Moving on from Nelson we headed over to the west coast, another new area for us. The plan to discover the northern west coast and then head back over to Christchurch for jobs.
We drove up to the Operara Basin, checking surf spots as usual along the way. Some of the driving tracks have awesome scenery, twisting around the mountains and alongside the coast, also making for some scary roads. We stayed the night at a beautiful beach campsite and then headed to the limestone karsts in the form of arches and caves. The operara arch is a huge arch which as the guide book says - defies pictures! Unfortunately the bumpy tracks didnt do our tyres any good and we ended with a puncture - a moment for Charlie to feel manly and change the tyre.
We drove on down towards Rapenhoe stopping off at Pancake rocks, a set of amazing rock stacks and blowholes formed by the sea. At the local pub that evening we had the pleasure of being greeted by the landladies artful belching... a beautiful bunch!
Next we had a sudden change of heart, we were at the point of turning east to head for Christchurch when we thought, why not somewhere else - somewhere more exciting, more adventurous? Lets head for the one and only adventure capital of the world; 'Queenstown' - so we pushed on south past the greenstone and crystal waters of the Hokitika Gorge towards the glaciers.
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