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After the stunning trip on the boat to the south island we arrived at Picton. It was so hot and sunny! We stopped in town to buy a few supplies and after plastering ourselves with suncream we shut the side door ready to go . . . realising only a few seconds later the keys were locked in the van!! We weren't that surprised as we knew it would happen sooner or later but we didn't really know what to do or where to go. James (practical James that he is!) had a scout round the van, asked the builder working on the shop next to the van for some tools and (no joking) 2 mins later he had broken into our van. Although now we seriously conciser the safety of our belongings in the van we so know we don't have to pay a garage to sort us out if we leave the keys in again!!! After picking up supplies and washing the van (she looked more beige than white!) we set on the road to the Queen Charlotte peninsula of the Marlborough Sounds. The road was stunning and long and VERY windey! We have an ongoing joke that James is always 'driving me round the bend' on the zigzagging NZ roads and this one was definitely one of the bendiest! It somehow managed to send me to sleep though as the next thing I know we are nearly there! The weather had changed within a couple of hours and the mist was over the hills. We camped at a place called Titerangi Farm. It was suggested to us by Renée in Aukland (one of Lucy's neighbours) and we had it written on the map. It is definitely our favourite camp site so far! The farm is right on the tip of the peninsular looking out to sea and the surrounding islands. We ended up spending three nights there. The weather was amazing so we spent the days chilling out on the beach reading books and swimming in the sea when we got too hot! We picked pipies (cockles) and muscles for dinner off the beach. We did however discover the Weka . . . a New Zealand bird that looks a lot like a kiwi but smaller and a lot more confident! They are hilarious they will steal anything you leave lying around one nearly got away with our spatula! We're not quite sure wether to love them or hate them!!
We eventually dragged ourselves away from Titerangi Farm. And on our way back down the Queen Charlotte Road we stopped at a DOC sign that said Mt Stokes 1203m 5 hours return. We looked on the map and it was the highest point on the sounds. We climbed up and up! The track was practically non existent and we were clambering over rocks and roots following the orange triangle track markers. The bush there was awesome, very mystical and dense. James was practically running up like a mountain goat and I was having to take 'view breaks'! Once we got to the top the scenery changed completely and it was like we were on dartmoor . . . Well dartmoor with a different kind of view. The view over the sounds was spectacular and well worth the climb!
After winding our way back down the road we headed up the next peninsula to Elaine Bay. It is a lovely little campsite looking out over a cove. We went for a run over to the next bay which was a lovely path going round the coast.
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