Sun in the south.

At the moment we are in the deep south.  It doesn't get much deeper than Invercargill.  Our previous experience of Southland weather has been pretty bad but this spring has been an exception.  The weather has been dry and warm and amazingly the wind hardly rates a mention.  When last I wrote we were in Cromwell for a few days.  Then we packed up and went through to Queenstown.   Passing through the town it was again very busy with tourists everywhere.  As we like the quiet life we carried on through and took the Glenorchy road out to the 12 Mile DOC camp on the shores of lake Whakitipu.  The longest lake in NZ.  The camp was virtually empty when we arrived around lunch time but every afternoon this camp starts to fill with the young tourists in their small vans and station wagons.  The sound of those sliding doors reverberating around the camp.
    Jocelyn and I decided we would do the trip on the Earnslaw out to Walter Peak Station.  We made it into town early and boarded on a lovely fine day for our trip across the lake.  The Earnslaw  is truly a beautiful old ship and an engineering marvel. Once out at Walter Peak we were served a sumptuous barbecue lunch in the restaurant then returned across the lake to Queenstown.  Our fellow passengers were mostly overseas tourists with a large percentage of them asian.  They are mostly in awe of the southern scenery and those camera shutters are never still.


Remember to click on photos to enlarge.

The Earnslaw. lady of the lake.

Walter Peak Station.

  Joel and Julie were arriving Friday evening and staying in one of the police holiday homes, so we left the rig at the camp and moved in to town for the weekend.  By the time they arrived we had a roast lamb cooking on the webber and were admiring the view looking down on the town and the lake with a wine and a beer.
 The next morning we were off to the Gibbston Valley for a bike tour of the wineries.  The track looks down on the Kawarau River through the first stages then angles back to the highway where we stopped for the wine sampling and a nice snack at one of the restaurants.  We did end up doing a bit of cross country at one point when following Joels trail blazing and lost the track.  But all up it was a very enjoyable few hours.

On yer bike

A bit of cross country.

I kept saying a few more steps back. You'll be right.

Wine and cheese.

 Jocelyn and I also went for a drive up past Glenorchy and then onto the greenstone and Caples Valleys where we went for a walk into this stunningly beautiful area. Crystal clear rivers and wide river flats with high mountains either side. Stunning.

Hey Mick. A crystal clear stream flowing out of the steep and rugged Humbolt Range.

Jocelyn on the Caples River swing bridge.

Caples River. The greenstone Valley goes to the right in front of the large peak in the background.

   After Queenstown we were keen to head back into Mavora Lakes.  Once you have turned off the main road it is not long and the gravel road starts.  Rain had been so scarce down here the dust was a great billowing cloud behind the rig.  It was about 40 kms of gravel so by the time we arrived the dust had penetrated all of the outside storage areas and some of the inside ones as well.  The bikes on the back were so white with dust I just took them off and threw them into the lake.  The Mavora lakes are such a special area.  The scenery just takes your breath away.  Tussock flats around the lakes rising to beautiful high snow capped mountains.  Most of the snow had gone by the time we arrived but there were still patches on the higher peaks.

The river flowing between North and South Mavora lakes.

Looking up to the head of North Mavora lake.

  Again we struck the weather right with clear blue skies and the breeze held off until around lunch time, but it never blew hard enough to be uncomfortable.  Just enough to blow the sandflies off, of which there were a fair number.  The walking tracks around here follow the lake edge and are mostly inside the very picturesque beech forest.  One afternoon I decided to do a bit of climbing and worked my way up to a large clearing I had spotted from camp.  There were a few fallow deer marks around and apparently there are a number of chamois in the area as well.  From the clearing I could look down on the lake and the camp so I got out the camera and took a few shots. By the time I got back to the rig I had been away for about four hours.
 I spent a fair bit of time in the kayak and Jocelyn came for a couple of paddles as well.  A couple of young German blokes parked beside us one evening and I told them they were welcome to take the kayaks out. So they had a great time paddling off down the lake taking photos.
  I caught a few trout here but nothing large.  I only kept one to eat although I gave one to a lady who had been unsuccessful with her mornings fishing.  Being in a place like the Mavora lakes makes you realise how privileged we are to live in our beautiful New Zealand.  I only wish I had been more adventurous when I was a young man to come and seek out more of these wonderful places.

The rig slightly left of centre.North Mavora below and South Mavora to the right.

Early morning mist over the lake.

Parked in paradise.

   We stayed at Mavora for around 10 days then decided to move on to Te Anau. We had been talking about doing an overnight charter over to Doubtful Sound. We had already done the Milford Sound day trip but had heard the Doubtful one was even better.  So we rolled up at the Te Anau NZMCA camp and filled the water tank and washed off a bit of the dust.
   Jocelyn got on the phone and enquired about the charter trip and was told they had space for a couple the next day so we grabbed it.
  We were picked up from the gate at 9am the next morning with a bag and one fishing rod, as I find it very hard to go on a boat trip without at least one rod.  After picking up 2 more couples on the way we travelled through to Manapouri where we met up with the rest of the passengers, a total of 10 paying customers all up.  We were then boarded on a Real Journeys ferry to travel across lake Manapouri to the power station and the van that would take us over the Wilmot Pass to the  "MV Southern Secret" a 22 metre very well appointed launch.
  Clint was our driver and skipper and owner of the operation.  He also owned the large camping ground in Te Anau and a large transport operation linking tourists to all their destinations.  What a great host he turned out to be and his one lady crew called Kirsty was also indispensable as well as a real revelation.
  We were soon settled on board with a short safety presentation then shown to our cabins all with ensuite.  We got underway and were served lunch consisting of crayfish tails and several lovely salads.  Unfortunately I had to endure watching other people eat the crayfish as I had become allergic to them, damn it.  Jocelyn doesn't eat it either so the other couples got a couple of crayfish each. Never mind, the salads and crusty bread were great.

Doubtful Sound.

Mingling on the bow.

A bin full after picking up a couple of pots.

   What a beautiful place.  The weather was great although some stretches of the fiord were quite windy and exposed. later in the day the wind mostly eased off.  We stopped and some of them went kayaking, including Jocelyn while the rest of us dropped a line over to try for blue cod.  I managed a couple of very large specimens on my softbait and then the wind got up again and the kayakers where getting a bit hammered so we collected them back on board where I copped a telling off for not dropping my fishing rod and getting photos of Jocelyn in her kayak. It's all about priorities.  Fishing is right up there is it not?  Never mind after getting dried off and a hot shower all was sweet again.
  After this we were really spoilt as by this time we were approaching the open sea at the head of the sound.  As usual I was keeping my eye out looking for wildlife and I spotted a whale blow in the distance.  Clint steered in that direction and it wasn't long and we realised we were approaching a number of whales.  It turned out to be a pod of 7 or 8 humpbacks and we spent the next hour and a half in their vicinity being mesmerised in awe of these huge mammals.

  We had also seen yellow crested penguins and a number of seals and as the day was getting on it was time to cruise into one of the arms to anchor up for the night.  The other people on board were all very friendly and easy to get on with.  One couple from the UK, one from Holland. One from America, so quite a mix.  That evening Kirsty cooked a lovely meal with some of the blue cod that were caught as well as lamb and great salads again.  After food and a few drinks we were surprised when Kirsty and Clint carried out an electric piano.  It turned out that Kirsty in a previous time had been a concert pianist and over the next hour we were entertained with works from Chopin and some of the other well known composers.  She was a very accomplished pianist and we felt very privileged to hear her perform.

  After a calm night we rose early and the morning was spent cruising the arms of the sound.  We came across a small pod of bottlenose dolphin who came in to play then it was time to head back.  We had had a fantastic experience and I would recommend this trip to anyone.  We weren't keen on going on the other boat that takes 75 passengers but this one ticked all the boxes.  When we rolled up back at the rig after lunch we were still buzzing and talking about our last 2 days.  Awesome.

Bottlenose dolphin.

I even got to be skipper for a while.

The MV Southern Secret package.

  Jocelyn and I had been giving the bikes a bit of work recently and a couple of days after our trip, while out biking we met up with David and Sarah who had been on the cruise with us.  They lived in Scotland and were travelling around NZ for 3 months.  We found them to be very easy to get on with and they called around for drinks before we left Te Anau.  We exchanged phone numbers and emails so you never know we may meet up with them again as they thought maybe they would investigate coming to work in NZ for a few years.
  After Te Anau we took the Manapouri rd and travelled through to lake Hauroko.  Again we had a fair distance on gravel rd and it was still dry and dusty. We camped at the small DOC camp before the lake. While setting up you couldn't help but notice all the fresh deer droppings all over the grass we were camping on.  We were camped right on the bush edge on a lovely clearing. A very pretty wee spot.  And again the sun was shining and it was about 25 degrees.
   While here I went bush a few times for an hour or two.  Plenty of deer sign around and quite open bush.  Joel, Julie and Tia arrived with the boat on Sunday and we launched it  down on the lake.  It was quite nostalgic for me to get behind the wheel of my old boat and we all had a great afternoon exploring Lake Hauroko.

The paint job looking a bit rough after 25 years but still a great wee boat.

  We also went around to Teal Bay hut for a look, where deer and pigs had left their mark with rooting and footprints all around the hut and along the beach. On the way back  Joel, Julie and Tia all went for a wakeboard then Joel and I loaded the boat on the trailer and got absolutely monstered by the sandflies. We piled back into the ute and I think we carried about 200 of them with us inside.  There was a lot of arm waving and cursing on the road back to the rig.  Lucky back at the camp there weren't many sandflies at the camp.
  Next day a chiller truck arrived and parked up opposite the camp then a helicopter flew in with the first of 4 loads of deer on the strop.  It looked like about 40 deer all up were loaded into the truck with 2 helicopters helping with the operation.  After they had gone I wandered over and found a knife and pouch laying in the grass.  Anyone who knows me knows I like knives so this was a nice wee bonus.
  This is another spot I will be keen to come back and spend a bit more time at.  If I organise things I could always get the boat and use it here too.  Might be a good place for a couple of mates to arrive and do a bit of hunting.

Very friendly bush robin posing for photo.

Another load of dead deer for the chiller truck.

The Robbie loading the truck.

Another wee mate I met on my bush walk.

  Next stop Invercargill .  Jocelyn was flying north for her mum Maureens 80th birthday gathering, and also managing the transition of tenants leaving and new ones arriving in our house in Omokoroa. There were a few jobs to do at the house and Rod and Sean were going out with her to lend a hand.  Jocelyn also caught up with some family and friends while there but she didn't have a lot of time to see everyone.  She stayed in Rotorua with brother John and Margot and she flew in and out of Rotorua airport.

Happy 80th Maureen.

Birthday lunch at Mills Reef.

 While Jocelyn was up north I went and stayed with grand daughter Monique and Greg for 2 nights.  Monique always makes me feel so welcome so I enjoy staying with them.  I did give them a bit of a fright with my heart going out of sync again "atrial fibrulation", so hopefully I will still be welcome in the future.  Greg took me trout fishing to some of his favourite spots.  We saw plenty of fish and Greg caught a nice brownie around 5 or 6 lbs. It was a really nice weekend.
  Back in Invers the bikes were getting a bit of work, some days doing around 20kms.  Weather still fine and hot.What is going on with Southland? The locals are not used to this and are starting to complain, wanting to get back to the usual wind and rain.
  We have just had another short sojourn to Wanaka with Joel and Julie, staying at another police holiday home.  Unfortunately I needed the ambulance again and spent a night in hospital with AF.  Seems it might be with me from now on and I might have to learn how to manage it.  I seem to be pretty good at stressing Jocelyn out lately. Never mind we will continue to enjoy what we do best.  Having fun in the south island sun.  We will probably head off this week and have another look around the Catlins.

Work to do.

After our Queensland trip we flew into Christchurch and were soon on our way up to Kaikoura as Rod wanted us to set up the new K line irrigation on the farm.  With calving still going on and mating just around the corner everyone was still very busy on the farm. Catherines Uncle Hugh and Auntie Fiona are living in the other house on the farm and are both working like trojans.  Milking, calf rearing and renovation work on the house.
 I picked up a small 1.8 ton digger from the hire centre in Kaikoura and over the next 3 weeks Jocelyn and I got stuck in. First up Jocelyn measured out the paddocks then we made up all the pods onto the alkathene lines. Then all the hydrants had to be dug and the old existing ones dug and capped.  We made good progress then we got a fair bit of rain which filled up a lot of the holes we dug with water.  Then fittings wouldn't fit and trips to town for new ones that turned out still didn't fit.  Then discussions on is that 50mm or 40mm.  Oh no that ones 63mm.  Then thats 50mm but that pipes high density so that low density fitting  doesn't go on. It was a bit of a brain strain at times.  We didn't end up finishing the whole job but we got the bulk of it done.
  I enjoyed learning to operate the little digger.  Having never used one one before it takes a while to coordinate your hands on all the levers and pedals.  But once you get the hang of it you become quite proficient.  Now I want to play on a big digger.

Me and my toy digger.

The new ute got turned into a farm hack.

  James was there for about a week and with him and Rod doing stock work up the Puhi block they were always coming back with deer that needed cutting up.  I went for a hunt with them on the DOC block through the neighbours property and managed to miss one and shoot one.  Obviously not getting enough practice. Still you never run short of venison with Rod and James around.
   Before we left we went to pet day.  Gracie had reared a goat this year.  Daisy was rather lovely and very friendly.  Catherine had made up costumes for Grace and Daisy and on the day the judges picked them both for first place best in class and best costume.  Its great to see all the youngsters there having a great time and loving their pets.

Gracie and Daisy.

  Jocelyn was getting itchy feet again.  Rod was threatening to take a wheel off the rig so we couldn't escape until all the work was done. But eventually we packed up and we headed inland as the coast road was shut again.  As we got to Waiau we turned left and this took us to Parnassus where we stayed a couple of nights at the NZMCA camp again. We did a couple of bike rides and took the ute and had a look at Motunau beach and the Hurunui river mouth.  There were a lot of people at the mouth fishing.  Quad bikes everywhere.  White bait nets and surf casters.  Talking to a few people they were catching mainly Kahawai and the odd sea run trout.  It was probably a bit early to see good numbers of salmon running yet.  Anyway it was a bit crowded for me.  The coastline is quite exposed along here and the sea was dirty coloured so no good for snorkelling.

  Next stop was Christchurch where we stocked up on a few items, mainly coffee.  We found the Nespresso shop and spent far too much on coffee capsules.  We also went to Hagley park and had a walk through the gardens there. That Avon river that flows through there is real nice.  I spotted a few good size trout in there too.
  Back to the rig and we found ourselves back on the road through the Mckenzie country.  Through Tekapo and onto Twizel.  And yes we ended up back at Ohau C camp backed into the very edge of lake Benmore.   The camp had filled up with all the summer caravans and camper vans .  They had built all their windbreaks and attached fairy lights around their sites.  Although there were still very few actual people around but everything was in place to enjoy those warm summer days.

   It wasn't long and I had the kayaks down and the fishing rod out.  The first outing didn't produce a fish but the next morning I landed 3 good size trout keeping just the one.  Over the next week or so the weather was perfect.  Hot sunny days with very little wind, and we made the most of it.  Kayaking every day.and the odd bike ride.  We even got a bit sun tanned.  We got to know a few people camping there.  One couple Paul and Wendy were parked next to us.  Paul had a tinny and invited me out for an occasional fish.  There were a few small salmon about and they were added to the larder.

  One morning one of the blokes called in to show us a trout he had caught in the canal.  He always fishes in the dark either late at night or very early morning.  He pulled a rainbow hen out of his bag and it was the fattest fish I had ever seen.  Definitely obese, and in danger of heart disease.  Thinking back I should have gone and got the camera.  Anyway he weighed it and it tipped the scales at 21lb.  He catches a number of these large fish using shrimp for bait and always at night.  And they get a lot bigger than that too. A number of trout from the canals are caught between 30 and 40 lbs.
  I got the fly rod out and tried casting to fish from the kayak and managed to land 3 large brown trout.  I released them all again.  I find this method much more rewarding than just trolling a fly behind the kayak.  James arrived from Oamaru for the weekend.  He managed to catch 3 trout from the kayak so was pretty stoked with that.  It was also Jocelyns birthday so it was great James was there to help her celebrate turning 60.  As I am still only 59 I can tell her she is now officially an old fart.  Haha.  We went in to Twizel and had a nice lunch at Poppies restaurant sitting outside in the sun.

A lovely day and a great place to celebrate turning 60.

A nice birthday hug from James.

A couple of good trout to James.

   The time came again to pack up.  As always we really enjoyed our time here in this camp. We had good company this time as well with the weather a bit warmer and more people around.  Normally we have this camp to ourselves.
   Over the Lindis Pass we went, and stayed overnight at Lowburn reserve by lake Dunstan.  The rabbit numbers around this area seem to be exploding again.  I went for an early morning drive up one of the valleys and the paddocks were just overrun with rabbits.  Everywhere you looked were rabbits.
  Leaving Cromwell we drove through Clyde and carried on to Alexandra where we stayed at a place called Butchers Dam.  This is just a small body of water by the side of the road. Free camping again with no facilities on site.  But quite a pretty little spot.

2 nights at Butchers Dam.

 We stayed here 2 nights then decided we were going to take the farm track up to Poolburn Dam.  This is on the road to Ranfurly.  We turned off at Omakau and this road took us through to Moa Creek where we headed up into the hills.  The last time we had come here we arrived in the middle of a blizzard.  This time was much better but unfortunately the cold wind was to become a problem.  It is a really fascinating place and I recommend to anyone to make the effort and go and spend some time up there.  We were a bit restricted this time as we found on the second day a freezing wind got up and stayed with us the whole time we were there.
  On the third day we loaded the truck with a picnic lunch and took the Old Dunstan road out past the Dam and through the hills.  This is a four wheel drive road through the station and takes you right through to Paerau.  The landscape and rock formations through here are other worldly.  You could be on another planet.  It is quite a bleak landscape and being between 900 and 1000 ft above sea level the weather can turn nasty very quickly.  The wind was persisting so we weren't that keen to get the picnic basket out as it was also freezing.  We eventually came out on the road to Ranfurly where we stopped at the I site and commandeered a picnic table to eat lunch.  As we got out of the truck it started to hail so we didn't take too long getting lunch down.  Then we did the full circuit and arrived at Moa creek and turned back onto the Poolburn Dam road back to the rig.

Remember you can click on the photos to enlarge.

Moonlight over Poolburn.

Wind over the water

Jocelyn battling the wind.

A little respite.

The end of the track.

Typical bullet ridden sign.

   It was still bloody cold so the decision was made that in the morning we were going to pull out and get down to a lower altitude to warm up again.  That night just before bed I opened the door to have a look around and it was snowing quite heavily.  In the morning the snow was still on the hills around the dam when I went for a walk.  So now we are back in Cromwell at the NZMCA camp and this weekend we are meeting Joel and Julie in Queenstown.  I think the plan is to do a wine trail through the Gibbston Valley on the bikes.  I'm wondering how Joc will go on a bike after a couple of wines.  That could be real interesting.

From Southland to Queensland.

Sorry it's been a while since my last story on our travels. Over the last couple of months we have covered a bit of ground.   It started back in Invercargill where we were to pick up our new ute.  Even that took a lot longer than expected.  To start with the Ranger was coming down from Auckland and somehow got itself lost and nobody seemed to know where it had gone to. A week later it arrived none the worse for it's unexplained absence.  Then we started having to deal with the modern tradie about getting the hitch transferred, the new tonneau cover fitted, the side mirrors exchanged and the new wiring for lights and electric brakes to connect to the rig.  It started with the engineer for the hitch.  He was booked for the Tuesday.  When we got there he said he would only look at it today and Friday he might get time to drill the holes for the attachment.  Then it had to go to the Rhino guy to spray the tray before the hitch could be attached.  It sat in his yard over the weekend and he finally got onto it the following  Thursday.  Then the Tonneau cover was fitted. He had it for 3 days then it was back to get the hitch fitted and then onto the auto electrician for another 2 days.    I'm sure Joel and Julie thought we had moved in on a permanent basis.

Just a note.  You can click on the photos to make them full screen.

The new truck hitched up on the Lewis Pass.

  Still we got to know Invercargill and the surrounding hinterland a lot better.  We had time for lunch at Riverton overlooking the lovely estuary.  We had bike rides and bush walks and a lovely BBQ on Oreti beach dressed up in our winter woolies and snuggled into our beach chairs.  Our taste buds were
appeased with bluff oysters, smoked mussels, salmon, and those great Fat Bastard Pies.  We made a couple of visits to the Fat Bastard Pie shop.  The seafood pie my favourite.   Another thing put to rest was that blue cod in the south are definitely much better to eat than the same fish up north.  We throw them back in the north island as they are mushy and unpleasant to eat.

A big bull sea lion eyeing up his girlfriend.

Me and Joc.

Some lovely waterfalls around the Catlins.

Seascape in the Catlins.

BBQ on the beach mid winter.

Oreti beach.

   Also while at Joels I got their bird feeder filled up with sugar water.  What a response that got from the local bird life. There would be tuis, bellbirds, wax eyes and sparrows lined up in all the handy trees waiting for a shot at the sweet water. Sometimes 6 or 8 tuis drinking at the same time.

When the tuis left the wax eyes moved in.

Beautiful tuis.

  Finally one afternoon the ute was ready for pick up.  It looked great and it was nice to finally take it for a drive.  Joel and Julie made us feel so welcome but we felt we needed to get out of their hair and get back on the road.  So the next morning the rig was hitched up and we were on the road north.  The first day we made it to Cromwell where we parked at our usual spot by lake Dunstan. Then the next morning we were travelling up through the Lindis pass when a stock truck and trailer passed us in the opposite direction and squirted out a large rock from one of it's wheels and straight into our windscreen.  It left a big cracked star in our very new windscreen. Bugger, bugger, bugger.  Bloody Murphys law.  I try not to get stressed about these things.  Sometimes I fail.
  Anyway we had decided to spend some more time at Twizel.  We must really like this place as we seem to end up back here a lot.  The first night we stayed at the NZMCA camp by the salmon farm again.  This camp is free to members.  Unfortunately some members treat the fishery as a pure meat hunting enterprise.  That night a party of blokes arrived in their caravan and parked behind us.  The first thing they do when they arrive is hammer in rod holders along the top of the bank.  Then they bait up with huhu grubs and sinkers attached and cast out into the middle of the canal.  There is six rods lined up along the canal.  They fish until very late at night and I hear them up at 5.30 am when their generator starts up to make their coffees.  A couple of them straight away bait up all the rods and get them out into the current again.  The previous time we were here these same blokes were here then as well.  Those rods stay fishing all day and half the night while they make their meals or drink their beers.  They have bells and lights attached to their rods so that they can hear when a fish strikes and at night they can see the light jiggling around and know which rod the fish is on.  This way they can fish but not really keep a close eye on the rod all the time.  At the end of the day they have a filleting session where the mostly small salmon are filleted, vacumn packed with the power from the generator and chilled in the fridge.  They catch a lot of fish with this method.
  When I saw these guys were back again I said to Jocelyn we were going as I don't think I could stand being parked next to them without saying something.  Unfortunately As long as they keep within their limits and sizes it is all legal.  But I have never seen a ranger there checking on any fisherman so I don't know weather these rules are being adhered to.  So again we moved back down to the Ohau C camp for 3 days.  It was still very cold but I managed to get out and catch a few trout, mostly released again and as always we enjoyed ourselves in this lovely spot.

Jocelyn with Mt Cook in the background.

The iced over crater lake.

  Next we were off to Christchurch to get the windscreen fixed and then back to Kaikoura for a few days to visit Rod, Catherine and Gracie.  I even did some milkings with Rod and surprisingly found it was very easy to step back into those shoes.  It was nice to catch up again but we were intent on heading up to the Golden Bay area for a couple of weeks so it was back on the road with the first stop being Hanmer and those lovely hot pools.  Then over the Lewis pass and on to Murchison for a night.  That Lewis Pass is truly beautiful but unfortunately the traffic now makes it a very different trip to what it used to be pre quake.  From Murchison it was a pleasant trip through to Motueka and then after a trip to the grocery store it was up and over the steep Takaka hill.

Lovely tarn on the Lewis pass road by the St. James walkway.

  Unfortunately our Golden Bay holiday was to come a bit unstuck at this point as approaching the last left hand bend descending the hill on the Takaka side there was a bump and and a bit of a lock up from the rig.  We had just broken a spring on the front axle of the rig.   I managed to get mostly off the road and a call was put to Orange Mechanical in Takaka.   A while later Michael arrived and took charge.  Eventually we were able to limp the 20kms in to Takaka at about 30kms an hour and park up in Orange Mechanicals yard.  We were to get to know this yard and Takaka quite well over the next week.

Jocelyn on our walk out to Farewell Spit.

 We were well looked after in this town not only by Orange but by the friendly people and atmosphere in this lovely wee town.  Unfortunately it was the couriers that let us down.   NZ couriers picked up the new spring from Christchurch and were meant to have it to us on the Saturday but Murphys law stepped in again and it vanished.  No one new where it had been sent to.  It wasn't found until Tuesday morning and the garage received it about 2pm Tuesday afternoon.  So we had been in Takaka a week by this stage.  Michael was away but his dad Ian set to and fitted the springs in quick time.  It was getting pretty late in the day by this time so after hitching up we headed in to the dump station to empty out the tanks.

 Takaka dump station is designed for cassette type empties not big rigs with permanent tanks so it is quite a manouvre getting the rig close enough for the hose to reach.  After corkscrewing the rig back in to the site we were ready to hook up. After gloving up  I saw Jocelyn had put a glove on as she had to stretch and hold the pipe over the drain.  I suggested she put another glove on thinking one hand might get tired holding the pipe stretched out.  Before hooking up I saw she still had one hand without a glove.  Now this is where the blond moment became apparent.  She had put the second glove on but she had put it on over the first glove on the same hand.  Oh my god this definitely shows the different wave length  Jocelyn and I operate on.  We both spent the next 10 minutes in hysterical  laughter.  We always make sure we wear gloves when touching any of the hoses or attachments for the black or grey water tanks as we don't want any infections transferred from unhygienic practices.
 We got back on the road heading to Totaranui .  Anyone knowing Jocelyn knows that when she starts giggling it takes awhile for her to get things back together.  She still had tears streaming down her face and was still having trouble talking through the laughter.   I guess you probably had to be there.
   Anyway we found our way over that very tight winding road over the hill into Totaranui DOC camp.  We found a nice site to set up and then settled in for a beer and a wine reflecting on our one week delay in arriving to this spectacular spot in our lovely country.  Over the next 10 days we walked a number of the tracks, went for bike rides and went kayaking.  I did a bit of fishing catching a few gurnard but it was pretty tough going getting enough for a feed.  It really was great to be back at this special sheltered beach.  All the wekas, native pigeons, pukekos etc still wandered through the camp coming right up to your feet showing no fear of people.  There was still deer sign at both ends of the beach where they come out at night and kick up their heels.

Totaranui Beach.

The wildlife are very tame.

Sheltered camp sites in Totaranui camp.

  But all good things must come to an end and we found ourselves back on the road and climbing over the hill back to Motueka then on to Murchison for a night.  We stayed another night in Hamner and yes we had another swim at the hot pools.  Then on to Weedons NZMCA camp at Christchurch where we were going to leave the ute and rig while we go to the Gold Coast and see Jenny and Stan.  Which is where I am sitting down writing this story.

 We are into our second week here and enjoying the climate and hospitality.  It's been great to spend more time with Jenny and Stan who have been great hosts running us around to see the country, both beaches and hinterland.  We spent a day at Dreamland riding the coasters and tower of terror.  One ride "the Claw" was a bit much as Jenny, Stan and Jocelyn all came off it feeling decidedly seasick.  I was probably lucky as when they pulled the frame down over my chest it was too tight and caused discomfort and pain from my heart surgery.  So I bailed out of that one.  Jocelyn wasn't too keen to do the other rides after that.

Tower of terror.

Up on the roof of Panaview Court.

Surefers Paradise skyline.

 On a couple of our walks we have so far spotted 3 wild koalas in the tops of the eucalyptus trees.  And one on the ground just starting to climb back up to the top. I've been for swims in the surf and the pool. We've had a few nights eating out and the odd lunch as well.  I have to wait until I get back to NZ on Sunday  before posting this story as most of my photos are back in the rig.  So will finish off then.
  Our time in Aussie came to an end.  The weather was fine, and warm though a little windy at times.  The gold coast is a very busy place with a lot of people around and the malls are great for shopping and eating.  The people are friendly and helpful.  But it is always great to come home to New Zealand.