Of a Road Trip - Part Three

Today was AWESOME!First off and importantly, I suffered no hangover from the Wine Tour. This is something I was particularly grateful for as I really didn’t feel all that well the previous night! I think there was something in the wine. (alcohol?).I packed up my tent and set off from Blenheim at 9am.I drove to Nelson - absolutely loved driving through the hills, lots of windy and twisty! I decided to not stop and continued on to Motueka and then Takaka. Now, the Takaka Hill drive was brilliant. I loved the climb and descent. One of the best pieces of road I’ve driven on. Spectacular views and sheer drops. Exhilarating!Here are a few pictures from Hawkes Lookout at the top of the hill. I loved the geology of this place. So young.Takaka is a cool town. Very arty. Lots of shops and many hippies. They make a good coffee which was a pleasant discovery. I had a quick lunch and then went to Pupu Springs - arguably the clearest waters in the world. Absolutely spectacular.Note: The quality of the DoC paths and upkeep of these places is top-notch. I have no problem with my tax dollars going here.Leaving Takaka I headed back to Motueka and then decided to take the scenic route South. 130kms to Murchison via the Moutere Valley. This was a sublime piece of road. Perfect conditions, fantastic scenery, little traffic. It was bliss. I don’t have any photos of this because I was having too much fun.Murchison to Westport alongside the Buller River was fantastic. A little slower due to trucks and road-marking in progress but all in all still amazing to soak in the scenery.We are blessed with amazing countryside.Accommodation was hard to come by in Westport. A conference is on. Quite quiet on a Friday night. Many miners wearing plaid or Rugby League jerseys in the pubs. $4 beers though, so something good!Early night tonight as more driving tomorrow, with some sightseeing on the way.- Simon