Final Party’s and Abel Tasman Take II

Separation Point, Abel Tasman

New Zealand Silver Fern

RWC aftermath

We were happy to see the week after the final match that NZ was in fact still standing and New Zealanders were in fact able to keep living life knowing that the AB’s had taken the cup. We were also excited to move forward, past RWC to continue experiencing all of the other amazing things NZ has to offer us - besides rugby.

Of course we had to have a proper ‘It’s Finally Over Party’ with the council RWC crew (any excuse for a party right). We spent our Friday night enjoying some fabulous company, great food, beer, wine and games. My personal favorite was ‘pass the parcel’ where you stand in a circle and pass a wrapped package round and round until the music stops. Whoever has the parcel when the music stops peels off a layer of wrapping, then, the music starts again and you repeat this until the final layer of wrapping is removed and the gift revealed. Supposedly it’s a childhood game that kiwis play during birthday parties and at Christmas time. Sure, it sounds pretty generic, but get a group of adults full of booze and you can imagine the game takes on a whole new level of excitement. Beware Sanden family…John and I may be bringing this tradition home for Christmas. Thanks again to Don and Angela (some fellow Americans, mentioned in previous blog for some USA decorating shenanigans) for hosting a great party, a fine way to say farewell to the RWC.

Market time

Of course everyone looks forward to weekends, but here in Nelson there’s something to look forward to every Wednesday as well. The farmers market at Fashion Island (the ‘shopping centre’ in CBD). This is one of three weekly markets in Nelson and the second best. We usually end up using Wednesday as an ‘eat out’ day for lunch and enjoy some amazing wraps from the wrap shack or some killer German sausages from another local vendor. You can also pick up fresh fruits and veggies…a win win place to be mid week.

our staple apple / nashi stand

Another market related everyday occurrence in the Nelson/Tasman region is the roadside fruit stand that we often frequent on our way to Golden Bay. How could you go wrong with a huge $4 bag of apples? We’ve mentioned this place previously but I took some shots on our way up to Golden Bay last weekend to share with all of you. Imagine if we had these fresh fruits available on the side of the road in the states, and for so cheap (relatively)…yes please.

John continued playing basketball with the Kiwi’s and started an open gym league after finishing a men’s league. The rules are a little different, utilizing a 24 sec shot clock. The game is a lot more “run and gun” and less structured then what I am used to back in the States. It’s a lot of fun and good to get back into playing weekly again.

Wainui Bay, Golden Bay 

Our weekend trip to the Golden Bay area, North West of Nelson took us to Takaka (the Nelsonian described hippie town). It’s small, maybe around 2,000 people, but nonetheless a good place to explore. We stopped into a place that we have been reading about called the Dangerous Kitchen. It was a great
meal with a healthy pizza and pasta made with all fresh and local ingredients. Of course us being us, we asked for some hot sauce to go with our meal and out came the best hot sauce we have found in NZ so far. It was spicy enough upfront, with raisiny and citrus fruit notes, a full round chunkiness, not thin and watery, and a lingering heat but not overbearing. As you can see we take our hot sauce seriously and describe it like a fine craft brew or wine. It was made by a local and a few days later we contacted him for a rigger (2 liter) plastic jug of the stuff. Being in rural NZ, of course our hot sauce maker was dressed in traditional Kiwi garb. Tattered button up shirt with a wool over shirt, nut-hugger high-cut jean shorts that take you back to the 80’s and of course gum boots, classic Kiwi for sure.

We booked a lodge to stay at for the weekend in Pohara - a beach community about 20 minutes outside of Takaka. Pohara is a quaint little town supposedly known for its penguins (which we never saw and we don’t believe they exist) if you blink an eye while passing through the town there’s a good chance you’ll miss it. We did, and after a phone call to the Lodge owner and a prompt U-turn we were back on track to enjoying our weekend. If anyone reading this has ever thought about looking into the accommodation industry as a business endeavor, I highly recommend flying to NZ and booking a stay at the Ratanui Lodge in Pohara, Golden Bay. Steven (the owner) who happens to be American was the first person to greet us when we walked through the door and the person waving farewell when we checked out. However, it’s the hospitality we experienced throughout our stay that makes this place so special. Upon entering your room, a hand written note with a personalized welcome for the weekend, breakfast each morning family style with the other guests and a real genuine interest in helping you decide what to explore while in the area are a few of the things that set this place apart. (Glee, I thought of you on our way home from this weekend…you would do so amazing with something like this…Lake Tahoe retreat?? A-holes?? -We may need to re-think the name- Think about it, I’ll bring the finger streaks and chili bombs).

Into the park...
Although neither of us would have complained if we stayed at the lodge and beach area the whole weekend, we had bigger plans. Golden bay sits at the northern end of Abel Tasman which happens to be the part of the Abel coastal track we hadn’t explored yet. We set off Saturday morning for a nice tramp through the bush headed toward Separation Point.
Separation Point is a 9K trek from the trailhead and beautiful the whole way through – of course, we’re in NZ! Birds (which for some reason I’m obsessed with photographing – John loves this), beach, ferns, the ocean…these are the reasons why we’re here.

My buddy, the Weka

NZ Thrush

Quail - very un-afraid of people

As we sat on the rocks at Separation point, eating our lunch, watching the seals play in the water (yes Jim, seals, from a seal colony), we took a deep breath and realized how fortunate we are to be here. We hope you enjoy the photos…they don’t do this place justice. We took our time heading back, and besides a random déjà vu encounter (too long to explain) we enjoyed leisurely making our way back to the Adventureship and back to the fabulous Ratanui lodge. 

The next morning we headed off for another quick trek before making our way back home – the Wainui waterfall is a quick 30 minute walk in through the bush to reveal a beautiful 50 ft waterfall. A great way to end our weekend in the Golden Bay area, another trip we won’t soon forget.

That was it for the weekend and once back in Nelson we planned for another week at work and of course planning our next trip…so what’s coming up? The freehouse, American dinner, pizza, grid iron, basketball, roast, West Coast and some new jobs… I know, you can’t wait!

Cheers,

John and Shannon