Editor's note: The fan in my laptop died and it kept overheating. Erik ordered a replacement fan, had it shipped to Mom and Dad, they forwarded it on to us, and then he cracked open my laptop and fixed it. Now I'm back in business. (Thank goodness for my Kindle Fire, or else I would have been completely unplugged! The horror!)
Before Christmas the campground was not crowded.
We checked out Totaranui Beach first.
We weren't disappointed. The driveway reminded me of places in Louisiana.
We shucked our shoes and set up an umbrella for shelter. The sun here isn't hot but the UV is crazy-strong.
"In New Zealand from September to April the UVI levels are very high. During the daylight saving months, New Zealand has 40% higher peak UVR levels than places at similar latitudes in the northern hemisphere." - Cancer Society of New Zealand.
And yes, Maggie must wear her patent leather Mary Janes everywhere, including hikes and the beach. Beauty must suffer, as Mom always said.
A water taxi showed up with some hikers and campers but the place was so big, they wandered off in various directions and it was soon deserted again. (This is a real crowd for the South Island. Seriously.)
If we stay here, Maggie will clearly be joining the "glamping" crowd with ease.
It was windy. It's always windy. Maggie generally refused to have her put in a clip or a pony tail. Sometimes she will let me put a hat on her though.
Erik, surveying the scene.
Caty and I enjoyed the shelter of the umbrella (works for wind and sun!).
Then we were off for a walk and in no time Caty found a BIG jellyfish.
Luckily we had a stick to poke it with.
There were little streams and waterfalls. Lots of ferns and algae.
Lots of plants with tropical looking flowers. (Even though it gets pretty darned cold here in the Winter.)
My handsome man!
The sand really was an orange color. We loved the sand!
Caty buried her legs and managed to get down to Ben's height.
On the way back, in the middle of the national park, was a private cafe.
View from the cafe.
Ben was pleased with his table.
Back at the campground, Ben was happy to see his campground friend again. They played with a Nerf football that had a tail on it.
Maggie was negotiating a turn in the boys' game.
Yep, we endangered the children (Maggie in patent leather Mary Janes) just to see a waterfall. But it was a pretty waterfall and there was a cool one-man swing bridge.
Serious selfie!
We wore our swimsuits because everyone said how much fun it was to swim in the pools below the falls.
Happy selfie!
Taking the lie of the land.
Maggie in her "togs" (aka swiming costume, aka swim suit) and a hat! For once!
Here's the bridge the kids were so excited to cross!
Maggie wasn't afraid. She took it slow and enjoyed it. I wasn't afraid of anything other Maggie losing it mid-bridge.
At the waterfall.
Triumphant at the waterfall.
Back across the wobbly bridge.
No idea why but Ben suddenly decided to wear his hat funny.
My handsome man!
So, we tried getting in there. It was so cold that my feet lost all feeling in about 3 minutes. The kids were screaming bloody murder. We didn't even have time for a picture.
Caty was happy to warm up on a rock.
Ben is so skinny that it took him a long time to warm up.
Digitalis. Growing wild everywhere!
Post hike picnic. There aren't any fast food restaurants for at least a 2 hour drive!
Then we drove through the Able Tasman to an estuary we had heard about. But it was low tide and Ben and Maggie had fallen asleep in the car so this is all we saw. :) And the car park (aka parking lot).
On this drive, we came across a girl who was about 19 hitch hiking in the middle of NOWHERE in the park. She was alone and had a big backpack and was clearly one of those European kids "seeing the world". So we did something we would NEVER EVER do in the States. We stopped and gave her a ride as far as we could. We had a nice visit with her and she told us about her WWOOFing experiences. (Which strictly means world wide opportunities on organic farms. But in practice means working somewhere like a campground for a free campsite rather than money.) She was friendly and well spoken and we wished her well when we let her out. Then I thought about her Mom somewhere in England and wondered how she must feel knowing her daughter is "out there" somewhere on the other side of the world all alone relying on the kindness of strangers. I think I'd need Valium. It made my chest hurt just thinking about it!
The next day we were off to see PuPu Springs. It's really called Te Waikoropupu Springs but the pakeha (local white people - like haoles in Hawaii) have conveniently shortened it to PuPu Springs. Much to the enjoyment of the kids. (Did I mention we also visited Tata Beach? The kids love the names of things here.)
At the entrance there's a sign that says:
"Te Waikoropupu Springs are a taonga (treasure) and waahi tapu (a sacred place) for Māori, both locally and nationally. The legends of Te Waikoropupu are told in the stories of Huriawa, its taniwha (guardian spirit). In Māori tradition the Springs are waiora, the purest form of water which is the wairua (spiritual) and the physical source of life. The Springs provide water for healing, and in the past were a place of ceremonial blessings at times of birth and death and the leaving and returning of travellers."
The water is from a spring and is nearly perfectly clear/pure. It has been measured to have a visibility of 63 meters! (Nearly 207 feet.) It's beautiful and the atmosphere is serene.
The best translation I can manage of the sign above:
nau mai haere mai
welcome to our home
piki mai kake mai
come in
nau mai ki tenei waahi tapu
all are welcome here in this sacred place
te puna waiora o te waikoropupu
waikorupupu is a pure spring of health
Better translations are welcomed! :)
A stylized Tiki.
The entrance is made to look like a Maori meeting house with descriptions of the history and science of the springs.
At the center is a jade boulder. It maintains the lifeforce of the springs. Maori meeting houses, or wharenui, have "greenstone" boulders like this (often smaller) that contain the spirits of gods or ancestors. This was a beautiful stone and we all liked to touch it but Benjamin's attraction was pronounced. He LOVED this stone.
We had a hard time getting him away from it. And while he expressed his attraction with the enthusiasm only a 5 year old boy can show. I don't think it was disrespectful. I like to think he must have been drawn by the life force inside the stone.
The national symbol of NZ is the silver fern leaf. These are the trunks of silver fern trees used here as erosion control by the car park. Gives you an idea of how big they get.
You can see Ben's arms holding the greenstone behind me. We literally couldn't get him interested in anything else. And he's not usually a rock hound.
I love the greenery. I think I am still starved for it after so long in Arizona.
The stream fed by the springs.
The walk was winding and took us through native forest.
Te Waikoropupu Springs. The green you see in the water are the plants and lichen on the rocks UNDER the water.
It's best to see the springs on a clear day but there aren't a lot of those. So the photos don't look as good as they could. For more pics click here.
They put chicken wire or plastic mesh on bridges and wooden paths here to keep them from being so slippery in the rain. It works great.
It started to rain as we left. Just a drizzle but it sounded so nice on the leaves with the singing birds and made the place seem even more peaceful smell so green. Moss and fragrant trees and bubbling water.
This might have been my favorite place we visited while we were on vacation.
Caty walked ahead. She didn't want anyone to know she was with us losers. Teenage years are only a few months away!
After all that walking we needed coffee (and milk for Maggie) so we stopped off at the Jacques Cousteau Espresso Ship. It's a boat docked in Ligar Bay that used to belong to Cousteau (but it's not the Calypso) with a cafe on board.
Caty's hot chocolate came with an anchor. :)
Nothing like a hot coffee on a cold summer day in December!
The last night at the campground we roasted "American" marshmallows that were the size of my fist! We had to cut them down to be able to properly roast them! No Hershey's or graham crackers here so just the marshmallows. And no camp fires allowed in campgrounds (go figure) so we used the stove we borrowed from Gareth and Lindsay. (In fact, they were life savers! If we hadn't borrowed their pop-up shelter, we would have all caught pneumonia when it rained all day and night earlier in the trip! Thank you again guys!
Ben likes his marshmallows "raw" - as in not roasted.
Pretty sunset on the last night.
The town of Takaka was so pretty. I wish I had gotten more photos of it. I snapped this one because Mom has a thing for hanging baskets. I knew she's like this one. Also, notice that a pharmacy can also be called a "chemist" pronounced: keemist. :)
A long drive home and some tired kids.
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