Monday 14th off to Abel Tasman

The overnight rain had cleared and it had cleared the air with it. A bright sunny morning greeted us and as we had short journey today there was no hurry to leave other than the mandatory hour of 10:00. We ignored the instructions of the SatNav lady, who now seems very reluctant to allow her male colleague to do another stint, and travelled along the coast route for the first part of the journey. The plan was to go to Kaiteriteri which we know is a beautiful bay and beach and we were not disappointed. We had the mandatory flat whites at a cafe overlooking the beach and then walked along the sands testing the temperature of the water, which was warm. Today it is a pleasant 21C but is forecast to heat up again as the week progresses.

We are planning to come back tomorrow to swim and possibly kayak. After travelling along the coast a little further to Marahua, we headed back to Motueka where we are staying for two nights, As usual the LLW was in charge of the checking in process and reported that the lady receptionist was charming and could not have been more helpful, in complete contrast to the surly creatures we had experienced at Wellington.

The LLW's men were beckoning so Ray was sent off for a ride and an excellent one it was too along the seafront, down by the harbour and then back via parks and inlets. Really good and Ray will take the LLW on part of this ride before dinner.

Tomorrow we will have been away a month and the time has flown by. It's very difficult to think back to our first stop in Perth, which we thoroughly enjoyed, since we have done so much since.