13/01/2018 - The rain blanket falls on our heads

On January 11th, we said goodbye to rainy Kaikoura. The weather didn't get better on the way to Hanmer Springs. A huge cloud cover hung over us. Because of the bad weather, we couldn't go for a planned hike. Fortunately, there is a viewpoint that can be reached by car. So we still saw the clay formations, which are similar to the Pinnacles at Cape Palliser. With every kilometer, we hoped that the rain would take a break, but no chance. We arrived at the campsite in Hanmer Springs around 4:00 PM. We put on our rain jackets, took out the ingredients for dinner, and made wraps. But that wasn't it for the day. Hanmer Springs is one of the most important thermal resorts in the country. Therefore, a visit to the thermal pools is a must. So we packed our bathing suits and went to the thermal baths, which are located in the city center next to the information center (i-Site). Despite the lousy weather, the "swimming pool" was well visited. Since the pools are outdoors, we decided to store our towels in the locker. Then we went straight to the first pool and it was wonderfully warm. The temperature range of the different thermal pools is between 36 degrees and 42 degrees. In addition, you bathe in various minerals such as sulfur. We tried out all the pools at least once. After having to walk through the cold rain to get to the next one, we can guarantee you: you will be thrilled to get to the natural hot pools! In addition to the many thermal pools, the pool also has a 25-meter freshwater swimming pool and a slide, which can be used for an additional fee. After swimming a few laps in the pool, we went back to the thermal pools. We spent almost two hours in the pool and were then deeply relaxed. For a brief moment, we forgot about the nasty rainy weather.

The next morning - drum roll, please - it was still raining! So we decided to take the day with great coziness, if that is even possible in such weather, and decided to spend the day in the library. As you might already know from previous blogs, the library is one of the favorite places for a backpacker on such rainy days. It's dry and warm, you have the opportunity to recharge your electronics in peace, and there is free Wi-Fi! So we joined the other visitors and continued writing the blog while charging our phones and camera batteries. But after two hours, the air was out and we drove back to the campsite. But what helps best on such days when the rain simply refuses to stop? Good food! This time it was spaghetti carbonara. What can I say? It definitely fell into the category of "soul food" for us! We felt better - the wet towels not so much. Because of the constant rain, nothing was drying, neither the towels nor our swimsuits from the previous day. It was starting to get on our nerves. When you only have your car to take shelter from the rain, the car blanket can easily fall on your head. We looked at the weather forecast for tomorrow, but it didn't promise any improvement at first.

January 13th, 8:00 AM. We woke up slowly. We could hardly believe our ears. There was no more loud splashing sound. We opened our curtains and could see that the heavy rain was finally easing up and it was only drizzling. A glimmer of hope sprang up. But the fog was still hanging between the mountains. So we decided to stay one more night in Hanmer Springs. We wanted to spend this night closer to the city center. Therefore, a change of campsites was imminent. We freshened up for the day with a shower, had breakfast, and passed the time until check-in at the library. We checked in at the new campsite at exactly 1:00 PM, and guess who fought their way through the cloud cover? The wonderful sun! It's not a lie - in the past few days, we've seen many locals hiding in the library just like us on rainy days. But as soon as the sun comes out, they meet again on the streets and enjoy the weather. It didn't take long for us to warm up again. After having to wear long clothes and rain jackets in recent days, today we could finally wear shorts and a light t-shirt again. The good weather had to be taken advantage of. So we didn't waste any time. Hanmer Springs is surrounded by beautiful mountains, which we couldn't see in the past few days because of the heavy fog and low-hanging clouds. First, we went to the "Ferry Bridge," which is located just outside the town and connects the town to the state highway. We parked our car in a pullout to take photos of the bridge. It is so high that you even have the opportunity to bungee jump from it. But that wasn't our plan. Instead, we went back a bit because we wanted to view the bridge from a different perspective. As you know, it has been raining a bit in the past few days, which is why the actual track to the river was covered in huge puddles. So we found another way and followed it. The dirt road is regularly used by SUVs, so the tracks were sometimes quite deep. The path was very, very muddy, but thanks to good footwear, we made it through. When we arrived at the river, we soon saw the Ferry Bridge. We took some pictures and strolled along the river before heading back to the car. Since the weather was finally nice again and we even had to put on sunscreen, we wanted to take advantage of this and take a walk in the small town. We checked out the shops and kept seeing people walking towards us with an ice cream in hand. We couldn't resist, so we bought one too. In the evening, we returned to the campsite, and the weather forecast for the next day promised sunshine. That's very good for our plans because we will be crossing one of the three alpine passes that connect the East Coast to the West Coast. It is supposed to offer great views. We're excited.