Through Booking.com (I've used it often for hotels/motels here) I found what turned out to be a little apartment. It's probably the best non-airbnb place I've found. And one of the least expensive ($120/night). It was just recently updated, and is located on the edge of town, which means a pleasant 10 to 15 minute walk downtown. Five minutes in the other direction is either the Tasman Sea or farmland. Pretty special!
Downtown Motueka
The Tasman Sea, 5 minutes from my lodging
Motueka seems to be known as an artsy place, with lots of alternative lifestyle types. All that gives it a very nice feel. The population is about 7,000, making it the biggest center in the region. It's an apple growing region, just one more thing to turn my thoughts to Nova Scotia. That explains why I have seen so many people in Mot from countries I haven't seen in other places in New Zealand. I'm guessing they are helping with the harvest. Many of the apple orchards here look quite different than the ones back in NS. Many of the trees are almost pyramidal, and planted quite close together. Not sure what type of apple they produce.
Saturday, March 21: I booked my day hike (I think they use the term tramp here only for multi-day hikes) the previous day at the i-site in Picton, before boarding the bus for Motueka. Have I mentioned how great these i-sites are? They are all through NZ, always in the town centre, and have a very identifiable logo. They are able help you with travel anywhere in the country, which can be very convenient. Anyway, I intentionally waited until the last reasonable moment to book my walk, as there has been a fair amount of rain. But today was forecasted to be, and is, glorious!
The i site sign, easily identifiable
Getting to the start of my walk (there are several hiking options) meant first taking a bus to Kaiteriteri (love the names!) and then a boat to Medlands Beach, where my walk began. It's possible to start at a number of different places but this walk was recommended. From Medlands Beach I took the track to Torrent Bay and then Anchorage Beach, where the boat picked us up for the return trip. The walk itself took about 3.5 hours. To say it was fantastic would be a gross understatement but I have run out of superlatives. Not a hard walk at all and the track it so well formed and used that it is almost like walking on a sidewalk. I'm guessing the tracks for most of the Great Walks must be like this. I took picture after picture of the track, as I was so blown away, even though I realized that later on I would not be able to tell one track picture from the next.
Two shots of the track
I just loved hearing nothing but the sounds of nature: the birds, the leaves, the water. My footstpes were the only human noise I heard. There were many more walkers on this track than on others I had been on, but I could easily go 10-15 minutes without encountering anyone. There were many more younger people on this track, most with large backpacks, so I assume they would be doing the entire route (60 km. in 3-5 days).
Again the views were outstanding. Sometimes just the forest, sometimes the glorious blue water in the distance and sometimes the beach. I wish I were able to recognize bird calls, as they were wonderful.
How's this for breathtaking
And a swing bridge to cross!
Anchorage Beach was a fine spot to end the walk. A beautiful crescent shaped beach with almost no one on it. I could have walked more but the sand was just too inviting! The water was too cold to do more than admire its colour.
Coming out at Anchorage Beach;
the walk is over
This was indeed a GREAT WALK, just as it is called.
Sunday, March 22: I began the day with a jog by the Tasman Sea, and past fields of cattle! I've had some great jogging routes on this trip, often on beaches that were very close to where I was staying.
As promised, it rained. I was so lucky to have done the walk yesterday as the forecast for the rest of my time here in NZ is not as good. The rain held off until mid-afternoon, so the Sunday morning market in Mot was not a washout. A bigger market than I expected given the size of the town. I had just enough time to cover the market and walk through the downtown area before the rains drove me "home". It's very nice to have an apartment to come back to, at least until tomorrow, when I am off to Nelson, and another Airbnb.
