From the South Island to the North Island & Wellington

22.11.22

From Picton to Wellington

Hot shower in the morning and off to the ferry terminal. We have to be there by 6:30 am at the latest.

We drive through Queen Charlotte Sound towards Wellington in the morning light. 

Not all bars are open on the ferry (probably due to staff shortage) and there is only one coffee, which is poured over like a tea bag with water. On deck, you can comfortably stay in the sun on the lee side. 

The crossing takes 3.5 hours. In Wellington, we look for parking spaces in the city center. The first one on Cuba Street is pretty bad and also right next to a construction site. We drive to the harbor where there should be another camper parking space in front of the museum and luckily we get a spot. However, it is storming so much that we stand between two larger vans to not get blown away💨💨We decide to stay here for the night. The first thing we want to do is take the Cable Care Lane to the botanical garden.

It's a pretty unspectacular ride as the train mostly goes through a tunnel. But the view of Wellington is nice. 

We walk down through the botanical garden and encounter our first Kea. 

At least we believe it's one (looks kinda like a burnt parrot)

🦜

We have a coffee in a cafe halfway through and then somehow completely get lost on the way back. A nice Kiwi shows us the way back to Wellington and also gives us some tips for the North Island. 

We explore the city center and the harbor of Wellington, 

before it starts pouring down and storming like crazy. 

The weather doesn't seem to be on our side.