New Zealand 2017 - Day 5

Monday, Feb 20 - While Wendy stayed in Flea Bay for a ride back to Akaroa, Dennis continued on from point 1 [Flea Bay] to point 2 [Otanerito Bay]:



The morning hike started up the hill at 9 AM, with the first of many fence crossings - later today I met the girl who left her broken shoes on the fence!:

The view out the bay is GREAT:

as is the view in the Bay:

and back to the huts:

(note: my beautiful bride would have had a VERY HARD time up this hill/ridge)

The view southwest at the headland across Flea Bay (to Dyke Head):

and turning around, the view east:


Looking back as I hiked through the grasslands above the cliffs:


By the way, this "hiking path" is more of a narrow sheep trail than a "path you can walk on":


THE CLIFFS ARE SOOOOO COOL!!!!


The view uphill as I crossed over one of the fences:

All this land is privately owned (farmland/ranches) (except for the Hinewai Reservation on the last day's hike back to Akaroa), so there is minimal "trail support/maintenance", which is ok, until you think you might get lost because you cannot find the next "white post".

At the halfway point between Flea Bay and Stony Bay (which will be my lunch stop):



Looking east along the cliffs:


Looking out from Seal Cave:


Looking down, approaching Stony Bay for lunchtime:

These bays are all beautiful - 2 shots around Stony Bay



The hut at Stony Bay is very nice (no electricity for recharging, though), with plenty of room for me to spread out my stuff:

I had my lunch, and a nice chat with a mom and her daughter from the USA who were waiting for a ride out - daughter had hurt her knee. I waited for them to leave before I went for my swim in the stream:


I felt great, so I figured I would do "Day 3" this afternoon (I knew beds were available because the 2 USA women got a ride out):


The path back to the beach, and the rest of the track, looks like the Garden of Eden:

and it put a big smile on my face when I saw the sea kayaks tucked in next to the beach at Stony Bay:


A nice look back at Stony Bay:

and then looking forward on the track:


The water is pretty pretty down here in New Zealand:




When starting the track, they told us not to leave one white post until we can see the next one - GOOD LUCK WITH THAT!!:



The halfway-point of the afternoon hike:

Continuing around the point to Sleepy Bay:


Looking down into Sleepy Bay:


Looking out the "beach" from Sleepy Bay:

where I found some seal friends!:




The "Sea Stack" at the mount of Sleepy Bay is VERY COOL:


and, unfortunately, will not be able to be seen from now on. The rancher who owns the land had just too many hikers break into his sheds, so he is pulling out of the BP group. The Banks Peninsula Track will continue, but as a 3-day trek, not 4 days. Thank you God for letting me have this opportunity - right here, right now!

The sign on the final headland says:



This headland is where I encountered the strongest winds of the day - I want to say 60 knots, and it can get very dangerous. I made it ok by hunkering down and (with my poles) just putting one foot in front of the other. The view (eventually) down into Otanerito Bay:

It has a beautiful beach:



At the far end of the beach, a stream empties into the ocean:

and it is really nice to see the freshwater join the saltwater:


The entryway to the hut is beautiful:

But the killer shot to end the day is just turning around once you go through the gate:


I had a GREAT DAY today - 14 kilometers in 5 hours 40 minutes (hiking time). I'm sorry Wendy couldn't be here with me, but I'll see her (and surprise her!) tomorrow (she's not expecting me until Wednesday). Thank you God for This Great Adventure!