For a capital city, Wellington is tiny (population 164,000) and remarkably low rise. This windy city is perched on the west shore of a magnificent natural harbour, hemmed in by hillsides which dwarf the few high rise buildings that are concentrated in the city centre. Single storey detached, well-spaced homes cling to the the hillsides overlooking the bay. On the north shore the narrow coastal strip is only wide enough to accommodate the highway and railway line on a ledge conveniently created when an earthquake in the mid nineteenth century raised the shore by a several metres. We are at the ferry port by 7.15am. It is a gloriously sunny day with hardly a cloud in the sky and we have a wonderfully clear view of the whole of Wellington Harbour.
Approaching the South Island you could be forgiven for thinking that it is uninhabited; there is not a single building in sight on the wild and rugged shoreline and even as we turn into Marlborough Sounds only the odd isolated house comes into view. The hills drop down dramatically on both sides of the Sound to the oh so blue sea. The next hour of the journey is through dramatic and almost untouched scenery (there are signs of logging), bays and channels opening to left and right. The ferry journey from Wellington on North Island to Picton on South Island has taken around 3 and half hours – much longer than we anticipated – it hardly looks any distance on the map! Picton is a nestled at the head of Queen Charlotte Sound; it’s hard to conceive that in the height of the summer this small village with a population of 4000 is capable of handling 2000 ferries a day!
The landscape of the South Island is much wilder and more rugged than the North. As we drive south towards Kaikoura on the east coast the hills tower above the road. Rich green tree-covered hillsides soon give way to hills covered with little else but rough brown grass. Winding roads occasionally reveal an oasis of planted forests of pine or neat, vivid green vineyards standing out against their brown surroundings, many clothed in white netting. This is the famed Marlborough wine producing region of New Zealand. In the distance the dark mountains of the Inland Kaikouras range, their peaks shrouded in cloud, provide a menacing backdrop. Just outside Kaikoura we stop at a viewpoint which turns out to be a vantage point for a large colony of seals. Only a few yards away on the rocks huge seals are resting whilst 10 to 15 pups are frolicking in a rock pool! Amazing.