Blue Sky Kayaking in Kenepuru Sound

We woke to a beautiful morning with great views from our room and no wind or waves on the water. Perfect for the kayak portion of our 3-day adventure in Marlborough Sounds.

After breakfast we met George, our kayak guide for the day. We were set up with spray skirts and flotation jackets and set off to paddle around the part of the sound. We stopped at a green-lipped mussel farm, where they grow on short, thick ropes dangling down from horizontal ropes stretched between floating canisters. Darryl and George harvested some mature mussels for part of our lunch later.

After a couple of hours of paddling, we stopped at Weka Point, named for a native flightless bird that’s about chicken-sized. Like the kea, you need to watch your belongings around them—they’ll steal sunglasses, sandwiches, anything really.

We kept our sandwiches and paddling gloves close and didn’t have any trouble. A fantail bird was flitting around us inquisitively for awhile. George made tea, then boiled the mussels. The air temperature was perfect, and Matt decided to take a dip. We didn’t think it was that warm.

After the lunch stop, the wind came up and the next couple of hours of paddling were not as placid as before. We bounced around on 1-foot swells, but the skirts kept our boats from getting filled with water. By the time we reached shore we felt like we’d had a good workout—something to compensate for all the legwork yesterday.

Another great dinner with Matt at the hotel restaurant, sampling some of the local Sauvignon Blanc. A warm sunset over the sound completed the evening.Read more