Where is Darran?

The day started with some not so hot showers. Don’t know if they were out of hot water or just have cold water. Regardless, most people got a shower in. The bunk beds at the Lake Mahinipua Hotel are something else. They are almost like sleeping in a hammock. We had breakfast tacos again for breakfast. Managed to crack a can of spaghetti for breakfast too. Got some rugby on in the parking lot before getting on the road.

If you’re going through these parts, check out the Bushman’s Centre in Pukekure. It is a pretty cool place to stop and grab some breakfast, pet some wild animals, and have a good laugh. The stop is full of funny signs, responses to disgusted visitors comments, and other random things.

Some of the signs

Got to pet this guy

Wallaby

The drive to Franz Josef is incredibly scenic. Highly recommend taking your time through these parts. Pull over to the side and take some pictures.

We registered and paid for the activities we would do the next day then headed to the hostel to check in. The hostel has a really nice hot tub which I thoroughly enjoyed.

Flier in Franz Josef

Quiet night for most of us. Some played bingo and hung out in the bar. I chilled in the hot tub for about an hour or two and then caught some z’s.

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Today was a little rough, but we all managed to get up early and get a pretty nice breakfast taco session in before getting on the bus. Once on the bus, it was a short drive to Cape Foulwind. A great opportunity to get some fresh air and see some fur seal colonies.

Seals blend really well into rocks

The day was overcast, windy, and the surf pumping.

Next, I remember stopping at Punakaiki for lunch. Some of the group went on a trail hike to see pancake rocks and blowholes. Others stayed back at the cafe. This is how nice the weather was in Punakaiki.

From Punakaiki it was on to Greymouth. In Greymouth it was time to get our gear for the costume party at the Poo Pub. The theme was a P party. Errik and I were ping pong players, Mark a prostitute, Old Man a pickled possum or something like that. Also, got another rugby ball because I kicked the first one over a fence and into the only cactus in New Zealand. We also went to the grocery store to pick up some snacks.

After acquiring costumes, it was time for the Monteith’s brewery tour. This is a must do if you get to Greymouth. It was around 7.50 NZD and we could pour as much of our own drink as we wanted. On the bus ride to the Poo Pub Mark played us some serious dance/trance music and it was gooood.

After Montheiths it was off to the Poo Pub (Lake Mahinipua Hotel). The weather was rainy, cold, and windy. Instead of going for a hike to the ocean or Lake Mahinipua we decided to head to the bar and carry on what was started at Monteith’s. We got some jugs and decided to play a game of caps in the middle of the pub floor.

The ceiling of the Poo Pub

We had an amazing dinner with BBQ steak, venison stew, potatoes, and other vegetables. It was incredible and I ate so much I had to go lay down for a while. After a short nap, we got geared up in our costumes then headed back to the bar.

Old Man (the pickled possum or something like that)

Mark the Prozzy

Ping Pong Players (this is what happens when there aren’t enough girls on the bus)

Kat was a newspaper

Groupshot

It was a pretty early night. We were out of there before midnight. Think it was the 4 pm brewery tour and the big night in Westport.

Tour so far:

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Got a group egg breakfast in with the boys. Stopped off to go grocery shopping in Richmond. Old Man bought three packs of cigs. The rest of us bought typical food items. Afterwards we drove to Nelson Lakes National Park and did a trail hike. Got a stop in stop in Murchison and had a nice drive through Buller Gorge.

We had to get the obligatory Lake Rotoiti peer picture

Caught a local rugby game right across from our hostel and then speny some good time throwing the rugby ball around. We got some beer at the local supermarket and played a game of caps with Mark, Errik, Old Man, Katharina, and James. Got pretty sloppy in the room and then decided to go out to get some grub.

I think the steak dinner was 10 dollars and it was really good.

After dinner, we went to meet our driver guide, Lauren, at a pizza joint. It was alright. The music wasn’t that great, but Mark and some of the others enjoyed a few games of pools. Mark lost to a local group of high school girls. All night people traded off a pair of pajama pants that Old Man nicked from the previous hostels laundry. He had no clean clothes so he creatively acquired some. After the pizza joint we went to another bar that had a live band that was rocking. We all went mental.

Tour so far:

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We woke up pretty early and the majority of the group headed to the ferry. Some of the group stayed behind to check out Wellington. The ferry ride is around 3 hours, but with a movie theatre, tv rooms, a bar, and two cafes on the ship there is plenty to keep you occupied. Most people slept. I read for a while(On the Road) and then Errik and I watched the Matrix on the Nokia 5800 for a while.

The ferry

Ole’ Time Killing

The view coming into the South Island is pretty scenic, unfortunately almost all of the snaps are tilted.

Fearless driver guide Lauren

Got a stop in on the way and threw the Rugby ball around. Also went on a trail hike. Walked out and ran back.

Eventually we got to Nelson(“the sunniest place in New Zealand”). This hostel was pretty adamant about no alcohol in the dorms. We will get back to that later. After unpacking we hiked to the center of New Zealand.

View of Nelson from the top

The hostel was pretty cool. They had free snacks and beer sampling for us.

We also got the lamb dinner from the hostel. It was good, but not much in comparison to the River Valley dinner. Afterwards, we went to the grocery store and got some snacks and beer. We got slightly lost on the way back, but eventually made it to the hostel. Because of the small size of the hostel and their no alcohol policy, we had to sneak the beer over the fence. Old Man and Mark got temporarily lost trying to walk around the block to the other side of the fence. Once the beer was in the room we proceeded with a game of caps. Old Man and I VS. Mark and Errik. Errik and Mark got rolled.

Party foul

Tour so far:

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Today was full of driving. We stopped in Bulls, New Zealand for lunch. Got into Wellington pretty late, dropped our bags off in the room and then went to find some dinner. Settled on Indian food and then went to Basement Bar. It was pretty lame and looking for more we headed out into Courtenay Place, but it was quiet night. Grabbed some late night kebabs. Errik and Mark crashed out and I realized we left Old Man out on his own so I went out to find him. What do you know, I found him wandering Courtenay place with three girls. Bed time.

Tour so far:

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