Driving in New Zealand is never boring. Not only is there all that incredible scenery to watch as you drive along, there are endless twists and turns in the road to keep you focused. Often we felt like we were back in Tuscany working our way up and down the narrow roads. We began the second half of our New Zealand trip by crossing over to the south island on a ferry. It was a beautiful way to begin our visit to this less populated but in many ways more scenic island. Nelson is the jumping off point for hikers who have come to see the incredible coastline of Abel Tasman Park. We didn't do any hikes but visited Kaiteriteri's beautiful beaches before driving to the west coast. This sparsely populated stretch of New Zealand has the harshest weather as well as some of the most beautiful coastline (I think it's safe to say that there are few areas of New Zealand that aren't close to amazing beaches and cliffs). After a long day of driving and visiting highlights such as the Punakaiki Rocks (also known as the pancake rocks complete with a nearby restaurant featuring over priced, eighteen dollars, you know what), we arrived at Fox Glacier. This fast moving glacier is currently in retreat (like most glaciers) and is one of the rare ones to be surrounded by rainforest. We went on a day hike complete with crampons and then it was time to head towards the drier inland. We saw many lakes (Matheson, Wanaka, and Hawea) but surprisingly few boats. The scenery often reminded us of various parts of British Columbia with a few million sheep thrown in.
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