The Northern South is packed with three National Parks: Nelson Lakes, Abel Tasman and Kahurangi, New Zealand’s second largest National Park. We drove through endless rows of vines in New Zealand’s largest wine-producing region, responsible for over two thirds of the country’s total vineyard area.
St. Arnaud
St. Arnaud is a small locality perched on the edge of Lake Rotoiti. It is the gateway to Nelson Lakes National Park, an alpine landscape of rugged peaks, forests and stunning glacial lakes.
Not planning on doing a multi-day excursion, we decided to shorten our stay in St. Arnaud and headed north toward Picton. We were well inspired because the sandflies here were some of the worst in all of New Zealand !
Picton
Picton is a harbour located in the Marlborough Sounds, a vast system of fjords at the northern end of the South Island of New Zealand.
We stayed in a beautiful house set high on a hill just 5 minutes from vibrant Picton. Our hosts, John and Nicola, were extremely warm and welcoming. While we shared a dinner and Frida played with their two daughters, we felt like we were part of their family.
We took the ferry from Picton to Wellington, the capital of New Zealand. It connects the South Island and the North Island as we crossed the Cook Strait, one of the roughest stretches of water in the world due to a combination of conflicting currents, variable tides and strong winds.
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