Thankfully, some people traveling around New Zealand have cars. That’s what I was thinking yesterday when I got a ride with a friend–for only the cost of gas and a coffee–from the hostel over to Wharariki Beach, which has to be one of the most other-worldly beaches on the planet. One minute, you’re walking through rolling hills, picking your way past sheep droppings, and the next you’re on sand dunes that wouldn’t be out of place in the middle of the desert. Just out of reach behind the semi-low tide were massive rocks that had slowly been eroded by the sea to form the coolest arches and other formations in their bases.

We spent about 2 hours walking up and down the beach, despite the strong winds that kept threatening to turn us into sand people (and nearly did). It seemed like every time we walked a couple feet there was another amazing angle to take pictures from, which meant that all 3 of us took entirely too many pictures. Just as we were about to leave, we realized that the tide had finally gone down enough that we could approach some of the smaller of the rocks, which seals happen to live on. We saw 4 seals in total, including one very tired-looking pup.

All in all, a very good day trip to one of the best beaches I’ve ever been to, despite the fact that it is nicknamed “the Washing Machine” and you therefore can’t swim in it at all. We got to see everything we wanted–the rocks, the seals–with the possible omission of a beautiful sunset. The weather was great, even though we drove through heavy storms and clouds swelled every once in a while, only to dissipate again. We ended it with a latte each at the cafe that looks out on Farewell Spit, a nature reserve that marks the end of the South Island.

I have to mention the hostel I stayed in in Golden Bay here–Golden Bay Barefoot Backpackers. The owners of the hostel had just taken over two days prior, so they were running around like chickens with their heads cut off, which made for a very interesting stay. It was good in the end, but I had my doubts in the beginning when I found out they didn’t have my booking because the previous owner had continued making reservations for people without telling them…

I’ve abandoned my original plan for this leg of the trip, which was to walk the 5-day, 85km Heaphy Track down the West Coast and then catching a bus from there. My ankle isn’t doing badly, but since it’s a bit iffy, I figured it wouldn’t be a good idea to start a walk that I have to finish once I’ve started, since there aren’t water taxis and the like available in that very remote area. Instead, I’m back in Nelson for a bit, where it is pouring with rain. That’s why I’m on the computer and uploading so many pictures, and I daresay everyone else in the packed cafe had the same idea. If you hadn’t noticed from the pictures included in this post, I have added (too many) shots from Wharariki Beach to my Golden Bay gallery; I’ve also fixed the first seal swim video in the last post, which wasn’t showing up before, and have uploaded more of the seals: