Northern South Island

New Zealand is bloody fantastic. We have done so much, I don't really know where to start so I'm simply going to list it...
Saturday - in Nelson in the afternoon, we went to Founders Park where they have preserved historical buildings from all over NZ and transported them to Nelson to set up as a complete village from the early 19th century onwards (including the 1953 Bristol Freighter aeroplane pictured).
Sunday - went walking up Queen Charlotte track in the Marlborough Sounds and then travelled up to Blenheim and popped into Cloudy Bay for a quick tasting of their world famous white wine.
Monday - moved up the road to Renwick and hired bikes for the day. Cycled round the many wineries of the famous Marlborough region, sampling their superb (mostly white) wine and then had a few pints down at the Cork & Keg English style pub.
Tuesday - drove across to Nelson Lakes national park to do some walking in the spectacular countryside. Then we drove on across the country to Murchison to spend the night. We were lucky enough to arrive just as the owner (an ex-farmer) was hand shearing his sheep (kept as pets for the kids). They also had a tame deer which you could stroke! Had a few beers in the local later on.
Wednesday - woke up to a very frosty morning in Murchison before heading down to Buller Gorge. We went on NZ's longest swing bridge across the gorge, hiked up to the falls and then came back on the Comet Line Flying Fox (a fast and exhilarating ride back across the gorge on a harness attached to a big cable). Then we drove to the West coast, stopping off in Westport before heading down to Punakaiki to see the famous pancake rocks and blow holes. A few beers in the local pub to finish the day.
Thursday - pretty much spent the whole day driving back across to the East coast. We considered spending the night in Hamner Springs but when we got there we realised it was just a bit of a nasty tourist trap, with lots of weekenders from Christchurch bringing their kids up to swim in the hot pools. So we went all the way across Lewis Pass to Kaikoura. The last 2 hours of the journey, on Highway 70 connecting Lewis Pass to the coast, was some of the most spectacular scenery I have ever seen in my life. Evening - Guinness by the fireplace in the Strawberry Tree Inn (see photo).
Friday (today) - we got up and went on a boat trip whale watching. The trips have been cancelled for the last few days due to the weather and today was open again but with a "sea sickness warning" in place. We braved it and it was definitely worth it. We saw 6 Sperm whales and a group of about 200 dolphins. A truly magical experience.

We're going to spend 3 nights here in Kaikoura (due, in part, to the 3 nights for the price of 2 offer at the campsite!) before heading down to Christchurch to drop off the van on Monday.