south island hiking

Hi from the South Island. Yesterday we finished the Queen Charlotte Track - 71 km of hillside ridges along the Queen Charlotte Sound on one side and Kenepuru Sound on the other, drowned valleys between forested (and deforested, alas; much logging here) mountain ranges - and last night we came to the Anakiwa Lodge where the proprietor sold us a bottle of local Sauvignon Blanc and gave us a key to the spa tub. UTTER BLISS, I tell you. All hikes should end this way.

( Leaving Wellington )

( It sounds farther in KM )

Anyway, I must shower and go fix breakfast now. At 9:15 we hitch a ride on the mail bus to Havelock, which is apparently the Green-Lipped Mussel Capital of New Zealand (and therefore the world) so I am looking forward to lunch; and then we catch a bus for Nelson where we have a few days before our next round of torture hike. I will try to answer comments in Nelson, but if I don't get to it, thank you all for reading and gawking at photos!

ETA: Photos to gawk at: Queen Charlotte track