From Nugget Point to Arthurs Pass

Hello dear ones,
unfortunately, we woke up on Sunday morning in very gloomy weather with light rain. However, we didn't want to let the day spoil and we set off early to the Purakaunui Waterfalls. The short path through the forest made us fit and the waterfall was also very beautiful. We then continued north, where we discovered Jack's Blowhole. The journey along the cliff coast alone was worth the short detour, and the blowhole was also impressive. The sea has carved a 200m long tunnel under the rocks here. When the clouds cleared and the sun came out, the day was perfect. After that, we went on to the famous Nugget Point, a lighthouse surrounded by rocks that look like nuggets. There we could once again spot seals sunning themselves on the rocks. On the way to our next chosen sleeping place, we passed through Dunedin, where we got free water from a brewery, which tasted really great. During the self-guided sightseeing tour, we also passed by the now second steepest road in the world, although we did not dare to drive up it. On the drive out of the city, we had a great view of the bay in front of Dunedin. Our campsite also surprised us on this day because, for a change, there were neither sandflies nor wind. The beach in front of the campsite was also beautiful, one of the most beautiful we had seen on the trip, although the water was verrry cold for swimming. After the beautiful day, we woke up again in the morning with a little drizzle, but the sun was still shining above us. The clouds move so quickly here that it rains when the sky is already blue again. On our way along the east coast, we passed by great viewpoints and then reached the first destination, Shag Point. There were also many seals there, which even played together and bathed in the water. Then we went to the Moeraki Boulders, which are round stones with a diameter of about 1m in the middle of the beach. At Katiki Point, another lighthouse, we were almost blown away, but we could observe a seal lying in the sun only about 10 meters away from us. In Timaru, we treated ourselves to a hot shower and Matthias trimmed his 10-day-old beard a bit;) We were lucky with the calm campsite again on this day and could even use our stove outside. Today we drove past Christchurch again towards the west coast. The mountainous landscape through the interior of the island impressed us a lot, even though the weather was very cloudy. Arriving at Arthurs Pass, which takes us to the other side, we took two hikes in the National Park of the same name, one to the Devils Punchbowl Waterfall and one to the Otira Valley. Even the light rain couldn't spoil the view of the beautiful landscape for us. As soon as we were out of the mountains towards the west coast, the sun came out and there was almost no cloud to be seen, quite crazy weather here. Now we have arrived in Greymouth and have taken our place here by the river before we probably continue north tomorrow.
See you then,
Malia