The 2-foot gauge Blenheim Riverside Railway runs over 5km through riverside parkland into the centre of town. So Sunday 4th January I arrived early at Brayshaw Historic Park to watch the train arrive for its two afternoon return trips for the day, the first to Omaka Aviation Heritage Centre, and the second to the town centre terminus.
On the platform at the back of the above photo is a white haired tall guy in a peaked cap (one on the left) talking to a railway staff member, and when I walked down to near the ticket office entry door the staff guy said to the tall guy, “here comes your brother”. The railway guy insisted on taking a photo of us —–
—– following which I found out my “brother” is a fit 90 year old, name John, is from England, and is visiting his daughter who lives locally. He is in the middle of a very long waiting list for a parent’s residential visa to enable him to permanently stay in NZ. Meanwhile he makes annual trips here on a visitor’s visa.
My rides for the day included both the trip to Omaka and the riverside trip into the town centre —–
—– where after reaching the turn-around at the town basin terminus (main trunk railway in the foreground), we headed back along —–
—– the riverside boardwalk —–
—— and into the parks area.
The train was well patronised for the trip as we headed back from town ——
—–to the station at Brayshaw Park.
For Sunday night it was my 8th night “freedom” camping, this one at Marfells Beach campsite (the fourth DoC camp in the 8 nights).
The camp sites are on the bank well above the high tide level which comes right up to the timber debris on the beach.
The beach is very shallow, and extends east to the headland in the distance, leading to Cape Campbell (with its lighthouse) which is the third most easterly point in the South Island.
Not only is ——
—— there loads of seabirds on the beach, —–
—– I was also welcomed by this neighbourly male pheasant when I set up camp.
Sunrise and high tide at Marfells Beach on Monday 5th January provided —–
—– a warm glow over my campsite with a view —–
—– across Cook Strait to the Wellington heads on the right.
I took a quick trip to Lake Grassmere Saltworks —–
—— before heading to Ward Beach on the east coast south of Cape Campbell.
A camping couple who were there overnight told me that the crayfishing crews woke them at 5am as they started up their bulldozers to launch boats for a day out checking and resetting their crayfish pots
I headed along the beach in the direction of Cape Campbell to get an early morning view ——
—– of the Ward Beach Boulders, similar to but much smaller than the Moeraki Boulders south of Oamaru.
These 7 boulders are well above high tide line on a gravel beach, thus are not as vulnerable to tidal action as the Moeraki Boulders which are on a sandy beach and subject to tidal inundation.
After lunch at The Store, Kekerengu,——
—– which provides a huge outdoor dining area, I headed for the Top 10 Holiday Park in Kaikoura for a four-night stay.
Tuesday 6th January was a housekeeping day catching up on 2 weeks of laundry, but I managed a walk into town late afternoon to view the Coastal Pacific —–
—– leaving for Christchurch at 4.30 and —–
—– then see a couple of fully loaded Whale Watch buses heading for South Harbour for the late afternoon/early evening cruise out to the Kaikoura Canyon.
My Whale Watch adventure on Wednesday 7th involved —–
—– this helicopter operated by Kaikoura Helicopters out of a foreshore landing pad location just over the hedge and across the railway from my campsite at the Top 10 Holiday Park
The machine takes 6 passengers, two seated in the front to the right of the pilot, and four across the back. Wide windows provide good views front and side. There were five on my trip with me being located directly behind the pilot by the left window. With headphones on to enable everyone to listen to the pilot’s commentary it was surprisingly quiet with no sound of engine noise. Pilot Aaron told us he was taking us 8km straight out to where he had seen a sperm whale feeding and diving during the 9am flight, and sure enough —–
—– he was right on target, with the whale having surfaced to breathe after a 45 minute feeding dive.
Aaron circled low, first right, then left, so everyone had a chance for a good view. However, getting good focus shots from the moving helicopter was tricky —–
—– and in addition there was a fair amount of side splash around the whale, although —–
—– I did get him spouting —–
—– before he slowly submerged instead of a full tail-up dive.
Low sea cloud was creeping in under us as we headed back with ——
—— our shadow surrounded by a circular “rainbow” known as a “Glory”.
We did spot a group of dolphins —–
—– which I was able to get on camera, but the Hectors dolphins close inshore we passed too quickly to photograph.
We had a good view of the Top 10 camp spanning the full width of this photo.
Once we landed I had to walk back into town, pass under the railway bridge then walk back to camp, a 20-minute trek. The motorhome is in the back corner of the Top 10 just to the left of the glasses of this front seat passenger, while the railway is between his chin and the microphone from his headset.
Thursday (8th January) at 7.30am I parked at —–
—the end of the Kaikoura Peninsula to take the clifftop track.
I walked to the base of the hilltop to the left of the tree on the horizon, looking down on bird nesting areas, and —–
—– the seal colony. The seals used to base themselves at the carpark area but following the Kaikoura earthquake in 2016, which raised the foreshore and changed rock and pool configurations substantially, they relocated south to a new bay.
Friday 9th January was a travel day Kaikoura to Christchurch with three diversions on the way. First was to Conway Flat and Claverley at the coastal outlet of the Conway River. This is where the main trunk railway meets the foreshore before heading to Kaikoura through a host of tunnels.
On my left was the gravel beach along the Conway flats, and to my right was —–
—– the main trunk line with the Coastal Pacific thundering through heading north. The luxury coach with full dining facilities ——
—–was well patronised, while the observation car behind the regular carriage —–
—– had many travelers enjoying the closeness to the foreshore.
My second diversion was along a gravel road off SH1 south of Cheviot to —–
—– a location shown as “Nonoti” on the road map. The name came from a local politician in the late 1800s who was invited to name the locality, but in response declined by saying “no, not I”. The entrance here is into a large farming complex, and that is all there is of “Nonoti”.
The third diversion at lunchtime was to a coastal area near Greta Valley where I saw a large fishing boat ——
—– returning from a trip, and —–
—— taken up to a depot for refuelling, then returning and being re-launched half-an-hour later.
Meanwhile a nearby cormorant (pied shag) was resting following its own fishing venture.
Saturday 10th January was the Clan Gunn Society of NZ Annual General Meeting in Christchurch. Normally we would hold the AGM in November but issues arose over a venue for which we needed internet access to Microsoft Teams so those around the table in Christchurch could see and talk to members who had logged in online. I attended in person this year with four locals plus 3 members online. The small attendance at the meeting reflects declining interest in Clan activities, and winding up the Clan at the end of 2026 was the major topic of discussion.
This coming week my agenda is further exploration of Christchurch attractions, repeating some areas and activities I visited during 2024 and 2025. The 32 degree heat today along with high humidity is rather uncomfortable.
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