The Grove Arm and the Decision to Head Back to Picton (Marlborough Sounds, New Zealand)

March 22, 2016

We’d only been in the Grove Arm a few days when we saw the forecast for another front coming in. It looked like it might get pretty gusty; so we had to decide whether to stay out in one of the bays or go back to Picton.

Anchoring for one of these fronts is a bit tricky because of their pattern: they start with northerly winds, but finish with southerlies. You have to look for a spot that gives you protection from both while being aware that certain areas can act as a funnel for winds, actually enhancing them before blasting them into the bay.

We spent part of a day motoring around sightseeing; then went to look at a potential all-weather anchorage in the east arm of a bay called Double Cove. It was in a long narrow cove lined with private homes. While we couldn’t really see the houses in the thick vegetation, the shore was lined with their boathouses, and everyone seemed to have at least one private mooring. This left no room for us to anchor.

That was the first of three reasons we decided to head back to Picton for the weekend. The second was that it was Easter weekend. Pretty much every boat in New Zealand is out during Easter weekend, and while this is a big area, we pictured all the best spots filling up.

The third reason refers back to that big area thing. The next area of Queen Charlotte Sound we wanted to explore was about 15 miles long, with several big bays about a mile deep, plus a big one about 4 miles deep. Within these big bays are the little coves and bays where you can anchor or moor your boat, and these are the main attraction. I’d learned in “little” Grove Arm just how long a trip can become when you motor up into every bay to look at the anchorages, and how much it can start to annoy the ship’s captain. So I came up with an idea: do the mail run.

The mail run is one of Picton’s main attractions. The mail boat takes different routes through Queen Charlotte Sound, depending on what day it is, delivering mail to scattered homes throughout the area that have no access by road. They take passengers along for the trip, letting them enjoy the scenery inside the bays (something they don’t get to see from the ferry).

I’d known about the mail run, but when we arrived here I smugly thought we don’t need to even consider it when we have our own boat! But now I’d been humbled by the size and grandeur of this area. The things we could see in a day from the mail boat would take us weeks in our own boat. We could pick out two or three spots we most wanted stay and go back there on our own.

There was one more thought: maybe we’d make the drive to Havelock (another town in the sounds north of us) and Nelson (our final destination) and make some decisions about whether we want to hurry to get there or take our time. We had so many unknowns ahead; and it had been confusing to try to figure out what we wanted to squeeze in before the season was over.

I will note here that, a couple of months ago, we decided not to buy a car and drive around the south island this year. Instead, we did our major boat work in Tauranga (on the north island) before making our way south. We’d then devote what remained of this season to cruising the north end of the south island. Hopefully we’d do the driving thing the following year.

Meanwhile, here’s a gallery from our motoring around Grove Arm, including some spots we checked out but decided not to stay. Click to enlarge, scroll, and see names. –Cyndi

And here’s where all this is (including Mistletoe Bay and Flipper where we did stay–see the post before last) on this map of Grove Arm (interactive Google map – zoom and pan as you wish)…

The James Vogel Nature Track and Queen Charlotte Tracks (Marlborough Sounds, New Zealand)

March 20, 2016

The Queen Charlotte Track is one of the most famous walks in New Zealand. It’s 44 miles long, mostly running along a ridge topping the mountains between two sounds: the Queen Charlotte Sound and the Kenepuru Sound. It takes 3 to 5 days to do the entire track and thus attracts a lot of serious hikers.

Luckily for less-serious hikers, there are seven bays with relatively short access trails to the Queen Charlotte Track, and water taxis from Picton have day-trip options where they’ll drop you off at one point and meet you at another several hours later. These walks take anywhere from 3 to 8 hours, depending on which option you pick. Some access points also have lodging/camping areas for the hikers.

Luckily for us not-serious-at-all hikers, you can visit just one bay, use the access trail to the Queen Charlotte Track; walk a little bit of it, then return to the bay. If you have your own boat, you can do this in several different places (which we’re hoping to do as we go along).

This is how we came to walk some of the Queen Charlotte Track. We picked Mistletoe Bay in the Grove Arm because of its access trail, the James Vogel Nature Track. After taking our dinghy to the dock provided by the park service, we found ourselves in a nice area of cabins plus a lawn area for tent campers. There was a dining area and kitchen for fixing your own food, and a tiny shop that makes coffee drinks for those who think to bring their wallet. (We didn’t think to bring our wallet).

We learned a couple of things during our hike. The first was that these access trails are nothing to sneeze at. The hike was uphill, longer, steeper, and more rugged than we anticipated, taking about 30 minutes (not including rests). The surprise was how beautiful it was. While much of the Queen Charlotte Track is on a ridge up high where drier native brush grows, this access track (the James Vogel Nature Track) was in a lush, green forest that looked like a rainforest. In spite of my research, I’d never heard of this track until we looked at the trail maps onshore, and I’m surprised because I think it would be an attraction in itself.

Climbing was a bit of a challenge as the trail would disappear at times amid coiling tree roots. It would pick up again, though, and we survived the climb to the top. The sign up there said this was the James Vogel Trail for “expert hikers.” All other hikers could take a nearby gravel road down to Mistletoe Bay. Wow, they left out that “expert hiker” bit on the sign at the other end of the trail.

Once we were on the Queen Charlotte Track, the inclines were gentle and as expected, the vegetation was more dry. We walked far enough to get a great view of Kenepuru Sound, then turned and went the other way for awhile hoping to get a view of Queen Charlotte Sound. After it became apparent that would be too long of a walk for us, we took the gravel road back to our bay, gawking at the tree ferns growing along it that must have been nearly 30 feet high. Below, a gallery of photos from our hike (click to enlarge and scroll). –Cyndi

Grove Arm

March 20, 2016

We’re out and about again… this time: Grove Arm in the Marlborough Sounds. There are great hikes (though my lungs and legs might beg to differ). Here’s what we saw today…

grove-arm-walk

A Few Days in Picton (New Zealand)

March 15 – 19, 2016

(A rare semi-current post from Cyndi)

Picton is a town of interesting contrasts. On approach it looks like a European mountain town. Once we arrived we found a small, beautiful marina where Dave, working the desk that day, had kindly managed to find us a spot. Next to the marina is the entryway to several hikes with views of the Queen Charlotte Sound. Over the highly-arched pedestrian bridge is the town.

Downtown Picton, mostly laid out along one main street about 2 blocks long, is like many small, sleepy towns in the New Zealand countryside. But there are some differences, like the more-than-typical number of cafes, or the occasional spurts of people with backpacks milling through, or the beautifully laid out, palm-tree-lined waterfront.

The fact is the ferries deliver probably hundreds of people here each day, but they quickly disperse into the backpacker hostels, the small motels, or drive off in rental camper vans and cars; and the town quickly returns to its consistent low-key feeling.

We loved Picton on sight and enjoyed our stay here. One of the specialty foods of the Marlborough sounds is green-lipped mussels, and our first night here we found a casual restaurant (Oxley Rock) that serves them in their typical way, with a garlic, butter and wine broth. But the dish was anything but typical. In fact it was outstanding. Thus, we returned nightly for those incredible mussels, now one of our favorite foods. We haven’t even made it yet to Havelock, the heart of green-lipped mussel country, but I cannot ever imagine mussels better than those at Oxley Rock.

For now, the “wind event” has passed, and we have set out cruising the sounds again. We’re not sure if we’ll go back into Picton, but if we do, there’s no doubt as to where we’ll be eating dinner.

Below, a few photos from Picton and one of the walks we took in the area. Click to enlarge and scroll.–Cyndi