Picton

After a good night sleep i was on the road aiming for Picton, a city furrher up north which is considered a good starting point for exploring the Marlborough sounds and that is exactly the goal. Btw...'sounds' means 'a narrow stretch of water forming an inlet or connecting two wider areas of water such as two seas or a sea and a lake'. One of the great New Zealand bike rides is the 'Queen Charlotte track' which is offered for both biking and hiking. It was probanly the only thing i had found in my nonexisting prep work for the trip and wanted to try it out.
Ofcourse along the way from Kaikoura there were points of interest worth spending some time visiting.
Just a few minutes of driving north and one passes by another seal colony that is right next to the highway. You can stop and see the seals sleeping/sun bathing in the weirdest positions possible on the rocks. In contrast with Kaikoura this time there is no concern about waking them up or them blocking the trail since the colony is a few meters below the road and there is a cement barrier in-between. One can walk along the path between the road and the colony and watch all the funny interactions the baby seals have with the adult ones. A lot of (...I d call it screaming) was involved in these interactions, something that the kids around the spot easily picked up and reproduced themselves! It was funny, up to some point.
After all the screaming madness i was back on the road not for long though since a black sanded beach was about half an hour drive away. I would have missed it if I didnt catch a young couple taking pictures at the side of the road. I slowed down and realised that this place was the beach I saw in gmaps and I had to make a U turn further down the road in order to be able to stop and have a look. The sight was unique. Another remote and pristine beach with black sand and golf ball sized grey pebbles. Drifwood was scattered all around, even big tree trunks decorating the part of the beach closer to the road. The water hazy and cold, I didnt dare to swim this time. It was nice as it was!
And then, after a bit more driving, there I was...in Picton. The connecting point to Wellington and the north island since the ferry stops here. Small town with obviously a strong connection to the water element. I went directly to the information center so i could arrange the water taxi for taking me to the start of the trail as well as asking some info on where i could hire a bike. It was the fist time i was using their services and it was great. They could arrange everything for me in some sence but they also mentioned that i sould go and figure out the bike hire myself. Checked in the hostel and went looking for a bike. Found a decent place and long story short, i had a complete set-up ready to go.
Queen Charlotte track is a physically challenging trail along the peninsula traversing along the ridgeline as well as passing by the beaches. This creates a loooot of ups and downs! Full length is 70km and my aim is to do it in one take! This is where the theory ends, soon i ll figure out if it is managable.Lue lisää