On the Trail of Captain Cook

Our last morning in Wellington was both Waitangi Day (celebrating the signing of the Treaty in 1840

Wellington waterfront

between the British and the Maori), and the start of the International Rugby 7s weekend, so there was a carnival atmosphere in town.  We walked along the harbour front, past the many food stalls and entertainers, to visit the Te Papa museum. - the Museum of New Zealand. The National Youth Orchestra of New Zealand was giving a free performance of Sibelius' Finlandia  which had us spellbound  for the best part of an hour.  Anni particularly wanted to visit the World of Wearable Art exhibition celebrating 25 years of New Zealand fashion designers, although I have to say most of the garments on display were neither wearable, nor practicable, and would have caused most airport metal detectors to malfunction beyond the point of repair!

We travelled on the Interislander ferry across the Cook Straits to South Island. Cook Strait is a natural funnel for the strong westerly wind known as the Roaring Forties, and on a bad day can be one of the most unpleasant short stretches of water on earth. Thankfully for us sea conditions were slight. The ship squeezed through the narrows to enter Marlborough Sounds, and suddenly we were given a foretaste of the beautiful scenery that South Island had to offer. Our B&B hosts met us on arrival at the terminal in Picton, transported us back to our accommodation, and invited us to share a bottle of wine.  We knew immediately these were people we were going to like!

Next morning we walked for 2 hours to "The Snout" enjoying beautiful views of  Queen Charlotte

Old whaler and isolated home along the Sound

Sound, bought delicious pies at the village bakery, then joined the afternoon mail boat run to the outer islands.  Isolated homes are dotted all along the Sound, accessible only by boat.  Many are holiday homes, but for the permanent residents the mail boat is their lifeline, delivering post and groceries twice a week.   It was fascinating to watch as, at each stop,  supplies were handed over to eager

Mailbag exchange

recipients, and incoming mail bags were exchanged for outgoing mail bags.  The skipper and postman knew every family, and at each stop they were given cake by the residents, and handed over dog biscuits for the owners' animals in return.

We passed a derelict whaling station, closed in 1964, ending more than 50 years of pursuit of the migratory humpback whale by the Perano family.  We spotted King Shags (cormorants), of which there are only 300 pairs left in the world. We stopped at Ships Cove where Captain Cook claimed New Zealand for King George III.  We picked up walkers at various points along the 72k Queen Charlotte Track.

Abandoned Whaling Station

Back at the B&B we shared another bottle of wine with our hosts and exchanged stories.  Despite the rain throughout the afternoon this had been a great day.

King Cormorants