Saturday Jan 16, 2010 – Motueka

We woke up and it was over cast. It was raining by the time we got under way. It was not all that cold though which was nice. We decided to go all the way to Puponga about 100 km where there was a Visitor's Centre. We wanted to know how long it would take us so that when we reserved for a tour of the Farewell Spit we would know what time would be best.

Off we went in the rain. The road over Takaka Hill has very very bendy and twisty for 25 km. This was the slowest part of the trip. Once over the hill there is the nice Takaka River valley to follow. The further north and then west we got the nicer it got. The rain stopped and the sun came out.

Upon arriving at the info center around noon hour, we found out we could take the tour at 2 coming back by 6. We had lunch there while we waited. We walked up a hill where we could get at 360 view of the area. It was well worth the climb.

Farewell Spit is a Natural Reserve now and protected. It is 32km of sand. There are three big sand dunes called Barchan Dunes slowly making their way down the spit. We saw fossils and our guide told us how the spit was formed. There were more seals as well. Along our journey in a 4WD vehicle we saw lots of bird. The spit is a very important migratory spot for birds. There is one bird species that goes via Korea to Yukon Valley to breed, then flies 7 days straight back to NZ or Australia. There was a stranded whale as well. Our guide was surprised it had not been buried by the sand yet.

We stopped at the lighthouse for some refreshments. The light house was manned by 3 people in the past. Each person had their own cottage. Now each cottage is used by different conservation agencies. In the old generation room is now an exhibit of the birds and whale standings. The owner of the tour group, we were with, gave a talk about the migratory birds and the whales. We set off on our return journey. Stopped at one of the dunes to climb up and run down. The view from the top was great. Charles climbed the dune but I did not. He enjoyed the views from the top

We stopped in Collingwood for supper. Got home about 9:30. I was glad Charles was able to make the drive home while it was still light.