We have moved quite a bit! We are now in Christchurch. But first, we will show you the landscape from the north to the northwest. After the great North Coast, we are moving a bit more inland:
(North Coast from a distance)
A few kilometers south of Abel Tasman National Park (far north), there are numerous small and large boulders in the landscape:
These rocky fields hide caves. We joined a tour of the Ngarua Cave:
The roots of a brave plant emerge from the ceiling.
One of the interesting things about Ngarua Cave are the findings of ancient bird bones, including the kiwi and the extinct giant moa:
These birds probably fell through open spots in the ground and had to run around in complete darkness until they died without food ...
Here is one of the holes that leads from above into the cave:
We were able to leave the cave using a ladder. Lucky us... Even the huge moas were caught by giant eagles with a wingspan of 3 meters and probably 'could kill moas weighing 180 kg'. There is a suspicion that these eagles also occasionally attacked humans, as they still existed when humans settled in New Zealand. After this (cool) cave tour, we continued a bit further north to fully enjoy this area: +++++++++++++ Takaka ++++++++++ Takaka is a real little hippie town, as these photos demonstrate. There are jewelry and clothing stores for alternative enthusiasts, authentic rustic bread from the German baker, and plenty of colorful, lovingly made advertising signs: Anette was delighted by these stores, much to the dismay of poor Hannes. Hannes looking for a store that sells things he would like - unfortunately, he found nothing. The market here is heavily geared towards women. We think we would pass as hippies too :D In Takaka, there is not only bread, jewelry, and hats, but also the largest freshwater spring in the southern hemisphere to admire: So beautiful and blue... ....blue... ...blue... *taking a breath* Touching the water of this spring is not allowed for two reasons: First: Maori (sacred and all that), second: fear of introducing algae or similar things that could spread in the spring. That would be a shame. Such beautiful water! After a little detour to a café in Collingwood, run by an artist... ...we continued towards the south/interior. The next truly impressive thing for the next 3 hours was Lake Rotoiti near Saint Arnaud, which looked quite different from the landscape we have seen so far on the South Island: Greetings from the diversity of New Zealand! :) We spent the next night near the Maruia Falls: Without internet, you have to spend your time differently than reading other people's blogs like crazy! Reading to each other has become our new form of entertainment :) The next day, we continued towards the west coast. Here are some impressions of the inland that accompanied us on this journey: Super blue rivers (the blue is not so easy to see due to the clouds). They can also be explored by kayak on the water - but the rental prices are quite high, so we preferred to watch. And after 2 or 3 hours, we arrived at the west coast: +++++++++ West Coast: Pancakes & Seals ++++++++ Here, at Cape Foulwind, there is supposedly a seal colony according to the guidebooks. As it turned out, they can even be located by road signs, so they are probably quite settled here. This is what the cute creatures look like up close, but this is just a picture from an information sign: In reality, you can hike to a platform from which you can watch from a safe distance (several hundred meters) from above. Quite rough where the seals have settled. Here, one big wave after the other crashes against the rocks. They are all lying on the rocks in the foreground. Not very visible, right? Let's zoom in for you: (That's a very small baby!!) It's quite impressive how they navigate in these hostile waves. A little further down the coast, we passed the very popular 'Pancake Rocks': The rocks on this rugged coast are characterized by bizarre formations: And it's quite obvious why these formations are called Pancake Rocks. It's not clear how these patterns formed. One theory is that over time, denser rock layers formed due to deposits on the seabed that were less attacked by the water, creating the 'protrusions' that look like pancakes. The gaps between the pancakes are then made of a material that is more susceptible to water erosion and therefore gets flushed away faster. On this day, even the sky made pancakes for us :) ...with so much pancake inspiration, of course, a café has established itself here, which sells, among other things, pancakes ... the cheapest one for a whopping 18.50 dollars! ++++++++++++ Dear to Our Hearts: Lake Brunner +++++++++++ We spent the next night at this lake. And the next. And the next! We found the lake very, very beautiful - it was quite different from the other bodies of water we have seen recently: Dark and mystical. The campsite was also very quiet and secluded from any traffic and city. Simply wonderful to spend three rainy days in complete peace. Anette's joy about the lake is undeniable :D The nature here is - once again - unique. As you can see in the pictures, interestingly shaped trees dominate the landscape, with grass blooming everywhere at the moment, and objects that remain motionless for more than a moment are immediately overgrown with thick moss... Anette even dared to go into the water! And finally, a cute Weka - we already encountered one on the hike through Abel Tasman National Park. Meanwhile, we have noticed that they are quite common here. And they are always cute :) That's enough for now! :)Soon there will be more pictures of the beautiful Southern Alps. Until then!!! Take care!! HanNZette
