I woke up today feeling a bit sore from all of the kayaking yesterday. Today our goal was to hike from Anchorage Bay down the coastal track back to Marahau, where we starting kayaking yesterday. We had a quick breakfast on the boat, and set off.
Bret was carrying a huge pack and I had the smaller one full of our food and water. After liberally applying sunscreen (my lips got burnt and blistered the day before) and insect repellent, we strapped on the packs, and headed up the track. The first 20 minutes of the hike was entirely uphill and I wasn't sure this was going to be as relaxing as the 'walks' the guidebooks talked about. But boy, were those first 20 minutes worth it! Before long, we were high into the hills, overlooking Anchorage Bay and the Tasman Sea, peering down on the majestic green water we had kayaked the day before. The hike was hot and sticky, and we even stopped off for a swim on one of the beaches. It felt like we were walking through the jungle, with waterfalls and bridges over streams. The shade was our only solace from the heat, and it was well appreciated. The hike took up almost 5 hours with all of our stops to refuel and cool down. The scenery was incredible...I felt like we were finally seeing NZ for the reasons we came here! There were so many pictures, I tried to pick out the best ones...
View of Anchorage Bay
NZ's famous silver fern (Punakaiki)
After the hike, we boarded a bus back down to Nelson, to stay for a couple of nights and celebrate the new year!
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