Lovely Lake Tekapo

Driving through the rain to Lake Tekapo was a gamble,  given it looked just as miserable in the distance, but DH had consulted various online weather guides and had determined that would be the place to be. 
Well.  Hate to admit it, but he was right.  The Association campground at $6 a night is RIGHT on the lake, with an easy bike track to town.  Just a delight.  
PB and DH went for a paddle while I made a banana and apple cake.  (A successful experiment, doctoring an internet recipe!)
Then we sipped on a chardy at the lakes edge watching PB play in the water. 
Dinner, then off to the Church of the Good Shepherd, to see it in the light of a fabulous sunset.
Wow, a LOT of tourists had the same idea, it was a very popular spot! 
Just gorgeous, and the monument to the collie dog was stunning, too. 
The next day dawned just as splendid as the first, so after a big sleep in, we packed morning tea and headed into the bush on our bikes.  A cool track lead us through the bush and down to the lakeside.
The afternoon saw the kayak go out a couple of times and more quiets in the late afternoon watching PB splash in the lake.
Lake Tekapo, you're not shabby. 

Generous Temps in Geraldine

We started the day by exploring The Margaret Mahy Playground in Christchurch. Wowee,  that playground is awesome.  (And PB should know, after all, assessing playgrounds is his job, he tells us. ) Spectacular,  and we stayed about an hour and a half.
Heading to Geraldine, we followed looooong, straight roads for so long that DH got a fright when we eventually came upon a corner.
Hit Geraldine and boy!  Was it hot! ? (Rhetorical question.  Yes.  It was extremely hot.)  At one point, the reading inside Chateau Shelley was 35 degrees! Phew! Nothing for it then, but to sit in the shade sipping cider. 
Done!

Amazing Akaroa

The day dawned drearily.  Not sure that 'drearily' is a word, but it was definitely a moist, (great word,  not universally popular), grey, low cloud, grouchy kind of day. So, given one of our mottos is "Well, we've got raincoats!" we loaded up the bikes,  some morning tea and made for Akaroa. The further from the Christchurch CBD we got, the lighter and brighter the day became until we found ourselves in a completely different day! Woop! We planned to do a ride along the way, which turned out to part of a rail trail.  We made it about 5kms and needed a rest under a plum tree on the side of the track.  (Thank you, ancient railway passengers for your thoughtful spitting of your plum stones track side.) DH opted to head back for the car to rescue PB and I.  It was a worthy adventure,  but one we will need to try again when PB is a bit bigger and we bring more suitable bikes than the gnarly ol ' BMXs.  Carried on to beautiful Akaroa. Wow! Stunning view heading down into the bay, and such a cute little french village. We had lunch in a cafe overlooking the water, listening to a pianist play a community piano.  Just stunning.  DH had a kayak while PB and I went and bought fudge. (Licorice and Russian,  yum!) Raced back to drizzly, grey Christchurch again. Headed for a marvellous dinner with the loveliest family.  The sun finally came out and we could sit outside.  PB was invited to have a bubble bath,  very excited!  We were even treated to a serenade by some bagpipers nearby, just to top off a marvellous day.

Hooning 'round Hagley

A packed lunch and the bikes loaded, and we headed off for Hagley Park. We struggled a wee bit with navigation, given the road works, one way streets and diversions in place, but eventually made it to the corner of Armagh and Rolleston and made our way into the beautiful Hagley Park.
The lantern festival was on, so we got to see lots of the displays.  (Not as spectacular as in the night, but still fun to explore! )
We went through the rose garden and the Wintergarden and PB managed to sniff out a playground.  ("It's my job.")
On the way home we bought some postcards to send to some playcentre friends.
Then we went to visit our Uncle and Aunt just down the road in Templeton that we'd not seen for about 20 years! They gave us a very warm welcome, and called our Aunt from the previous day's visit and insisted we all stayed for tea with the most scrumptious pork roast complete with comfort features of mashed swede and boiled cabbage, gravy and apple sauce.  (Reminded me of my Dad.) PB was taken by the daschund Sally, and a wonderful night was had by all.

Craziness of Christchurch

After a reasonably uneventful journey from Lake Coleridge we made it to Christchurch. I say uneventful, though PB would argue that stopping for morning tea at a place called 'Kirwee' is any thing but eventful, it's HILARIOUS!   (It appears that anything containing poos, wees, bottoms, or peenies is the funniest thing ever...)  (Actually, it doesn't even have to contain the word 'wee' .  Case in point, 'Kai Iwi Lake' that soon became 'Kai Wee Wee Lake' - what hilarity!)
After the fun of Kirwee we ventured to Christchurch.  No sign of the wildfires...
We set up camp on the outskirts of town and ventured in. It was very busy.  Lots of traffic and busy people going everywhere.  It was a stark contrast to the laid back spots we've been hanging out in.  So much so, that PB informed our next door neighbour at the campsite quite confidently that she is in Auckland now.
 Turns out our neighbour's daughter went to school with one of our friends! Tiny village, I tell you!
Went to visit our darling aunt and home again for tea. Kirwee, thanks for the entertainment en route, (he he, I said 'route').

Lonesome Lake Coleridge

The roads got decidedly narrower as we got closer to Lake Coleridge.
 We stopped briefly at Oxford, following a failed attempt to find a lavender farm, cleverly named 'The Colour Purple '.
We FOUND it, but it was just a private sign on a letterbox of a private house and we were too shy to rock up and kmock on the door.
Lake Coleridge village was a blink of an eye of a town and turned out that Lake Coleridge was dominated (at least at this end) by a power station intake. ('A giant plug hole' as a local described it to us.)
We dropped the caravan in a thistley NZMCA paddock and drove up a private power company track through stunning scenery to the lake itself. We almost dropped  the caravan at a general grassy area nearby but a friendly local let us know of an over zealous self appointed town marshall who would likely photograph our caravan and report us to council, inducing a fine. 
Why,  thank you, kind and informative stranger! Our paddock is a lovely home for the night under majestic mountains and surrounded by peace.

Ambling Along to Amberley Beach

After leaving Hanmer, we were open minded about where we might end up next. There being a state of emergency declared in Christchurch, there was no urgency to rush down there just yet.
We called in at Waipara to look at the Weka Pass Railway, which would definitely be more interesting when the trains were running!
Then we thought we'd take a look at Amberley Beach.  Glad we did!  Powered site for the night? $17.  Money in the honesty box in the middle of the camp. So close we can hear the waves crashing on the beach.  Lovely.
We went for a bike ride (PB and I,  while DH had an afternoon nap.) During a mid bike ride play on the play ground,  I told PB he was a party pooper for telling me I should get off the swing to push him.  Well!   Apparently when you are not quite 4, 'party pooper' is a pretty hilarious thing to say!  So the rest of the day  was made up of conversations such as:  "Come on, don't poop the party."   "We pooped the party, eh mummy?"
Had a family walk on the beach in the freezing wind and just chilled. Splendid. 😊

Happy Times in Hanmer

It was raining so solidly on the way out of  Murchison that I actually said:  "Imagine if our first month of our trip was sunny, and the second month was just solid rain..."  Drama queen, much?
We got to Maruia Springs.  Entry was a bit pricey, but it was Valentine's day, and we knew that Hanmer Springs would be packed with tourists , so we went. It was SO cool!  We pretty much had the place to ourselves. 
It overlooked a river and little mountain range. Beautifully warm and just stunning. Down side? Sandflies. Those pesky little punks.  And black slime that forms in  the pools supposedly from where the sulphur meets the mountain fresh water. Okaaaaay.  Good for the skin, they said... suuuuuure. ... But those thing aside,  pretty cool.
On to Hanmer Springs.  Great campsite on the edge of town,  walking distance. Went out to dinner for Valentine's! 
Woop! Next day - two adventures: hiking up Conical Hill (1hr walk) and driving into Molesworth Station. Molesworth... was... mindblowing!   So rugged, so vast, and stunning. We stopped beside a river for afternoon tea and there wasn't a soul in sight.  Just beautiful and I recommend it to anyone.
N

ext morning, PB and I went to the pools (be rude not to) and had a lovely morning dip. Hanmer, definitely worth a visit.

Murky ol ' Murchison (via Serene St Arnaud)

We left Picton in the rain and headed to Blenheim.  Blenheim is a lovely part of the world (especially if you like wine). We pushed on to St Arnaud and were completely captivated by nature's beauty.  DH had a kayak while PB slept, then we all went for a bush walk around the side of Lake Rotoiti.  The trees were covered in a black fungi and a lovely English tourist we chatted to told us all about it, something to do with the honeydew beetle, it's long anal passage that looks like a thread hanging out of the trees and how the wasps like the sweet residue on the end of the thread. He suggested we put our finger on said threads to gather up said sweetness.  I politely informed the gentleman that he lost me at 'anal passage'. The water was SO clear, that from the jetty,  you could see eels!  I also saw a trout,  but didn't manage to snap a photo of it. We carried on  through skinny roads,  road works and wet.  We made it to Murchison to our first Association  campsite.  (NZMCA)  We lined up a likely spot, started backing in, only to have a grumpy Englishman charge out of his caravan at us squawking that we'd be too close. We'll,  a fine welcome indeed.  (We later nicknamed him Gargamel, and he deserved it. We found another spot (equally close) between two lovely couples, one from Canada who donated PB a pink spoon from his cereal and the other who'd come from Blenheim where they had 16 grand kids! Murchison rained through the night and into the morning, and that, coupled with our welcome from Gargamel makes it 'Murky Murchison' for me.

Picturesque Picton

After our adventurous night in, let's face it, Porirua, it was an early start to get to the ferry on time.  We lined up for our 8am check in at about 7.30am and there were SO many cars and campers already lining up. Clearly, no one wanted to miss the boat. Disturbingly, the captain announced there would be 40 knot winds for our crossing. Eeek!   He went on to say this was "moderate by Cooks Straight standards"... errk! We went up top to leave the city, then way down below to the kids playground for most of the journey.  Back up top to come in to the lovely Sounds, it was a little bit wobbly but not too bad considering.  Raining when we got into Picton,  we found our way to a nice campground by the marina. PB and I headed out for a ride in town, finding a well-named beacg and attempting the Bob's Bay walk.  Oh boy!  Not for the faint hearted as the edge of the walk was basically a plunging bluff down to rocks and the sea.  No. Not a brave enough Mum, we turned back and found a super cool playground on town, complete with waterpark and pirate ship! We went back later with Dad (wothout the bikes) to attempt the 'Bluffs of Doom' Bob's Bay walk and managed to survive.  It was a lovely way to see Picton and the harbour.

Wellington, on a sunny day...

They reckon there's nothing quite like Wellington on a sunny day, and when you are towing a caravan through traffic around Oriental Parade at lunch time on a splendid Saturday afternoon, you'd have to agree.
Needless to say, DH was less enamored with the idea, so instead, we used the maps function to guide us out of purgatory and up through the winding narrow streets of Welles to locate the new ho.e of a lovely Playcentre family who have recently moved down here.
What a great afternoon!  The kids entertained themselves with a sprinkler and a tramp, some lego and a movie and the mums entertained ourselves with wine!
We headed towards Titahi Bay for a freedom camping spot we found earlier in the day (though I strongly suspect it was just actually Porirua rather than Titahi Bay... )
Don't be fooled by the image below of a peaceful and calm scene, this was to be shattered...  We were rudely awoken at 1.40am by drunken youths walking by, at 2.30am by a suspected drug deal going down between three cars that turned up and again at 6am with a domestic incident.  (Not ours!)
PB slept through it all, though his mum slept in trackie pants in case an escape was called for... (or in case I had to build rapport with baddies,  that sort of thing...)
Lesson:  Don't freedom camp in Porirua, despite how easy it is to get to the ferry!

Fairies in Waitarere

We made our way towards Levin with the obligatory photo stop with PB on a bull in Bulls.
We drove by Ohakea and saw helicopters and planes.
Then,  before Levin, we turned off to the right and made out way out to Waitarere Beach.
Our dear friends had offered us their bach to stay in and it was marvellous!
Telly!  Bedrooms! Washing machine!
But that's not all....
A really nice beach, a grand fish and chip shop and the slow pace of life that you imagine existed 50 years ago in places like Whangamata or Mt Maunganui.
The highlight had to be PB and me going on a bike ride and stumbling across a fairies forest and a Middle Earth themed confidence course!  Obviously being created by locals (ahem, I mean, local gnomes,  probably) but 100% awesome.
Loved seeing heaps of old school baches and such a chilled little place.
Thanks guys!  And lovely to meet you, the fairies of Waitarere.

What's Up, Whanganui?

From Stratford, we headed south, stopping on the way in Eltham to find the toy wall.
We asked in the local RD1 for directions, and lucky we did!  The Toy Wall was well hidden from the main road, and formed a part of a driveway of a private house.  But very cool to visit, it was a way with countless toys cemented into it!  PB loved it and we spent a good amount of time exploring the wall before he said "Let's start again!" So back to the start we went.
It was pouring down as we passed through Patea, but we took a sodden shot of the waka, and spotted the Patea Maori Club HQ.
In Hawera, we hoped to climb the water tower for a great view over the town, but as it was raining and the promised view was likely to be of rain clouds AND because they wanted to charge us AND because we had to find our way to the Info Centre to be charged, we went off the idea.
On to Whanganui!  (Or Wanganui, I have no preference...)  What a great little city!  We stayed out at Castlecliff Beach, which is a short drive to the city centre.
On the way to the camping ground, I noticed a chap changing a lock on a house with the whole front boarded up.  Thought it a little weird, but put it down to someone renovating.  WELL!  In the NZ Herald that I read later that day, it shared that the house windows had been smashed to scare the woman inside because one of her family members was charged with killing a gang leader.  What the?  (No wonder the campsite was lovely and cheap!)
We went to Durie Underground Elevator.  It had a long white tunnel leading to it, which provided excellent echoes!  We went up the elevator ($5) and popped out on top of the city!  It was so neat seeing the river wind through, and we even climbed a tower for an even higher view.
The next day we went on a ride (8km) from town, alongside the river to a MARVELLOUS kids playground.  Complete with dinosaur slide, pirate ship, octopus and more.  We started to find the painted rocks that our friends had told us about and had heaps of fun finding, then hiding them again.
We found a skateboard bowl and rode the BMX bikes around it.
We visited Virginia Lake for lunch, walked right round the lake and visited the aviary to look at the birds.
What a marvelous stay, Whanganui!   Thanks!
On the way out, we stopped in on the North Mole.  Because with a name like that, how could we not?

Strange Goings-on in Stratford

I did NOT know that Stratford (a small town in Taranaki) has it's very own Glockenspiel!  SHUT THE FRONT GATE, I hear you cry!  I know!
So without further ado (about nothing) we made our way to the glockenspiel at a little before 10am to behold the magical retelling of the Shakespeare classic, Romeo and Juliet.
Ok, so it was a bunch of mannequins poking their heads out of various windows and a tinny recording of the general story recaptured in 5 minutes, but it was still something unique and endearing.
The townsfolk must HATE it, because the tourists gather around expectantly, except it's right on a pedestrian crossing, so it looks like they are ready to cross.  Cars stop and us tourists stand there like numpties, not crossing, just stopping traffic.
After the excitement of the glockenspiel, we jumped in the car and ventured down the long and winding  lost highway (43) to Whangamomona.  Isn't saying Whangamomona almost as much fun as it is saying phenylalanine?  We said Whangamomona a LOT on the ride to and from.  Lunch in the pub then back to the indoor pool at the campground.  Oh yes, you heard me correctly, indoor pool.
Stratford, you may not be upon Avon, but you're a splendid town.

Hanging in the 'naki

After the total chill out of Tongaporutu, we were ready for the hussle and bussle of the big smoke, so we headed to New Plymouth.
PB insisted on wearing his full Batman suit just donated by Cassius (thanks again guys!).
We were there on a splendid day, so jumped on the bikes and headed along the waterfront to the wind wand,  then up the road to the Govett Brewster Art Gallery. Very impressed with everything!
Headed out of town to Stratford, where our campground afforded us a neat peek of the mountain.
On the way, we stopped at the Fun Ho! Toy Museum in Inglewood.  (Thank you, Nana!).  PB squealed with delight more than once.  Cool the way they have the toys in glass cases but the kids get to push buttons to start all the moveable toys (trains, slot cars, etc).
And to end the day we headed into the National Park and did a short walk to Dawson Falls.
Taranaki,  you did not disappoint.

Time Out in Tongaporutu

Ok.  I think we might have found one super cool freedom camping spots that is going to take a lot of beating:
- close, but not too close to the main road to New Plymouth
- space, grassy, flat, right on the water
-  Kayaking, walks out to the Three Sisters and The Elephant
- Novelty factor of a jandal fence
What is not to love?
It also helped that we parked beside really lovely campers from New Plymouth who were friendly, great to chat with and happy to interact with a small boy.  Bless!
Tongaporutu, I sincerely hope we will meet again.
(Interesting fact about The Elephant rock formation... It used to look like an Elephant until (they think) the trunk became unstuck around the Kaikoura earthquake! ) :-(

Farmyard Fun in Otorohanga

We headed from Raglan early, on a mission to find the Bridal Veil Falls. We DID, though the road that lead there caused a serious conversation with DH about me please trying to suggest places that are easier to tow a caravan to.  Fair call.
A short bushwalk leads to the falls and to a mean platform over the very top of the falls.
Terrifyingly, when PB and I ventured down to the middle viewing platform, he informed me that when he is a big boy, he's going to jump off the top of that waterfall. This resulted in a serious conversation with his mother about the submerged boulder in the middle of his proposed splash zone.
On we went, to Otorohanga.  A quick whistle stop tour of the Kiwihouse was called for.
Went through to the kiwi viewing area and the keeper kindly gave the one kiwi on display a gentle kick to encourage her to come on down to the window. Great service!
Then off to visit a family friend on their farm.
 Wow! What hospitality!  We were invited to come down to see the cows being milked ("Boring" according to PB, despite a. Being terrified of the cows up close and b. talking about it every day since...) We were given raw milk straight from the milkshed,  muffins, muesli, sausages,  cucumbers, eggs and an ice block for PB!
So generous and we loved every minute of our farm experience! (Even got to drive the farm gator!  Spot the Townies,  though, taking selfies as we were driving along to the milking shed!)
Onward that night to Waitomo.  Stayed right in the village after a failed attempt to find the freedom camps in the book.  Got a tip from the campsite lady about where to go to see glow worms at night.  (Free fun you say?  We're there!)
So, after dinner, once it got dark, we unhitched and headed out.  (Tumutumu Road, carpark B)
It... was... stunning!
The glow worms were all up the bank and in the bush beside a little stream, and it was completely magical.
DH referred to them as bugs with a shiny bum and suggested touching one.  I said we shouldn't, we should leave them be,  as they are precious and magical, to which the 3.5 year old says:  "But I want to poke his magical bum."  (No magical bums were harmed in the making of this post.)
An awesome day.