Day 11 - The Day of Doom…

Kinda noisy this morning in Spring Creek - not bikers, just those big trucks passing on the road over the way. But the long-term stayers didn't make any noise, and weren't in evidence - a difference class of campsite this! Must be the price… One tent has a roadworks truck outside it, clearly a place for working, not holidaying, people!

Bit of a problem - Jen got up for a wee, and it turned out that the loo had filled up, to the extent that there was lots of "stuff" in the pan which wouldn't fit into the cassette. We have only been doing no. 1s in here, so it's not TOO stressful, but clearly sorting it out would be boring…

Breakfast done, showered (should have waited!), we filled up the water tank and parked up by the dump facility. Got the grey water dumping, then onto the toilet cassette. Bleuch. Hosed it all out, still a bit rank. Finally got it all sorted, but still a bit smelly. Action to be taken later.

So we set off to find Wine Village, in Renwick, Jen directing. Unfortunately, it was a Bad Day, because it took ages to work out a) where we were and b) where we wanted to go. We did pass the Aviation Heritage Centre signs though, for later use. We also passed a vast number of vineyards, all well known to the Brit oenophile, quite astounding! The vineyards are incredible, stretch for miles of ordered rows of vines, with assistants tending to them with various mechanical assistance. 

The weather wasn't helping, very windy suddenly, massive clouds over the far hills, clearly rain happening further away, and very damp feeling in the air. So everyone was a bit cranky :-) The hills are generally very brown, probably dry grass or similar - too far away to tell at the moment. 

We get to Wine Village, Jen heads straight for the Quilting Store. Some great work here, she buys a couple of things for friends. Should she stay for the Kaffe Fasset session later today?! We amble through the distilled stuff shop and the crafty local foods processed in a weird way store, into the wine outlet. Here you can taste wine, before buying. The lady is very friendly, enthusiastic, but we are a bit low-key. Another couple come in - he's got dreadlocks, looks like a chancer, they taste about 6 different wines. Hmm. We try the 08 and 09 sauvignon blancs - very different, but very dry and quite acid to my taste. It's only 11.30 dammit, I can't be drinking now, and it's not SO long since I was eaten porridge and fruit! We don't buy.

But we do order a coffee and a date scone in the cafe - during the interminable wait, the wind gets up so much that the polythene screens flap enormously, and Jen's purchases flip the pepper pot off the table to smash on the floor. Bahhh! The coffee eventually arrives, apparently there's some holdup with the ordering system. Do I care?

Then we head to the Aviation Heritage Centre. Wow. There's a Stuka and a Hurricane right outside - are they real? Dunno, but clearly great copies if not. No engines in them anyway (subsequent research indicates they are replicas). My first two Airfix models were a Hurricane and  Stuka… Across the way is a Bristol Freighter - I remember that being featured on the front page of the dreaded Meccano magazine, unloading a car, in Silver City livery. Inside, the exhibition is of WW1 aircraft and earlier, a lot of which are real flying copies, made from the same blueprints etc. There is some incredible memorabilia, including the actual black cross cut from the fuselage of the Fokker Triplane in whose crash the Red Baron was killed, along with various possessions of his and so on. 

This place is backed by Peter Jackson, the LotR director, and has caused an entire industry to spring up, making replica planes in NZ. Truly impressive, and very well-done. It's announced that the Bristol is open for inspection, so we go for a mosey around. Bruce, who used to fly them for Safe Air Ltd NZ, tells us some stories and the history of the plane with the airline. Fascinating. The loo is especially significant today! And Crash Axe is a great name for a band or a Viking warrior… Apparently, they fire up the engines occasionally, but the plane will never be airworthy again, too costly to crack-test all the wing bolts now.

And to add to the excitement, a collection of vintage Bentleys, on tour in NZ, turns up. Lovely cars, really being used rather than sitting around, dust and mud all over them. So quite a success for a Day of Doom. 

We head into Blenheim, get some food for later (snapper fillets, yum!), and try to buy some LPG. In fact, the very friendly kiddie weighs the cylinder and announces there's no need to fill it, we've only used 1.6kg of 9kg… a result of some kind then. Not bad for a Day of Doom… Then because it's getting late, we buy a couple of Subway sandwiches, and eat as we drive down the coast to Kaikoura. 

The road travels along the Pacific coast, starting with the hills we've seen from Blenheim - yes, it's very dry brown grass! There are yet more vineyards here, miles of them. The road winds and goes up and down, and eventually we come out actually by the sea. The railway is here too, between us and the sea, or sometimes going through a tunnel to emerge on the hill side of the road. Lots of rocks, the increasing wind is raising the surf, and there are seals sitting on the big boulders, out of the water. A very striking landscape, with the looming clouds and distant sun-cast hills contrasting strongly. 

Kaikoura arrives, we find the campsite but go to the info place first. This is a Good Thing - it shuts at 6 and it's 5.55… We book a whale watching trip for 16.00 tomorrow, the only one left. This is not too good, we planned to leave for Waikuru tomorrow night, but hey - we came to see whales, and we're damned if we don't after all this way! The campsite is incredibly cheap - $50 for 2 nights for 2, free showers, great washer/dryer. Even the internet is cheap and sensible, based on volume not time. We're parked under trees, which lessens the rain and wind, which have got up considerably. A great supper of grilled snapper, onion and broccoli pilaff and an onion/ginger/red pepper/garlic topping for the fish, washed down with a bottle of Hawkes Bay does the trick. Yum. And tomorrow whales - providing the weather isn't too bad!

So maybe it wasn't really the Day of Doom… Except I call Charles in Christchurch, hoping to get up to his bach to go windsurfing, but he's not going to be there until next Thursday! Time for some rescheduling - heck, it's no good unless you have to do that, right?? Bring it on!!