New Zealand: Driving to Nelson and Abel Tasman

Another breakfast at Olde Mill House allowed us to finish sampling all of the homemade jams Diane had made.  As an added bonus, they told us that Blenheim was having a farmer's market today.  That meant an opportunity to get some local cherries before heading northwest towards Nelson.

It was a relatively small but busy market.  Nuts, eggs, cherries, apricots, and many other in-season local produce were being sold.  Ashley found some long sought after cherries, which put a smile on her face. 

We had an hour and a half drive towards Nelson, most of which was in the rain.  Nelson is a city of 45,000 and is known for its sunny climate, art and fashion.  And beer.  Most of the hops grown in New Zealand are from this region, which has led to a high concentration of quality microbrewers.
We had heard of a quirky bar in Nelson called Free House that was a converted church.  It only served domestic beer, with a list of 20 or so on tap constantly changing.  We arrived shortly after noon and the only other patron was a local.  This allowed Nate some time to ask questions and sample multiple varieties before settling on Dead Good IPA.  Free House also had pump beer, served English style at near room temperature and without the additional carbonation from a typical bar tap.  It was a new experience, one that would likely take some getting used to.

Free House wasn't serving any burgers today, so we left in search of lunch in downtown Nelson.  Lambrettas was a popular spot here for both locals and tourists.  With the rain gone, we enjoyed a bite to eat at one of their outdoor tables and watched fellow visitors walk by.

During our walk around downtown Ashley had noticed signs for an art show in the Queen's Gardens nearby.  She tries to collect at least one piece from the locations we visit, so this was the perfect chance to find something (which had proved to be very difficult thus far).  The gardens were buzzing with people browsing the work of the many local artists.  We found a reasonably priced painting of Milford Sound, a future stop on this trip.  Ashley was initially hesitant because we had not yet been (and the road was currently closed), but we both felt this may be our only chance to find something we liked.  With art in hand, we got back in the car and continued westward to Abel Tasman National Park.  Nelson will be added to our list of places to see more of when we make it back to New Zealand.
It was another hour drive out to Abel Tasman, the most visited National Park in New Zealand.  Its a coastal park with golden beaches, blue green water, a marine reserve, and lush forests.  Running along/near the coast is the Abel Tasman track, one of the "Great walks" in New Zealand that takes 4 days.  Water taxis provide transport around the park and allow visitors to see their preferred sections.
The rain had stopped before we arrived in Marahau, the small town just outside the park.  Our lodging was at Ocean View Chalets on a small hillside outside Marahau.  Our room had views of the ocean (just like the name), encouraging us to go walk on the beach.

The tidal changes were drastic here, sometimes as much as 4.8 meters (15 feet).  It was low tide, meaning the beach was several hundred yards deep before touching water.  As we started walking out we noticed tractors with boat trailers driving on the road.  These looked like farm tractors, the kind with huge rear wheels and then smaller, car sized wheels in the front.  Because of the tidal changes, the water taxis were being towed in from the surf for the day.  It was an interesting site to see.

As we neared the water line, it became obvious that it was going to rain again.  We hurried back to the main road, where fortunately one of the two restaurants in town was located.  We enjoyed a nice dinner at Hooked on Marahau as we rode out the rain.  The clouds hung around, so a bottle of wine in our Chalet seemed like a nice way to end the day.

Tomorrow we would do a full day kayak and hike tour.  Hopefully the weather would improve.