Carrick Vineyards

I have been casually talking to Steve and Barb about their winery up till now.  Last night, during dinner, they were nice enough to give me a glass of their 2007 pinot noir. It was actually nothing like any pinot I've had in the past. I've not been a big fan of pinot noir because it usually tastes thin and acidic. This stuff from Carrick was rich, full, and had a nice flavor. I must have seemed like an illiterate because I simply said it was nice. They offered some to Charles, another Kiwi, who swirled the wine in his glass and said very intelligent things like, "Excellent nose!" and "Well you don't hide any of the fruit in there!". 

Their winery is located in the south end of the south island and also has a nice restaurant. From what I saw them eating on this backpacking trip, I'm pretty sure the food must be spectacular. 

www.carrick.co.nz

 

 

Abel Tasman - Day 2

 Sleeping in the camping hut was a bit fitful. At one point, the guy next to me grabbed my bad elbow to wake me up and tell me I was snoring. I must be coming down with something because I'm getting a bit of a sore throat. 

Yesterday, while I was putting on my pack, the top of my incision popped open and drained a bunch of reddish fluid. At first, I was A bit alarmed, but on the bright side, that explains why I've been having pain and swelling up till now.  I started packing the wound with some gauze I brought with me. I've also got a couple more days of antibiotics with me. I think it will be ok. It had better be. I'm 2 days away from civilization. 

Today, we did 2 tidal crossings.  We had to wait till low tide and then wade across. The scenery is unbelievable. I took a bunch of pictures, but here is a small sample. 

The Bark Bay hut is a bit nicer than the last one. Theres a German couple staying next to me with their 4 month old daughter. It's gonna be an interesting night. 

There are some sailboats anchored here. This one was built by this local guy. It's a gaff rigged cutter according to the owner. I had to work to get anymore information out of him. He wasn't too talkative. 

Dinner was pasta with salmon. Steve, who seems to be doing most of the cooking for the Kiwis shared some olives and parsley. These guys know how to live! The joined forces for dinner and shared, although I think I got the better end of the deal. Steve and Tom made steak with couscous. They even shared a mug of the Pinot that they make in their winery. 

They shared a bunch of restaurants for me to check out so I've written them here. 

 

Nelson - Fords recommended by Tom and Trish

Wellington - Ancestral for dinner. Toms garage for breakfast. 

Auckland - 

Sydney - Moo Chow Chow

 

God made paradise...

The local saying goes:  God made paradise.   Then He thought, "Well that's a little much", so He added sandflies. 

I'm finally in Abel Tasman! The day started off by "hiring" my camping gear and buying groceries in Motueka. The water taxis are awesome. They launch the boats off the beach with these tractors. 

Our skipper, Andrew drove us, going about 35 knots, to the 4 stops. He would stop every now and then and point out things of interest like caves or baby seals. 

He let me drive the boat while he was setting up a net and again after all the other passengers had been let off. It has a Honda 225 outboard motor and hauls!  

They use this sweet setup with a bow anchor setup on a power winch and gypsy. They back right up to the beach and drop the anchor about 50 feet out. To get off the beach, they use the winch to "kedge" and pull them back out to sea - hands free. 

I rode with these friendy Germans who were going to Anchorage Bay. 

The scenery here is unbelievable. The estuary near where I'm staying is tidal. You can only cross at low tide. 

My pack is HEAVY. Tonight was operation lighten the load. I shared dinner with Gareth (from England) and Verena (from Austria). Dinner was steak with mushrooms and teriyaki sauce with salad. Tomorrow won't be as fancy, but hopefully the lighter pack will be worth it. 

I also had a nice time eating with these two local couples. The one couple has a winery called Carrick, located in central Otago. Their Pinot noir is apparently good (as well as a Riesling and Chardonnay). They really know how to live it up. They had a full dinner of pork and pasta and vegetables, paired with white wine. They shared their dessert of chocolate truffles with me. 

The sand flies are everywhere and they're biting 

 

Abel Tasman Day 3 - Out of Order Due to Glitch

Abel Tasman day 3

 

Today was just more of the same. Same old aqua blue water ringed by inlets and headlands. I stopped taking so many pictures because it was getting to be so repetitious. Here are some pictures I did take. It's starting to get more populated, the closer we get to Marahau.

 

At the hut this morning, I let a French family borrow my stove to make coffee. Unfortunately, the stove ran out of fuel during the process. They were so grateful that they insisted I come stay with them in Paris when I'm there. Their names are Alain, Hanelore, and Manuela Caron.

 

My original plan was to get up early tomorrow morning, around 4:30 and hike out to the car. That should have given me enough time to get to Picton to catch my ferry. Everybody thinks my plan is crazy.

 

Arriving in Anchorage Bay was awesome. The hut is right on the water and the weather could not be nicer. I took a swim, keeping my arm out of the water.

 

I ended up bending to pressure from the crowd. I talked to one of the water taxi guys and he was able to put me on a boat that was shuttling a bunch of kayakers back to Marahau.

 

The Kiwis saw me off at the beach. It's hard to explain how we formed a bond so quickly, but I already miss them. They all seemed sad to see me go too.

 

I found a cool little backpacker lodge that had one bunk bed left in their dorm room. The cost was cheaper than my campsite fee for one night. I'm staying with a bunch of local Kiwis who seem like they're here to party. The hot shower was nice and I have Internet access again.

 

As I stepped out of my room I ran smack into the Carron family (the French people I had shared my stove with). They kissed me on both cheeks and insisted that I come to dinner with them. We ended up going to Fords, which Tom and Trish has recommended. The food did not disappoint. I had the polenta and they all had shrimp pasta. We all shared a bottle of 2010 Mount Difficulty Pinot from the Otago region and laughed at my attempts to speak French. They paid for my dinner. When I tried to pitch in the refused.

 

 

 I packed up early and left Queenstown at about 7:30.  It took about 3 1/2 hours to get to fox glacier and Franz Joseph glaciers. Not a bad hike, but I was sadly disappointed that they didn't allow me to go on the glacier without a guide. But I still got some great shots of it. Here's Fox Glacier. 

This is Franz Joseph Glacier. 

I did the power drive up the west coast that I've been dreading. It took a bit longer because I kept seeing such awesome scenery that I had to stop and take pictures like this. 

And this. 

Or this. 

 

I ended up stopping in a town called Brightwater. I just started calling random places to look for a vacancy. The only place I could find was this bed and breakfast. It's way too nice for just one person. It had amazing windows 

and this cool staircase. 

I took out my stitches this morning. I had no real instruments so I used a steak knife and some shears I found in a drawer. 

The bed and breakfast had farm fresh eggs so I made myself some scrambled eggs. 

 

 The proprietors of the place are a local couple. The husband, whose name is John, let me take this photo. 

 

Long Flight. Missed my connection. Met great people!

The red eye was great. It was nice to sleep a little and wake up to realize the flight was already half over. Before I went to sleep, I passed the time by watching this video of a comedian named Carl Barrons. He was so hilarious that I was crying while trying to hold in my laughter. I think everyone around me must have thought I was nuts, especially the lady next to me. The couple next to me was actually visiting NZ to visit their daughter in Auckland. Their names are Mike and Mary and they recommended a place that I need to visit near Rotorua that sounds something like "Iraqi Karaoke". It apparently has geysers and amazing scenery. 

 

Upon arrival, I had a bit of bad luck and missed my connecting flight to Queenstown. I discovered, to my dismay, that I had purchased the cheapest ticket which became worthless when I missed the fight. I got to spend $583 to purchase another ticket, this one going through Christchurch. 

The first cash I spent in new Zealand was to break the $20 bill Larry lefranc had given me. For $5 I got a towel and a bar of soap and as long a hot shower as I wanted. After running between the international and domestic terminals, I needed it pretty badly. 

What happened is that the lady at the international terminal told me to just go out the door and follow the green stripe for "a little ways" and it would take me to the domestic terminal. It just kept going. 

 

And going. 

And going...

And going

And going. 

Finally!

On the flight over, I snapped these pictures of the awesome looking clouds and the coastline. 

I sat next to a guy named Ron, who snowboards a lot. I also met a local lady named Jess who does marketing for a winery called Tohu that apparently has won awards for their Pinot noir. I had to take a quick excursion out of the Christchurch airport to pay for my rental car at the local Apex office, owing to the fact that I will be arriving in queens town after that branch closes. My shuttle driver was awesome and showed me how to navigate roundabouts while driving on the left side of the road. I tried to give him a tip, but he seemed embarrassed and refused. It must not be customary here. 

The most bizarre thing was the complete absence of a security checkpoint at Christchurch airport. I thought I had gone in the wrong entrance at first. The security screening consisted of the gate greeter asking me, "Did you come off another plane?", to which I said "Yes", and then he let me on the plane. 

 At long last, I arrived in Queenstown. It's a crazy approach to the runway because the pilot has to dodge a big mountain on final approach. Here we are finally in Queenstown with a little daylight left. 

 

I'm going to bed. I've got to get an early start on my long road trip up the west coast. 

Sunday, February 12, 2012

This is a photo upload practice

 Let's see if this works. 

 

Subscribe to: Posts (Atom)