road trip part 1.

We spent the first day driving to Danseys Pass via the Moeraki boulders and Naseby. The clouds were looming over us and as soon as we finished dinner (tomato pasta) the rain started.

That night was freezing so we got up super early the next morning and drove to Dunedin for a hot breakfast and a trip to Briscoes to get a duvet to hopefully keep us warmer. We explored all around Dunedin as well as Port Charmers and the southern edge of the peninsular. That afternoon we continued our drive south through The Catlins to a little bay which was sheltered by cliffs and rocks. We set up camp and went for an explore along the rocky coast line quite a way and found a seal. Dinner that night was awesome, we made some chickpea patties and had burgers with fresh avocado and tomatoes.

The next morning we drove to a near by water fall and walked deep in to the forest to check it out. When we got back to the car I cooked up some beans on toast while other tourists watched amused at my road side cooking set up. After brunch we headed for Invercargill and made some little stops along the way to check out the petrified forest (where we saw a penguin) and t have a half pint at the Balclutha pub. The main reason for going to Invercargill was to go to the brewery and meet the guy who makes the beer but they were on holiday to and did not open until the next day. So after a walk around the main street and a coffee stop we got got back in the car and went west. On the unsealed road to Lake Monowi the valve on the tire blew and were pleased to find an inflated spare and jack in the boot, which Jasper used to quickly changed. We continued along the dusty road to the lake. We set up camp and went exploring, there was a track that led to a look out half way up the lake and when we got to the end of the track we walked along the edge all the way back to the tent which was quite the mission. Lake Monowi is used for a hydro scheme so in 1925 it was flooded which killed the trees that lived at the lakes edge, they are still mostly there ( fallen over and rotting ) and made fun but challenging obstacles on our path back. That night I made a massive pot of noodles with lots of carrots for dinner on our wee camp stove.

After battling sand flies to pack up camp we drove to Manapouri to top up with fuel and then to Te Anau to have the tire repaired and eventually to Milford sound. I remember the Homer tunnel being pitch black when I last went through but now it has some lights on the roof, apparently they were installed in 2004 which is crazy since the tunnel has been open since 1954. Miflord Sound was very nice although Jasper had the worst coffee on the planet at the cafe there. We walked around for a bit but it was very touristy so we drove back along the Milford Road to Deer Flat and camped for the night.