Sitting in our villa unit at the Bealey Hotel, Arthur’s Pass I look out at the sea of purple lupin that cloak the braided shingle of the Waimakariri River. LUPIN! We later talk to Graeme the area’s friendly, informative DoC ranger, he assured us that the lupin will be eradicated by aerial spraying in the New Year. A hands on sort of guy, Graeme is also an active member of Arthurs Pass Conservation Club and welcomed the invitation talk to one of our visiting groups in early January. It was quickly sorted out that the best place to see the volunteers’ work and identify the birds they were protec ..read more

A highlight for many on our Port Ligar Tour is the full day boat tour off the Pelorus Sounds. Departing from Blenheim, we board the ‘Toroa’ for a private boat charter with Pelorus Tours’ hosts Gary and Ellen Orchard. Gary whose family name is synonymous with the Marlborough Sounds has a bounty of local stories past and present. Points of interest along the way including blue cod fishing, local wildlife and a visit to a mussel farm. We took the opportunity over lockdown to ask the Orchards a few questions about living in such a beautiful but remote part of the world. Find out more about them be ..read more

New Zealand’s first marine mammal tourist attraction. I was brought up with a fairy tale but in this case the fairy tale was true. It is the story my grandmother told me about Pelorus Jack. If you have heard of Pelorus Jack you will know he was a very special dolphin, but many do not know that he was a Risso’s dolphin, considered a subspecies referred as ‘Black Fish’, which includes false killer whales and long and short finned pilot whales. Risso’s dolphin are rare in New Zealand waters and usually travel in pods of 10 – 30 animals. Pelorus Jack was a solitary male. However he was far from a ..read more

Over lockdown I have been waking up early thinking about a million things, so I have taken up the habit of donning my dressing gown and making a strong coffee and putting my racing mind to good use by reading an interesting article. A recent article from the New Zealand Geographic ‘The Tree Hunters’ has set my sails on a new and exciting course. Triumphantly I race into the bedroom to share with Will the good news. Now he is hooked as well. When our bubble widens we will be looking around our familiar landscape with new interest, maybe even on our daily bubble walks. The article revealed to m ..read more

Sze Wing, ecologist and wildlife photographer is heroically working in thick bush, tracking predators on remote D’Urville Island in the Marlborough Sounds. Sze has given her enthusiasm and knowledge about her conservation work freely to our visiting groups over the last season. She has given informal talks on her work in a way that is both informative and delightful. Her work will contribute to the body of data that will assist community led conservation group Rangitoto Bird Song in its goal to eradicate all stoats on the island. A goal strengthened by the fact that the island is currently fre ..read more

Every Christmas Will gets excited in the kitchen. New and family favorites come out of the bag. This year he is sharing with you one of his trade mark recipes. Will's Christmas Muffins ½ cup whole almonds ½ cup walnut halves ½ cup chopped mixed peel ½ cup whole red glace cherries ½ cup whole green glace cherries 1 cup of raisins ½ cup of preserved ginger chopped ½ cup of dates chopped 1 cup of self raising flour, sifted ¾ cup of raw sugar ½ teaspoon of salt 3 eggs 1 teaspoon of vanilla ¼ teaspoon of nutmeg ¼ teaspoon of ground cloves And any other spices you enjoy!! Preheat oven to 170’ Celsi ..read more

Shelley and her husband Keith live in Kaikoura not far from where we live. The Fissenden family are synonymous with the Clarence River, they were the general contractors, building the roads deep into to the rugged high country where we take our tours today. Shelley’s maiden name is Harris, who were a dairy farming family. She has lived in Kaikoura all her life, starting out life as one of eight children. Pony club, rugby and all sports were the things they enjoyed growing up, with both her parents involved in coaching. Shelley's first job as working for Pyne Gould Guiness a stock and station ..read more

Rachel arrived at Molesworth in1942 after a long, wearing trip by horse and buggy. One wonders what ran through her mind as she traversed numerous river crossings and slept under a horse covers with her husband Bill at the uninhabited Langridge Homestead. A taste of the adventurous life to come for the young bride. Rachel stoically described the Molesworth homestead as "bare boards, minimal furniture, and no curtains". The first meal they would have was a rabbit stew with prunes and rice made by the young rabbiters who were staying there, that was all they had in the larder! When they arrived ..read more

Our informative Chatham Islands host, Lois Croon of Admiral Garden, told us that the native plants of the island have big, lush leaves. She said that Rēkohu's light is softened by high cloud which causes low light levels and the trees have to have larger leaves to photosynthesize. Thus the Moriori translation for the name for the island - misty skies. Our guide Denny, who has worked as a Department of Conservation ranger on the island, informed us that the native trees at Chathams do not exhibit the juvenile stages as seen on the mainland. Is this this because the tree browsing moa have not ro ..read more

Takapourewa, later known as Stephens Island is located northeast of D’Urville Island in the outer most reaches of the Marlborough Sounds. Jutting out of the strong currents and wild winds of the Cook Strait, Takapourewa has been historically a notable place despite its extreme isolation. In early Māori history it was here that one of Kupe’s men Pani, attempted to abscond with Kupe’s daughter. Pursued by Kupe; who had earlier rescued his daughter from the water, Pani capsized his waka in the areas famously strong currents and winds and perished. Read more. Captain Cook used the high, steep side ..read more