Marc & Nora ROUND THE WORLD 2005/2006 - Join us!

After a few hours drive through some of NZ`s most unspectactular scenary (with the exception of the Queen Charlotte track which winds its way from Picton to Havelock with some stunning views down to the Marlborough Sounds) we arrived in Nelson. Beautiful looking little town which is growing into a real exclusive little spot due to a lot of the rich crowd investing in property here. With a ferry booked from Picton to Wellingtom for the next day we didn´t intend to hang around. We just picked up some info for the Abel Tasmen NP and left for Marahau from where we would take the water taxi the next day onto the National Park itself. We had decided to do a short half day walk from Anchorage (or in fact Torent Bay) back to Marahau along a short section of the National Parks 51km coastal walk.

First Impressions amazing! With a perfect blue sky and sunshine the 40 minute water taxi (speed boat) trip was a great start to the day. The sea swell was pretty big (few metres) in parts but the journey was great fun. We got dropped in Torrent bay, waded ashore and started our 4 hr walk back to Marahau. This is such a stunning walk and we wish we could have stayed to do the entire route! This place is absolutely picture postcard beautiful! The views from the rain forest covered cliff tops are sensational and I`m sure that our pictures don`t do them justice. Every so often there are tracks which will lead you down to some of the most amazing beaches with fine sands and turquise waters. With such little time to spend there we were sad to leave them behind. After all of the wind and rain which we had encountered over the last couple of weeks this was a perfect goodbye to New Zealand`s South Island.

With just hours before our ferry departure we were back in the car and off to visit a friend of Trevor (Nora`s Mum`s partner) who had emigrated to NZ with his family (wife and two children) a few years ago. They invited us for coffee to their beautiful home in the hilly countryside outside of Nelson. Really nice guys living out their dream in NZ. With a 10pm ferry to catch we hit the road and headed for Picton ferry port.