Crossing Cook Strait

The crossing was quite uneventful and smooth- going. It was a 2 and half hour crossing and quite comfortable. I saw a pod of dolphins frolicking in the water but they were too far to capture on camera.

The ferry crossing

First view of South Island as we came closer

By 11.00am we had arrived in Picton, a very small town on South Island. After lunch at a delicious Indian restaurant there we drove on towards Nelson, our stay for the night before Christchurch. Along the way were lots of beautiful views - beech and pedocarp forests gleaming golden in the sunlight, towering mountains  covered in lush vegetation, deep gorges and the Pelorous bridge, spanning the Pelorous River.