We decided to try and get to Franz Josef to see the glacier in one day - but this turned out to be too ambitious so we ended up North of it in a place called Hokitika. But first we stopped off in Hanmer Springs - famous for it's thermal pools. We didn't actually use the pools as we were pretty tight on time but the town was lovely - surrounded b...

Right so it was a case of mission on on Friday! Was heading to the Wild Foods Festival (WFF) in Hokitika for the weekend! The plan was to pick up Cecile in Nelson after id finished work, get the tkts, and drive on down the west coast to Hokitika. This loose plan worked up until... oh about 9pm-ish id guess?! Then, after me nicely pulling over to...

Friday, January 19 Westport to Hokitika The day begins with gray skies as we explore the old Coal Mining area of Denniston where they mined coal from 1880 to 1967. The remains of the incline that they used to bring the coal down the mountainside are about all that is still evident. Nearby is the old cemetery with graves as far back as 1867. Yes,...

"Four seasons in one day" was probably written about Melbourne! The weather has lurched from dull, misty and cool to bright, steamy and tropical. Sunday's bbq on the Yarra was great until the cloud came down and and the north wind meant we had to don sweatshirts to stay warm. Jet lag is still a problem - wake up at 2 or 3 in the morning and then...

So my skepticism in my last entry was uncalled for, and we made it to the 12th annual Hokitika Wildfoods Festival! What an adventure it was too, not only was the food crazy, but getting there (and back) was half the fun. Let me set the scene: Hokitika is located on the western coast of the southern island of New Zealand, approximately 8 hours aw...