Picton and Malborough Sounds

Autumn what's that ? All four days when we went to Picton over  Easter Weekend we were sun soaked. Driving along the Queen Charlotte drive towards Anakiwa we had gorgeous views and found a nice spot to do some fishing and strumbled up a track to the top of the hill near Havelock.
The men got the hang of it and therefore we drove the next morning to Waikawa Bay to fish again as the ladies enjoyed the view. We had a nice surprise as we discovered a stingray when we walked along Waikawa    Marina. Someone told us that the stingray, without a sting, lives there and doesn't want to leave.


Another surprise was the little birdy sitting on the path on Motuara Island. After taking in the magical surroundings on our boat trip through the Queen Charlotte Sound we stopped at Motuara Island,which is a bird Sanctuary. When you step of the boat you hear the noise of the many birds but we only saw this little cute one who sat so still you could nearly touch it. We walked to the top and found out that the island had been claimed by captain Cook. In the past you just had to put your flag somewhere and it was yours.
Captain Cook also went to Ship Cove and we followed in his foot steps. At  Ship Cove is the start of the Queen Charlotte Track, a four day coastal walk. The South Island has many amazing tracks which are well looked after with huts and camp sites along the way. At Endeavour resort and Punga Cove resort we picked up some trampers and headed back to Picton.

When we sighted deeply it was already Monday and we were waiting for the InterIslander from Wellington to arrive to bring my daughter who drove home with us. An amazing trip with a happy end.