Wellington - Nelson - Christchurch

I have been there: at the center of New Zealand and I am lucky I did not miss this. If I would have know that it will be quiet a hike again, I wouldn't have seen it. But as the center of NZ is located in the sunniest spot of the country, in lovely smalltown Nelson and you have an amazing view over the countryside it was well worth it.

Beside I had neat company that day. Kerry catched me at the bus from Picton to Nelson. I had just arrived with the ferry from Wellington (which is a 3 hour trip across not even shallow waters) and stepped on the bus which was supposed to take me further west to my connecting point going south. Anyway, he recognized me from the Tongariro and we shared memories and the rest of the day.

This morning again I had to get up at 6am and to board another bus again as well. I will never ever use a bus in my whole life by the time this trip is finished. But the ride was quiet nice, down the coast road, across the Pancake rocks, which you would see in the piccie, and down to Greymouth. We had a wonderful driver who explained every single stone beside the road, every bridge we crossed and every turn we took. This made 6 hours passing by like nothing.

Once in Greymouth I got on to the TranzAlpine train which took me to Christchurch where I am right now. The train ride is supposed to be one of the nicest, but it is not exactly exiting. I have seen mountains, I have seen snow and I have done the Tongariro. So the 737m Arthurs Pass is at, were just nothing compared to what I've seen. But I spent 3 of the 4 hours in the viewing carriage outside in the fresh air and inhaled enough oxygen for the upcoming months.

I will stay tomorrow and leave Saturday either to Dunedin or to Queenstown, which I haven't decided yet. But those two will be the last spots I'll see in NZ, so I will try to make it to both places.