The Amsterdam arrived to the sheltered port of Picton, located on the South Island of New Zealand. It is such a pretty place, it is a shame we have such a short visit. We are only here from 7am to 2pm, enough time to take a walk and perhaps eat an early lunch.
Picton is small compared to Auckland and Wellington, with only about 3000 residents. It is the gateway to the Marlborough region, which is famous for their wineries and sheep farms. When we went to breakfast in the dining room, our waiter said, “Look, we are in Alaska!” Sure enough, this town at the end of what resembles a fjord reminded us of Skagway, with similar forested mountainsides. And it was as cool as an Alaskan summer can often be. We refuse to give up wearing our shorts, however, since we usually keep them on until November. Today, as the day advanced, the temps warmed up considerably. , and all we needed were the light sweatshirts we wore.
Today we were docked near the Interislander Ferry Terminal, which is fairly close to the town’s center. We were surprised to see the Radiance was also in port, but docked at nearby Shakespeare Bay. For such a small country town, this sure is a busy port. Picton is also known for commercial mussel farming, as well as stomping grounds for back packers, vacation trailers, kayaking, boating, and wine tasting.
We figured that today is our third time to visit Picton. The first time we took a tour out of the area to a farm house for a lunch and sheep shearing demo. We stopped at a bee and honey facility, and got to see some stunning views from the mountain tops. The second visit, we stayed in town, and did a walk-about….a very long hike on a peninsula overlooking the marina and harbor.
So today, with limited time, we left the ship around 10am. At the bottom of the gangway, two local ladies were handing out small pre-made corsages with a pin. What a nice welcome gift. One other passenger said we should learn more about a gracious welcome like this. We all followed the blue line which led to the town’s center. There was a wait to cross over the railway tracks, where an engine was pushing rail cars into the extra-long ferry. That stopped the car traffic as well, so guess we missed 20 minutes of our time already. By the way, the folks from the Radiance of the Seas had shuttles to town, since their ship was further away. And even worse, they were staying until 5pm, lucky dogs.
Many passengers took one of the eleven tours offered through shore excursions. They included a walking city tour (which we did for free), a coastal drive, a Queen Charlotte Sound walk, scenic cruising on a catamaran, wine-tasting, cycling, kayaking, and finally a visit to Blenheim with a farm visit, a winery, and a lunch. Tour prices ran from $60 to $300.
Today was Saturday, so an arts and crafts market was set up near London Quay, an area with a small sandy beach and an expanse of lawn. There was a lively country band playing for the locals and guests alike. This waterfront park is surrounded with some nice cafes and restaurants. They were all full of ship people eating pastries and sipping coffee, while taking advantage of the free WIFI. Few people were having conversations, since they were deep into the internet work. We can assume from this that many folks did not purchase the ship’s internet plans as they were quite expensive. You can get by without a package, and search for free sites in the ports. But it does take time, which we choose not to waste. But that’s just us….we are not all that “connected”.
After checking out the souvenir tables, we headed for Picton’s version of the Coathanger Bridge. It’s really a mini one that leads to the marina, a nice place to stroll. Continuing on, the trail begins for the hike to the Snout Track and eventually to the Snout at the tip of this peninsula. If we had time, we may have attempted the walk, but with one of us favoring a troubled knee, it wasn’t in the cards today.
Back over the steep foot bridge, we navigated our way up the streets and to the main drive, High Street. We had accumulated some New Zealand change, and wanted to spend it before we left the country. Going into their supermarket, Fresh Choice, we found a few snack items for our room. Wandering in and out of shops on the way downhill, we came across the restaurant where we dined the last time we were here. It was called The Barn, and was serving lunch at noon. No pizza, but they did have a good burger and fries, which we shared. Beers were Tui, and good.
Crossing the street to spend more change we got from lunch, we bought some cookies. Then we came across an ice cream shop, and asked if they had Hokey Pokey. Yes, they did, so we indulged one last time, since this was our final port in New Zealand. Funny thing, we ended up with more coins, so we stopped in the pharmacy, and found low dose aspirin, something we could not find since we left Panama City. Go figure? Finally ended up with 20 cents, and a few coins that had been out of circulation for some time. Must have brought them from home, saved from previous New Zealand visits.
The time had flown by quickly, and at 1pm, we started back to the ship with Wendy and Steve, former hosts. They are deep into Geo-caching and actually revealed one they had located today. We can see why they have so much fun figuring out the clues they are given.
The line to get back on the ship was long and moving slowly. One of the longer tours must have just arrived, so it took time for all to pass through the security xray on the ship. Sail away festivities began at 1:30pm, where we stayed visiting with many people we knew for two hours. As hard as we looked, we did not see one dolphin today. But there were some birds, such as a pied cormorant and several gannets as we sailed several miles through the sound. The skies had gotten rather cloudy, and the winds were downright chilly.
The rest of the late afternoon was spent warming up in our room and doing photos. Dinnertime was fun as always, but the menu is getting more strange by the day. Guess we are creatures of habit, and really like basic combinations with our entrees. Meat and potatoes with veggies would be nice, but unless you put it together yourself, you will not find it on the menu. Slam does not mind putting together combinations that will work for all of us.
Besides the clocks going back one hour tonight (hurray), we received gifts of two power banks, probably most suitable for cell phones or small tablets. Useful for those that spend hours using their phones.
We are now headed towards Australia, crossing the infamous Tasman Sea. Hope she behaves for the next two days…..
Bill & Mary Ann
