Day 28 Arthurs Pass to Akaroa 16th March 2011

There was a distinct chill in the autumn air this morning as I wandered to the ablution block and suddenly realised that there was no rain in the air.  Instead it was a beautiful morning and down the valley the bottom of the mountain was shrouded in cloud, leaving the tops absolutely clear – most odd.

 The facilities on the site were excellent, with a huge kitchen, dining and lounge area that was very well equipped and comfortable.  Toilets and showers were also spotless and the owners were very friendly.  What was worrying us is, why was the place up for sale?  If you’re reading this blog Glyn and Eirwin, this is a business opportunity just waiting for you!

We headed away from Jackson towards Arthurs Pass in brilliant sunshine and hardly another vehicle on the road.  We stopped at Arthurs Pass to go into the information centre and look round the exhibits, then for some Kodak moments as a train went by.  On we went, winding our way through the pass, back the way we had come the day before. Not long after leaving Arthurs Pass, the Trans Alpine train came towards us on the track running parallel with the road.  The train leaves Christchurch around 08.00 and gets to Greymouth around 12.00.  It then turns around and goes back to Christchurch arriving around 4.00pm.  Journey time was quick as we had stopped for the photos yesterday, but there was always time for tea and we stopped at Lake Pearson for a brew and stretch of the legs. 

Once clear of the mountains, the roads are long, flat and straight, so the kilometres just get eaten up and before we knew it we were hitting the suburbs of Christchurch, searching for somewhere to stop for lunch.  Suddenly the traffic volumes had gone through the roof and as we reached highway 1 on the edge of Christchurch we actually joined a traffic jam, something we had not seen for three weeks.  We inched our way around the Christchurch outskirts having made up our mind to revisit Akaroa, which was another two hour drive.  There was clear evidence of the earthquake as we drove along, with cracks in some properties and props holding up others.  The roads had cracks that have already been filled in, but most noticeable, was that the manholes had raised up about 6”.  Either that or the road had dropped by 6”.  Once through the suburbs, we stopped to eat and relax for a while.  When we went to Akaroa on our first full day here, we went by coach and now driving ourselves it seems to take an eternity and I certainly don’t remember it being quite so twisty turny for the last 20Kms.

Eventually, we arrived at our destination; all we had to do now was find the campsite.  Calling into the information centre for directions, we realised that we had driven past the turning and had to back track a little.  The site overlooks Akaroa harbour and our pitch is right on the edge of the site with fantastic views across the harbour.  One advantage of being in a campervan is that you can have some excellent views from your van windows.

Tomorrow is our last full day in the campervan before we return it on Friday, so it’s going to be cleanup day once we get to the Christchurch campervan site.