Welcome to 2016 everyone!!  Hope your Christmas and New Year were exciting and refreshing. 

Having spent the Christmas period in South Canterbury recovering from a spew bug that plagued half the family for Christmas day (er-hm) we then meandered our way south again to spend time with awesome friends who have hit the road in their housetruck cafe, before heading for the destination: West Coast South Island.

We followed State Highway 85 across the Pig Route to Cromwell.  A hot dry trip but a beautiful one none the less.  The barren hills, the tinder dry land and the rolling landscape made for a beautiful drive.  We stopped in Cromwell delighted to find good friends were there on holiday.  

The best part of Central Otago of course is the fresh summer fruit.  Cherries, apricots, plums, necatrines - all fresh from the orchard.  So, so good.  We were treated to some free cherries from another camping couple and they would have to have been the largest juiciest cherries I have ever come across!

After a couple of cloudy days we moved on up the road to Wanaka.  Thinking the land couldn't get much drier it was incredible to see the dust and straw that was Wanaka.  We were grateful to park with extended family and enjoy the shelter of the surrounding scrub as the wind began to blow.  Boy oh boy did she blow!!  No enjoyment of the lake was to be had. However we managed to get thoroughly lost in Puzzling world maze (a super geat place to go with kids), explore some super awesome second hand shops, and generally bunker down while family members recovered from colds!

The time came to head on, over the Haast Pass.  What an awesome drive.  Steep as steep but strinkingly different from the harsh dry lands we had left behind.  Lush, fresh bush.  We spent the night at Pleasant Flat DOC campsite and took the chance to explore the waterfalls in the Haast by car.  Walking into the Fantail falls you stumble upon a fabulous rock cairn riverbed created by all the visitors.  Of course we then had to add our own.

We then carried on in the car to Jacksons Bay, the south western most point on the West Coast where we were able to buy the countries most expensive fish and chips and eat them on the waterfront whilst simultaneously swatting pesky sandflies.  Yip we were sure on the West Coast.

Posted by Angela