Cy, one of the owners of Kaiteriteri Kayaks

Nelson, Kaiteriteri & St. Arnaud, New Zealand

October 27-30, 2000

Home : Travel : New Zealand

The perfect 4-day weekend trip from Wellington.

Friday, October 27, 2000

I flew to Nelson on Friday at noon. Wellington and most of the surrounding area was blanketed by thick fluffy clouds, but they suddenly dissappeared over Makara Beach, and were replaced with a beautiful view of the Cook Straight and the rugged coastline of the Marlborough Sounds at the tip of the South Island. The 35-minute flight had cost $179nz, but with a little forethought, you should be able to find a return flight for about $80nz.

I had arranged a Budget Hire car for $35/day and the pick-up process was amazingly simple in the tiny Nelson Airport. Within 5 minutes I was driving away in the smallest and most ridicuously-colored car I had ever rented. The Nelson City Centre is about a 15-minute drive from the airport. I easily located the Visitor's information Centre at the corners of Trafalgar and Halifax Streets and started the process of finding somewhere to stay for the next few days.

One of the women behind the counter helped me sort out a double room at The Barn in Manahau, about 90-minutes north of Nelson. I didn't make any other bookings, but left with a handful of pamphlets and many ideas.

Route 6 runs through Nelson, and I followed it a little ways southwest, when Route 60 breaks off to head northwest towards Motueka and eventually to Collingwood near the very top of the North Island (Farewell Spit). Route 60 was more windy and scenic that Route 6, heading northwest past Rabbit Island and then paralleling Tasman Bay for a while.

I didn't go the the magnicifent Neudorf Winery on this trip, but they make some of the best Pinot Noir I have tasted anywhere, and are definately worth a stop if you have the time.

I decided not to go straight to Manahau, but instead headed North over the mountains to see what was up there. Once past Motueka the road gained elevation quickly and the views of the farmland below just kept getting better and better. There were some light road repairs underway on the downhill side, but no major delays. I was scouting for a nice place to stay for New Year's Eve, so I stopped into a few Bed & Breakfasts and Lodges, but decided not to stay on this side of the mountains when I found out that The Gathering would be near Takaka this year.

After spending enough time in Collingwood to whip a u-turn, I followed the signs farther north to Puponga, the last settlement before Farewell Spit. There was a small visitor's center that had some good home-made snacks, but the lady working was a little short with a guy who was asking her for some local information. After I paid for my chewy carmel chocolate-chip cookie bar thing, he told me about the short tramp to Pillar Point Lighthouse (which is actually just a becon, I was told). I drove up the dusty gravel road and almost missed the trail (there is a trail to the right and a pull-out to the left and a sign that you could see if you were driving the other direction). It was getting late in the day, so I decided not to hike the 20-30 minutes over the hills to the beacon, and just headed back past the "Old Man in the Mountain" and drove south towards Motueka.

When I arrived in Kaiteriteri, I realized that I had no idea where The Barn was. I drove through the small village and a few kilometers out of town before returning to the beach area and asking a local kid who had never heard of it. A guy across the street said that The Barn was up in Marahau. There were a few signs in Marahau, but only one was needed. It should have read: "The Barn: drive to the very end of the road and take a left". At the corner there was a cafe with an ocean view, there was a lot full of big wood carvings, and the start of the Abel Tasman Track. A hundred meters to the left was The Barn. I had a double room, the shared toilets were out back in a free-standing shed.

I ate at the cafe with three guys from Wellington. They were all retired and yatchmen, but had driven down for their vaction this time. One was a real estate developer, and both of the others were just enjoying the freedom that working hard for a living had brought. The topic that brought us together in conversation was the falling New Zealand Dollar, which at this point was at an all-time low (about $0.39 against the US Dollar. Check Yahoo! Finance for current rate). They were a little hard on me after hearing my "American" accent, but lightened up a little when they found out I lived in New Zealand.

After that, they became pleasntly bitter about Kiwi Politicts and we discussed the merits of combining currency with Austrailia, to help New Zealand shore up their economy. As businessmen they were all for it, but conceded that it Austrailia probablly wouldn't gain much from it, and therefore it wouldn't be worthwhile.

Back at The Barn, I relaxed for an hour in the lounge, reading a chapter in the "Fellowship of the Ring" by J.R.R. Toliken and listening to a Kiwi tramper trying desparately to pick-up a beautiful German girl (or her friend, which ever agreed first).

Saturday, October 28, 2000

I packed up my stuff in the morning and hoped I could stay another night, but the manager said that they were booked and I'd half to wait and see if anyone cancelled.

A cheerful woman at the Cafe made me a great bagel sandwich with ham and cheese for breakfast, and another one for my lunch (and some cookies, too). I made it to the Kaiteriteri Beach just in time to meet the owner of Kaiteriteri Kayaks and my guide for the day, Cy. We were scheduled for a full-day trip and went through a few familiarization excercises, as well as descriptions of how to pedal-steer the kayaks. Cy was great from the start and only got better as the day progressed, everyone liked him instantly, and he was pretty funny as well. There were two Dutch women, a couple from the UK and another couple that was from Denmark. I was teamed up with Rena, a Caniadian woman who was spending a few weeks biking all over New Zealand before returning to her snowmobile guiding job in Whistler for their winter. I assumed the duties of steering the vessel and we were off.

Team Dutch Rena near Split-Apple Rock Group Lunch on an isloated beach

We followed the coastline north towards Marahau, stopping at the beach near Split Apple Rock to remove a layer of clothes (it had warmed up a little). When we started out again, we explored some tight caves and then made an hour-long crossing of Otuwhero Inlet and Sandy bay. The waves were pretty small and very manageable, we saw a few distant blue penguins and other sea birds. There were also two tall masts on the horizon, and Cy speculated that it was a replica of Captain Cook's Ship that sails around from time to time (by this time we had no idea if his stories had any merit whatsoever, but they certainally were entertaining).

After lunch on a beautiful beach just north of Sandy Bay, we made the ambitious decision to paddle around the back side of Adele Island and try and find some seals. The island had a beautiful stretch of coastline, but the seals were nowhere to be seen. We scooted across to Fisherman Island and took a 30 minute break on a secluded beach before making the long haul back to Kaiteriteri.

Team UK and the Great Danes were all business getting across the harbor. Rena and I spent more time talking than paddling and we also did a fair bit of waiting for the Dutch women and Cy, who was in back with them. The hour-long crossing was nice, but slow. The Dutch women took to teaching Cy some Dutch drinking songs, which he did sing once for the group. Lots of jokes were told and a good time was had by all. The tide was much lower than when we left that morning, so we had to paddle around a small island in Kaiteriteri Bay before raising a cold beer when we all made it back to shore.

I had made the mistake of not bringing enough cash, and not making a booking anywhere, so Cy took me in and fed me, gave me beer and a place to stay. It was extremely kind of him, and pretty representative of how good natured and generous most New Zealanders are. Some of the other guides were around, and we had a good meal and good conversation until it was time to sleep.

Sunday, October 29, 2000

A light rain cancelled the scheduled kayaking trips today, so I hung out with Cy, Nick, Steve and Linda for a few hours, alternating between reading and talking and just staring off the balcony to the beach far below. Pretty tranquil.

Cy helped me find an amazing place to stay for New Year's Eve and then I was on my way back south (the Kimi Ora is a luxury spa overlooking the beach at Kaiteriteri).

I had intended to go back down the coast towards Nelson, but I headed towards St. Arnaud instead. I had been to the Nelson Lakes back in August, and really liked the area. The lake was beautiful, there were many hiking trails and a few places to stay for non-campers. I took the Motueka Valley Highway west out of Motueka and followed it as it turned southwest and then south towards Route 6. The valley was stunning, but the intermittant rain always seemed to get serious whenever I wanted to take a photo of anything. I passed Rena somewhere near Tapawera, and found out she was heading for the same area. I didn't know where to stay, but her guidebook mentioned two places, and she said she'd look for my car (The Eggplant she called it, because of the shape and color) when she got into town.

At Route 6 I headed east for a few kilometers until taking a cut-off road down to St. Arnaud. There was a lot of clear-cutting on this stretch of road, the first I had seen since living in New Zealand. Entire hillsides of trees were knocked over and many logging trucks were moving around, despite it being a Sunday.

There was a temporary power outtage in St. Arnaud (explaining all the power company vehicles and personell just east of town). The manager of The Yellow House showed me a large room with at least room for 6 people in it. I said I'd take it, even though I thought $50 was way too much for it (the Lonley Planet Guide says doubles are only $34).

Hoping to do some hiking, I drove a few kilometers down to Lake Rotoiti in the rain. It only rained harder down there, so I read in my car for an hour or so. Then I ventured to a camping area behind the Visitor's Center, not too far from the S-Curve on Route 63 that defines the town of St. Arnaud. I walked around with my tripod and cameras for a while, under the protective canopy of the trees. There was a small chapel that I never saw (but there were several signs for it), as well as a small stream and a few other hikers. No one was overly talkitive, so I just stuck to taking photos in the woods. The high overcast provided perfect light in the woods and I took a few dozen slow exposures before the rain picked up.

Soggy and tired, I returned to the hostal to be greeted by a Swiss couple who said they had just passed a Canadian a few minutes before. With that, Rena pulled in and said hi. By now, the power was back on and we went into the manager's office to pay for our accomodation. She paid $10 for a soggy plot of land out back near a small stream and pitched her tent while I started dinner.

While we were cooking, the hostal dwellers appeared from out of nowhere and soon, the kitchen was hot and crowded. Most people had a connection to vancouver, Canada. It was pretty weird that almost everyone there had either lived in Vancouver, were just moving to Vancouver or had always lived in Vancouver. Team Swiss were heading back to the Whistler area, Rena, lived in Whistler, I had lived in Vancouver the previous summer and so had an asian couple, and an American woman travelling with two Isralies were also just moving to Vancouver. Naturally, Vancouver became the topic of conversation as we all made our food.

After dinner, I read for a while and talked with the Swiss. The woman who's name I am embarassed to have not remembered, was a teacher in a small village near the Italy border. She told about a teacher she worked with who was Swiss, but looked very Italian. She said that people in her town treated her like an outsider and merchants would speak slowly around her. When she would reply in rapid Swiss, they would still say she wasn't "real Swiss". She said it was a difficult problem for her friend.

I went to bed pretty early.

Monday, October 30, 2000

The weather looked considerably better this morning. There were actual blue sky patches in breaking up the familiar grey sky. Rena and Team Swiss were setting their plans to bike the Rainbow Track, a two-day ride that would deposit them near Hamner Hot Springs. They were all looking forward to the ride, but Ms. Swiss was lobbying hard for another rest day...

I made a quick breakfast and packed my gear in the car before saying good-bye to my new found friends. Just as I was leaving, one of the Israeli guys ran out and asked for a ride to the trailhead for the Mt. Robert trail. I agreed, and shortly my sub-compact car was buldging with 4 adults and three huge backpacks. I was an amazing feat of packing that made it all work. We headed down the road towards the lake, then took a dirt road way up into the hills. I had no idea how far back it went, but it took 20 minutes or so before we came to the trailhead they were looking for.

They liesurly un-wedged their gear from my hire car and then the skies opened up with a deluge of rain. I asked if they wanted a ride back, but they were determined to climb Mt. Robert.

Because of my slight diversion, I was a little tight on time, so I pretty much just zipped straight through to Nelson to return my hire car.

The plane ride back wasn't as scenic as on the way over and Wellington was living up to its nickname "Windy Wellington". The small plane was shaking and wobbling all over the place on approach, but the landing was very smooth.

Places to stay

Things to do

return to the New Zealand Table of Contents.

Matt Mueller
17 November, 2000