January 24th: Camp Bay to Bay of Many
Today was our first day of hiking on the trail. 32 kilometers in total (trail notes only said 30) All together it was a very mild track. We hiked with two people, patrick (TA hiker) and a french day hiker named julian who was taking 9 months off to travel the world. Cody and I have discovered that Americans really do get the short and of the stick with it comes to vacation. The views today were stuning, and weather very hot!
We hiked from sea level, through the mountains, and finally up ridgeline. Once settled into camp on top of the ridge the Weka started moving in from all sides. Then the goats came around; I never realized how musky those males were.
When we finally crawled into the tent for bed, the night crew came by.... Probably 4 different possums, rats, mice, and (lucky us) a small group of peacocks that decided our tent site would be a good place to battle each other. I've never slept next to a circus but now I have a pretty good idea of what it would be like.
January 25th: Bay of Many to Davies Bay
Because we hadn't gotten any sleep we slept in a bit more than we should have, which meant hiking longer in the heat. It did actually get to be quite hot - my thermometer gauge read about 90. Not what we thought South Island weather was going to be like. Guess the mountains and cold would come later.
More spectacular views of the sounds
After sweating about a full liter each, we rolled into Davies Bay ready for dinner and bed. We parked our tent a little close to a tree, which was a bad idea since the possums paid us multiple visits. After about an hour of relentless badgering I made the call to move the tents away from the trees. We might have lost the battle with the possums, but we won the war and finally got some uninterrupted sleep!
January 26th: End of Queen Charlotte to Havelock
We slept in till about eight, then had a light breakfast. Cody's stomach had been bothering him for days, causing him to eat less. Both of us were looking forward to getting into Havelock around lunch to pig out. We walked the short bit out of the beautiful mountains and onto the highway. From there we got a hitch into town from a very nice Swiss couple. It was also our first hitch in an RV! Thank you Micheal and Sabrina! Generally only local Kiwis have been giving us rides.
After they had dropped us off near Havelock we decided our first order of business was dropping off our bags and food! We got a recommendation to eat at this funny little restraunt that served mussels. Apparently Havelock is the self proclaimed mussel capital of the world. The mussels are harvested from 90 mile beach and transplanted in the calm clear waters of the sounds.
At least it was a very popular motorcycle hangout
We got the sampler plate which was more like art than food.
Cody decided to have a glass of white wine with his meal. This is probably the fanciest picture of a smelly hiker fresh off the trail. We were a little out of place, but enjoyed ourselves immensely (even if our surrounding company thought we were smelly)
Our hitch had also happened to be eating at the same restaurant. Later on they gave us their contact info and told us to look them up if we were ever in Switzerland. One great thing about NZ is having the possibility of making friends from all over the world!
We planned to zero in Havelock the next day and prepare ourselves for the tougher sections coming ahead.
Today was our first day of hiking on the trail. 32 kilometers in total (trail notes only said 30) All together it was a very mild track. We hiked with two people, patrick (TA hiker) and a french day hiker named julian who was taking 9 months off to travel the world. Cody and I have discovered that Americans really do get the short and of the stick with it comes to vacation. The views today were stuning, and weather very hot!
We hiked from sea level, through the mountains, and finally up ridgeline. Once settled into camp on top of the ridge the Weka started moving in from all sides. Then the goats came around; I never realized how musky those males were.
Enjoying the view
The view
When we finally crawled into the tent for bed, the night crew came by.... Probably 4 different possums, rats, mice, and (lucky us) a small group of peacocks that decided our tent site would be a good place to battle each other. I've never slept next to a circus but now I have a pretty good idea of what it would be like.
January 25th: Bay of Many to Davies Bay
Because we hadn't gotten any sleep we slept in a bit more than we should have, which meant hiking longer in the heat. It did actually get to be quite hot - my thermometer gauge read about 90. Not what we thought South Island weather was going to be like. Guess the mountains and cold would come later.
More spectacular views of the sounds
After sweating about a full liter each, we rolled into Davies Bay ready for dinner and bed. We parked our tent a little close to a tree, which was a bad idea since the possums paid us multiple visits. After about an hour of relentless badgering I made the call to move the tents away from the trees. We might have lost the battle with the possums, but we won the war and finally got some uninterrupted sleep!
January 26th: End of Queen Charlotte to Havelock
We slept in till about eight, then had a light breakfast. Cody's stomach had been bothering him for days, causing him to eat less. Both of us were looking forward to getting into Havelock around lunch to pig out. We walked the short bit out of the beautiful mountains and onto the highway. From there we got a hitch into town from a very nice Swiss couple. It was also our first hitch in an RV! Thank you Micheal and Sabrina! Generally only local Kiwis have been giving us rides.
After they had dropped us off near Havelock we decided our first order of business was dropping off our bags and food! We got a recommendation to eat at this funny little restraunt that served mussels. Apparently Havelock is the self proclaimed mussel capital of the world. The mussels are harvested from 90 mile beach and transplanted in the calm clear waters of the sounds.
It's hard to eat when you're being watched
We got the sampler plate which was more like art than food.
Cody decided to have a glass of white wine with his meal. This is probably the fanciest picture of a smelly hiker fresh off the trail. We were a little out of place, but enjoyed ourselves immensely (even if our surrounding company thought we were smelly)
Our hitch had also happened to be eating at the same restaurant. Later on they gave us their contact info and told us to look them up if we were ever in Switzerland. One great thing about NZ is having the possibility of making friends from all over the world!
We planned to zero in Havelock the next day and prepare ourselves for the tougher sections coming ahead.
What a campsite! Still no way I could make the hike! But the views you two are enjoying are amazing! What a team you two are!
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