Tag: Interislander

Heading for the West Coast

On By exploringthelongwhitecloudIn South Island, West Coast Region, West Coast Region1 Comment

It’s adventure time.

I love adventure time, especially when it’s on 2 wheels.

I find travelling by motorbike so easy and freeing. I love the simplicity of having limited luggage space.

Our bike is packed. We are ready to go. For the next week, it will just be us and our 2 wheels as we explore the West Coast of the South Island.

The Plus lounge on the Interislander Ferry is a great way to start our trip. It is comfortable, quiet and fully catered. This is excellent as we are on an early crossing and have not yet had breakfast. The Plus Lounge makes it easy to sit back, relax and watch the world go by.

As we start to slip into holiday mode, I realise just how tired we both are. Daniel has been really busy doing long hours at work and I have spent a lot of time painting the exterior of our house. I think it’s fair to say, we are both in need of some down time. I have activities planned for this trip, but have been much more controlled. Normally I plan action packed days, trying to squeeze in as much as I can, but I have toned it right back this time. Hopefully it will be the right balance of fun and rest.

The Marlborough Sounds are looking stunning today, as usual. The water is always so calm and peaceful, the landscape pure and untouched. I am privileged to have done this journey a few times in the last year, so instead of battling the wind outside, I enjoy the views from the comfort of my armchair in the Plus Lounge with my cup of tea and scones.

We disembark in Picton and I am surprised at how hot it is. Even on nice days I usually layer up under my motorbike jacket – when you are moving it can get quite cool, but today, a t-shirt is all that is needed.

We are heading towards Punakaiki (also known as Pancake Rocks) The most direct route would be to head towards Blenheim , but the journey is all part of the adventure. We prefer to get off main roads, so instead choose to take Queen Charlotte Drive and head towards Nelson which offers some beautiful views. We stop at a look out and enjoy the sight of Picton, soaking in the sun. The cicadas are chirping and little boats bob up and down in sage coloured water.

Magical.

We carry on, passing a gorgeous little campsite. It looks simple and very relaxed, the quintessential kiwi summer holiday.

By the time we make it to Nelson, we are definitely ready for a late lunch and find ourselves sitting down at Burger Culture. It’s a funky place and lots of people are outside enjoying their food. Daniel gets a burger but I am so intrigued by the sweetcorn ribs that I have to give them ago. As it sounds, they were rib’s made from corn on the cob, smothered in sauce.

Wow! These were sensational and I enjoyed how messy they were to eat. Such a cool concept. Some people are so creative!

With our bellies full, we carry on, we have one of our longest riding days today and I am keen to arrive late afternoon so we have some time to explore. Our journey takes us through The Buller Gorge.

Oh my. It is stunning.

It is so lush and green and I can smell the forest. The road is windy, following the river – great fun on 2 wheels! Unfortunately I don’t have any photos as we didn’t make any stops.

We carry on riding. It’s near late afternoon and I am thinking we should be nearly there. I pull out my phone to check directions and realise that we have taken a wrong turn.We should have headed towards Westport and then down the coast, but instead we are still travelling inland, on our way to Greymouth! We have traveled in the wrong direction for so long that it’s quicker to carry on and head up the coast, than turn around and backtrack! Apparently I was on navigating (No idea why – Daniel knows I have a terrible sense of direction!)

The route we took

We finally make it to our destination, 13 hours after leaving Wellington! It has been a really long day and I am ready for a sleep! We are staying at Te Nikau Retreat. What a sanctuary to relax in. Set among tall nikau palms, our lodge is nestled into the trees and looks out along the canopy line. I feel like I am in a tree house.

We have arrived just in time to watch the sunset so we shoot down to the beach. Conveniently there is a path from our accommodation that takes us right down to a viewing platform. I can hear the powerful roar of the ocean well before we even get there. I have heard the West Coast gets some pretty spectacular sunsets and tonight it doesn’t disappoint. There are unusual rock formations dotted about in the ocean and a warm golden glow from the setting sun. It is so stunning, I forget all about our long travel day.

Cruising on the Interislander

On By exploringthelongwhitecloudIn Uncategorized3 Comments

In February, my husband and I packed up the motorbike and headed out a road trip adventure around the South Island. I have been really looking forward to writing about this, but at the same time, putting it off a bit because I just don’t know where to start. It was such an epic trip, in such a beautiful part of the country; I want to make sure I do it justice!

Our trip began on the eve of Waitangi day, we were on a 5pm sailing and at 1pm, I still hadn’t packed. Packing for a motorbike trip can be quite quick, you don’t have a lot of luggage space so there isn’t actually that much to pack. On the other hand, it can be quite a challenge deciding what is really essential and deserves a space in the small side pannier.

Between us we have 1 set of panniers, a small backpack and a tank pack. Somehow, I managed to fit all of this:

Into this:

Packing completed. Time to head to the ferry.

While waiting to board, we got chatting to another motorcyclist. One of the things I love about travelling on a motorbike is that you are instantly in a club. When out on the road, other riders will give you a nod or a wave, and when you’re parked up, they will just start chatting to you, sharing stories of the adventures they have had on their bike.

Wellington had put on some nice weather for us, thankfully. I don’t really have an issue with motion sickness, but the cook straight can get pretty rough. I have been on one of those rough sailings and I don’t wish to do it again!

The ferry ride is around 3.5 hours, about an hour of which is through the picturesque Marlborough sounds. We had a pretty smooth sailing, apart from a rough 30 minute patch after we left the shelter of Wellington harbour.  It was a full sailing and the motorbikers were last to board, so all the inside seats and the outside seats at the front were taken by the time we got on board. We ended up in the only available seats we could find, which happened to be outside in the smokers area, but also in the centre of the boat. Now here is a tip from my mum to you – ‘Stay in the centre of the boat, it’s more stable there’. Yes the boat was rocking and we watched the horizon going up and down, but neither of us had any sea sickness. When I went inside to get some food, I passed a lot of very ill looking passengers. Excellent advice mum!

It’s near impossible to get a photo of Daniel smiling. He pulls a face every time the camera comes out (unless he is standing next to a Super Car, then he will smile!)

We then entered the calm waters of the Marlborough sounds. It is so picturesque and beautiful. A flock of birds effortlessly glide through the air, following alongside the boat. The water is so still and the setting sun casts a golden glow across the hills. I watch as birds feed on schools of fish that have risen to the surface.

What a way to start our holiday.

We arrived in Picton, a quiet, peaceful town and drove a couple of minutes down the road to our accommodation. Tonight we are staying at Sequoia Lodge Backpackers,  a pretty place, with tropical looking plants, a spa pool and giant chess set. The rooms were simple but clean. All we needed.

We then decided to head across the road to a local pub, Crow Tavern, to grab some dinner and a wine. The pub has a bit of a kitch, kiwiana feel to it, the staff are friendly and there is a really chilled out atmosphere.  This  place feels  like it is a bit of a community hub, reading the notices on the board I learn that Kerri-oke is cancelled this Saturday as Kerri is away.  

That made me smile. 

But now it’s time to get some rest. We have a decent ride a head of us tomorrow we want to be feeling fresh for the next leg of the journey.

The Details

There are 2 ferry companies that operate between Wellington and Picton, The Interislander (which we traveled on) and Blue Bridge. Both companies have multiple sailing times during the day.

Our return trip for 2 adults and a motorbike cost us $336. (You need to take your own tie downs for the motorbike)

Sequoia Lodge Backpackers is in a convenient location and only a couple of minutes drive from the ferry terminal. Linen, towels and breakfast is included in the price. There are a variety of room types to suit all budgets. We stayed in a double room with shared bathroom for $76.