We continued north with the rain beating down again. However, as we left the west coast the day brightened and we travelled quickly on the quiet roads until we neared the north. The local farms are not all as tatty as this building but the local architecture is often dominated by the use of corrugated iron.

At Abel Tasman we had booked into a purpose built hostel which was of rather superior construction complete with a swimming pool. The first day we had a good drive on a dirt road into the high interior of the Park and suddenly came to a hippy encampment complete with half timbered vans.

Apparently these vans are road legal but may be lacking planning permission! Our walk was to the deepest cave in New Zealand which was a bit underwhelming, but the views from a nearby hill were worth the trip.

The following day a kayak was hired which gave us an excellent day of paddling and walking. This is the place for sea kayaking.

After 3 days in yet another super spot we travelled on spending a night in Nelson. Then it was on to Picton where we found the roads, streets and shops seething with tourists and realised that sitting in the harbour was a large white cruise ship waiting. We left them to it and made our way to the ferry dock ready for heading back through the Marlborough Sounds and the Cook Strait to North Island.

On the way back north we had just one stop at Masterton where our friend David Woodcock, an ex- neighbour from Burgh St Peter, now runs an outdoor centre. We had a wonderful time rafting down a local river with son Tim and meeting the rest of his young family. If it was not for the ever present threat of earthquakes this country would be close to ideal, especially for anyone who likes the outdoor life.

The trip back from Masterton to Auckland took us a whole day of driving, but the roads in New Zealand are quiet and the scenery always interesting . We had a short stop at some waterfalls where the enormous Lake Taupo drains through a narrow gorge.