In Which a Mid-Semester Break Road Trip Occurred

After a long hiatus in the South Island for mid-semester break, I have returned to Palmerston North. Shortly after our return, a giant earthquake shook Christchurch, but that’s another story. Here is the road trip story.

In Which I Tour the South Island in the Back of a Toyota Corolla Hatchback

The legendary hatchback

The first thing I learned about planning a two-week road trip was that no matter how much we planned in advance, the plans would change. The second thing I learned was that a two-week road trip is a quick way to suck your wallet dry, even when attempting to be frugal.  The third thing I learned was that cramming four people, packs, a tent, a ‘chilly bin’ (cooler), and plenty of eggs into a tiny car and driving hundreds of kilometres to take hundreds of pictures is one of the best experiences I have had here so far.

The ferry

Day One (August 21^st) started out early. Not bright and early, because not even the sun was up yet. Just early. We drove down to Wellington and made the 10:25am ferry. A pleasant part of the day was watching the sunrise over the hills. Another fun realization was this was my second ferry ride ever (the first being the ferry to San Francisco, which I soon realized didn’t count for much). 

Welcome to Picton!

Upon arriving in Picton, we took to the road, and a very winding road it was. It was worse than a sine curve! Luckily no one got carsick. 

Our first night was spent on a fun little campground near Abel Tasman beach. Dinner was definitely the highlight of the night. Steak with fried onions, potatoes, kumara (sweet potatoes), and carrots! First night in a tent since Girl Scouts! The sleeping bag didn’t do its job very well, but I had enough layers on to get through the night.

Fun side story: At around 4am I had an insane urge to go to the bathroom. It was a 75 meter walk across a flat campground, with no other campers except us in the area. Upon my return, I see a figure standing just outside the realm of my flashlight beam. I’m very close to the tent, but I freeze when I realize the figure is headed straight for me. To add to my terror, it starts to run. I’m ready to scream bloody murder when I realize that it’s Steven. Needless to say, I gave him a piece of my mind. Why was he out of the tent at such an hour, you might ask? The same reason I was.

Abel Tasman Beach

Day Two (August 22^nd) began with pancakes and a nice hot shower. After packing up, we walked out on the golden sands of Abel Tasman Beach. It was absolutely gorgeous, and we were there during low tide so there were plenty of shell-filled tide pools. I collected quite a few empty shells for necklaces. Some crazy guys decided it was a good time for a swim. :P Weather couldn’t have been better! 

Bit chilly for a swim?

The drive to our next destination—Westpoint—proved a bit rainy. After struggling to find a place to spend the night, we settled on a paddock—for free!—thanks to the owners of the Star Tavern. It was a bit muddy rolling in, and the hatchback needed some assistance, but we got everything set up just before the rain came in. We ate dinner then went over to have some drinks as a thank you to the barkeep. I made two friends; technically 3, if you count Duke the border collie. Olivia (7 in September), and Sam (who is 4 and likes Crunchy and princess dresses). It’s hard to trade stories with people who are three feet tall, so we just talked about school. It was an awesome tavern, and judging by the bills on the ceiling we weren’t the only Americans to pass through. Would have been great to hear some of their stories, but as it was Sunday night I think they were keen to close early.