A Tale of Two Passes

Mr. Kea gives a little flash of his red underwings.

Our route has been mostly coastal, but we decided to cut across the middle of the South Island and back again for a few reasons. First, we wanted to see Arthur's Pass, second, we thought it would be nice to visit our friends in Christchurch again, and third, we needed a jalapeño refill!

We had another kea encounter when we stopped to overlook a bridge. There he was, eating crackers someone had left, completely undisturbed by our presence. By the way he gobbled up the crackers greedily, he must have thought we were more of a threat to his snack than to his life.

Water bridge in Arthur's Pass - we met some more Americans here!

Curious kea

We were greeted with more beautiful scenery as we continued across the island. It was hard not to fall asleep in the car when the sun streamed through the windows and warmed my face.

I let Harry have shotgun for a while.

We found a cluster of limestone rocks on a hill surrounding a cave. We weren't equipped to go far into the cave, so after a look around we headed back to the car to make a picnic lunch.







We had a good three nights in Christchurch, visiting friends and trying to help Harry figure out his plans to return to the US while we had access to the internet. We had drinks at a cool little bar called Volstead with Marcia and Renee, some friends Harry made in Oamaru. If you're looking for things to do in Christchurch, check out Marcia's website Neat Places.

Eventually we had to leave dear old Christchurch, so we crossed back to the West Coast, this time via Lewis Pass. Despite the lack of photos, it was a nice drive, although I liked Arthur's Pass a bit more.

The view from the "sluice box" bridge outside of Reefton.