We woke up bright and early this morning at 5:45 A.M. After
rolling out of bed and devouring a quick breakfast, we all hurried out to the
twelve passenger van and took off for an hour long drive to Abel Tasman
National Park. Once we arrived, we went and woke up our selves with some “long
black” coffee at a café and sat through the safety briefing for the sea kayaks.
After organizing ourselves into a boy-girl manner, we loaded the double kayaks
up and headed for the beach.
We set off for a three-hour paddle along the beautiful coast
of Abel Tasman. Everything was simply peachy when we first set off, as all of
us adjusted to the steering system, enjoyed the cerulean blue waters, and
spotted cuddly seals on Adele Island. However, at the very end of our voyage we
tackled the “Mad Mile”, which attempted to deter us with large swells, lots of
wind, and clouds that blocked out the pleasant sun. Eventually we all made it
through to a beautiful bay where we stretched our legs and ate lunch in the
sun.
Leaving the kayaks at the beach, the group set off on the
return hike, a six-mile journey that went up high for sweeping vistas of the
coast and then back down into the woods, which resembled a jungle straight out
of Hollywood. Three hours later we were back in the van headed back to our
hostel in Nelson. Unfortunately, many among us were wearing sandals for the
8-mile hike, which left Sam, Grace and Katherine with painful blisters. Now, we
are all showered and full from a delicious pasta dinner and relaxing in the
hostel.
Adios,
Matt Thomas
Editor's Note: 1) The SmugMug pictures of students eating and laughing involved an inevitable experiment with Vegemite. All survived.
2) Tomorrow we will have a day of driving, so the noted blisters will have time to heal before our next hike, which will involve shoes, not sandals.
