Day 19 & 20 – Christchurch to Kaikoura via Hanmer Springs

Vineyard on a limestone hill near Waipara

 We had a late start for our short journey to Hanmer Springs.  On the way there we called into one of my favourite winery’s called Greystone where several rather nice wines were tasted and a couple purchased.

We stopped at a café that had been recommended in Culverden for a coffee.  It was nice to see that some businesses have survived Covid in the small villages. 

Finally we arrived in Hanmer Springs.  We stayed in the Hanmer Springs Hotel which is a lovely old heritage building and we were treated to a lovely room looking out over the extensive gardens. 

One of the reasons to go to Hanmer is to enjoy the hot springs, so that is what we did spending around an hour and a half soaking our bodies.  It was rather nice!  The result of which, we think, was a very good sleep that night.  

Day 20 

This part of the trip (Hanmer Springs and then through to Kaikoura) is one that we tried to do last year, but car problems meant we had to abandon our plans.  This time, fortunately, we had trouble - free motoring. 

After a few days off our bikes, we felt like we needed to have a little ride around Hanmer.  No major climbs, just a relaxed exploration of the village.    Grey roofs and brown stained timber exteriors seemed to be the standard colours of many houses.  It gave the appearance of  a resort town that has been newly built. 

On our little ride we came across the old Queen Mary Hospital that in the years before it was shut down (in 2003), was a drug and alcohol treatment centre. I thought at the time it was a tragedy that a residential centre of this type was closed.  It provided a peaceful place to dry out and hopefully deal with some of the residents’ demons.  However, the success rate was not high and therefore it was deemed uneconomic and a bad use of taxpayer money.  The problem is that drug and alcohol addiction is a really difficult condition to treat and no real alternatives were provided.  It was controversial at the time. 

The secluded grounds of the former Queen Mary Hospital

We were able to ride around the grounds and read it’s history.  It was in a lovely setting and would have been a really nice place to recover.  

We drove the alternative inland route to Kaikoura which was very rugged and beautiful countryside.  For the most part it was farmed with cattle and sheep.  

Looking down the Waiau River near Waiau

 

Rugged countryside on the Inland Road

We stayed at AirBnB in Kaikoura about nine kilometres north of the town.  We had a lovely room with a private balcony looking out toward the towering Kaikoura range.  We spent the afternoon in the sun, when we could stand the heat, reading. 

The Pier Hotel had been recommended as a good place to eat, in particular,  their seafood.  Bev had booked the day before as recommended. We arrived a bit before our booking time and were shown to one of the best seats in the restaurant.   We had a window looking out over the bay and toward the mountains.  With the sun going down it was rather beautiful.  On a warmer, less windy day, it would have been nice to sit outside.  

Our window view from the Pier Hotel

The seafood platter we had was delicious.  It was recommended for one person so we also got a small second plate of calamari and chips.  In hindsight the platter would have been enough, although the beer battered chips were a treat and worth having.

Pier Hotel. Our window on the far right!

Looking toward the Kaikouras