Our last few days on the South Island of New Zealand started with us arriving in Motueka. Sometimes randomly turning up at campsites gives you a really nice surprise and this one definitely did. We quickly booked in 2 nights and pitched our tent in a grassy corner and headed to the pool for a swim and sunbath followed by a run and cooking a curry in the camp kitchen.
The next morning we woke up early to get picked up by our kayaking company Kahu Kayaks for our full day of sea kayaking along the Abel Tasman National Park.
I apologise for the lack of photos but I didn't take my phone on the water so photos will follow in May when I am home and have uploaded the photos from my camera.
What a fantastic day!
There were 5 of us in our group, a local couple, an American girl and us along with our guide Samantha who was from Blenheim. It started by us boarding the water taxi which was insane! It was like riding a extreme jet boat as it sped and crashed into the waves. We were flying and falling and I honestly was a little scared the boat was going to break. Nathan was giggling like a little child, he was loving it.
When we arrived at a secluded bay it was time to launch our kayaks. My gosh the waves were big. They were 2 metres in the air, which if you were paddling in the water with your feet wouldn't be to bad but attempting to get out to sea was a little harder. Nathan and I launched into the sea and I literally went through a wave! The next 3 hours were hard work but absolutely amazing. We kayaked through some great waves and saw some seal pups. We stopped at a little beach for our lunch which was a welcome break from battling the ocean.
The afternoon session was a lot calmer and we paddled along the coast. It was only then that our guide Samantha told us that the weather we had experienced in the morning was very unusual and not many people can say they have kayaked 2 metre waves in the Abel Tasman National Park! We all thought this was normal!
We decided to kayak into a lagoon but to do so we had to go through a small channel from the sea to the lagoon where waves were breaking. Nathan and I were the last boat to go through and managed to ride a wave right in, but then it pushed us onto the bank and we had to use our hands, paddles and all our strength to get off the sand.
The lagoon was stunning, we paddled further into the National Park and under the swing bridge. The water was crystal clear.
After a little more sea kayaking we went to a buoy the was bobbing around and our guide lifted a hose from the water and we all filled out water bottles with fresh spring water that was pumping out of it into the sea!
What an amazing trip I would definitely recommend kayaking as a way to see the Abel Tasman National Park.
The next morning after a swim we headed to Nelson and had a look around the town. It was a beautiful place and such a cute high street lined with coffee shops.
We continued to Pelorous Bridge which is the set of a scene from the Hobbit. We had a great ice cream recommended by Eliot.
A few hours later we were driving through the Marlborough vineyards again and made a final stop at Waipara River for a gorgeous glass of Sauvignon Blanc.
At 4pm we arrived back at Eliot and Nicky's to return their Esky and spend a lovely evening drawing and skipping with Arwen and Niamh, watching Count Arther Strong and playing Agricola. The perfect way to end our South Island adventure exactly the way it began.