Abel Tasman Day 3

I am posting  several back blips as we were without internet access for three days. I apologise for not having responded to all the lovely comments from fellow blippers over the past few days. I will catch up as soon as I can.

Everyone was up early, breakfasted and on the track by 8:30am. It was a slightly easier walk today with only one long, gradual hill climb. Today’s walk was mostly in the bush high up above the coastline, but we descended to a beautiful little beach called Appletree Bay to eat our lunch and enjoy the view. Again, we marvelled at the peace and quiet and the beauty all around us. We walked at a steady pace, taking time to enjoy the views and the silence and arrived at Marahau, the end point of the walk just after 2:30pm. The bus was already there so we piled on board and were driven firstly to Wilson’s base at Motueka, then back to Nelson, with various drop offs along the way. It was quite strange to be back in the hustle and bustle of the city after the peace and quiet of the bush and, of course, back to internet access and world news. Being shut off from the world for three days was actually rather nice. 

After showering and changing, we went out for a celebratory drink and a celebratory meal with our friends at an excellent Italian restaurant, with a wonderful, eccentric owner/maitre d, who really made it a special evening for the four of us.  Such a lovely way to celebrate a special adventure. And to top it off, there was a magnificent sunset. 

The main blip and the extra show a selection of photos which were all taken on the day, but collated at time of posting.

There  11,063 new community cases reported today. The seven-day rolling average of case numbers is 9,731 – last Tuesday it was 12,785. The number of people in hospital is 622, including 23 people in ICU. Sixteen new deaths have been reported.