Early morning start. Hike one leg, kayak two legs and end at Torrent Bay. New lodgings.
Cynthia’s favorite day. Although the paths are soft and full of beautiful vegetation, the hikes start to feel like a treadmill. Most are in a hurry to get to the end and the guides seem very focused on schedules. So, its one foot in front of the other with little time to stop and appreciate where you are. The kayaking, on the other hand, had frequent pauses to observe. We saw seals lazing on rocks and one in the water, birds, bays, and very interesting rock formations. And, the guide had stories to fill pauses that did not offer immediate interest. The most notable story was of a man who lost his land and was evicted by the DOC (department of conservation).
Verne’s father had a lifetime lease for a piece of land in the national park. If he had made a will before dying the lease would have passed to his children. But, he died before doing so. Consequently the land would be passed to the park and the DOC which controls it. Verne kept his fathers death secret for two years but eventually the DOC confronted him to say that he must leave, the house would be removed and that they would like the stove from the house. When the DOC was scheduled to take the only house Verne had ever known he put the stove in the sea so the salt would ruin it and blew up his house. He also cemented his toilet to a granite boulder on the top of a small island nearby. Three years ago a storm blew it off.
We started the day with a short walk from Meadowbank Lodge to the Awaroa Inlet where we boarded a barge to a place where all 21 guests hiked for about 1.5 hours to Totaranui. At the end of that leg we all boarded a boat to Tonga Quarry where we 7 kayakers and one guide loaded into kayaks. The rest of the group hiked on. We traveled to Medlands Beach where the two groups met for lunch. Then we separated once again for another leg that ended in Torrent Bay where we moved into our new accommodations, Torrent Bay Lodge. David did a remarkable job in the kayak since Cynthia is not experienced or strong. But he was patient and happy to be on the water. The weather was lovely and the day was full and relatively smooth. But, at the end, entering our end point our kayak flipped over after getting picked up by a wave. We were drenched but unharmed. The only concern was that Cynthia’s phone got wet. So, as soon as we were aground we sent the phone to the kitchen to be buried in rice. It was notable that several people had this same advice. We will see tomorrow if it is okay.
Dinner was outside on the deck with the sound of waves as background music. The food is always very good and the gin and tonics welcome even though they are premixed Gordons.
Two Tramps 