!

When we continued along the road we stopped off in Owaka the Caitlins largest town with a sort of cash machine at the 4-square, accommodating only New Zealand account holders! We were able to pay on card though which was a good thing and so we stocked up and then made our way to the lovely Pounawae Bay where we would spend the next two nights at the Pounawae Motor Camp (lovely owners and really good facilities).

The following day we drove to Surat Bay, it’s not that far from Pounawae at all but we were heading for Jack’s Blow Hole straight after which was too far to walk. Surat Bay is a beautiful untouched bay stretching for a mile or so. Seals try to cool themselves in the sand whilst flies pester them and we also came across a dead seal and the remains of a sheep, harsh life!! Aside from this though we enjoyed a really nice walk along the full stretch of the bay as the sun came out to warm us. From now on the weather was looking to be good through to Christmas so we were happy about this.

When we left Surat Bay we drove west to Jack’s Blow Hole which includes a pleasant 30 or so minute walk to the hole. This blowhole is in the middle of a farmers field some 50 meters or so from the cliff edge. The waves come through to the hole underground and crash against the walls of the hole pretty much all the time, although high-tide is probably more impressive. It’s a pretty awesome sight though in terms of what is happening there. It’s closed off during the sheep-sheering season too which gives you an idea of its location.

By the afternoon we simply decided to chill out back at the campground, we were more than happy to read, work on the blog and cook some nice food before getting ready for our next drive to the Otago Peninsula the next morning.

(Leica M9, Summicron-M 50mm f/2.0, Leica 90mm f/2.8, Zeiss 18mm f/4 ZM processed in Lightroom 3)

The skydive was off once again! We found this out bright and early and decided we would hang around for the morning to see if the weather would improve. With the help of the Motueka I-site staff we decided that the weather wouldn’t be getting better until the next day so armed with this information we moved our skydive once again and went north.

We drove over Takaka Hill which is and steep windy and took quite a while in “Po”, on the other side we stopped off to get a few bits for dinner and then drove on toward Totaranui a DOC campground located partway along the Abel Tasman coastal track. This was a further hour and a half with a scenic lunch break at a quiet bay along the way. The weather was improving at last. When we finally reached the campground we found a spot amongst the vast spaces on offer, this campground is huge and it does get full during the Christmas holidays. Thankfully for us we didn’t have to worry about having too many close neighbours and they have good shelters for cooking under too. We noticed straight away how many sand-flies were around to start feeding on us, so we quickly changed and went on a walk along the coastal route.

It’s not a particularly tasking path the Abel Tasman track but it does reward with great ocean views, with clear skies perhaps we could have appreciated it more. We made it to Awaroa Inlet where we couldn’t go any further along the track as it was high tide which makes it impassible. We watched and photographed the tide coming in quickly, turned around and took the path back to the campground passing back through the beautiful white sand beaches. We enjoyed the rest of the evening back at the campsite which was a quiet event with a spot of ‘Peep Show’ on the agenda after a solid camp meal.

When we woke up the next day we realised that the skydive wouldn’t be happening…AGAIN!! It was absolutely chucking it down and we’d now come to the conclusion that the weather forecast is a little unpredictable over here! After a quick chat with Abel Tasman Skydive we decided to cancel with them completely and hope there would be another opportunity later in our travels. We had spent enough time moving around our agenda trying to fit this in and we were both ready to move on.

But not until we explored Takaka a little more. Helen had been here a few years earlier and was left with fond memories and wanted to share this with Dave. Although it was damp and grey we started with a drive to Te Waikoropupu Springs (also known as the Pupu Springs), one of the largest natural springs in the world. Neither of us have seen a natural spring on this scale before and it was really interesting. This is a cold spring which bubbles out of the ground and the water is crystal clear.

We then drove into Takaka and walked around the little town streets taking in the museum and art gallery; very twee would be our description. We also found the Wholemeal Cafe who’s cookbook Helen had been reading when we were staying with Vic and Dave. We enjoyed a lovely lunchtime dinner at the Cafe and found time to do a little work on the blog. The food at the Wholemeal Cafe is really good, Dave had a vegetarian jungle curry and Helen the salmon and pesto pasta. We were happy to be enjoying another cooked meal as this was supposed to be Helen’s birthday treat in the first place. We also bought cookbook number 2 which at $40 is expensive but their approach to cooking is very realistic and achievable and we also thought we would start using the recipes as we travel to spice up our cooking adventures.

On our way out of Takaka we popped into the I-site to get a few more ideas as to what to see in the area. We were strongly recommended to go to The Grove. We clambered amongst its limestone formations under tropical leaf coverage and as we were leaving we spotted a sign for Anahata; the yoga retreat where Helen had stayed when she was here in 2009.

For the rest of the day it rained as were driving out of the area and into the West Coast region. We made it as far as a DOC campground located at the Lyell township historical site. The town is no longer there and the campground marks the entrance to this area. We read into the history of the gold mining place and then trekked out toward old mining equipment remains along the river gorge. The sandflies were upon us once again so we hid away in the van for the rest of the night.

(Leica M9, Summicron-M 50mm f/2.0, Leica 90mm f/2.8, Zeiss 18mm f/4 ZM processed in Lightroom 3)