Nelson and Picton

Nelson was a 2-night stay as we wanted to use it for a base to explore the Marlborough Sounds a little, which we did on the day after we arrived.

We drove from Nelson to Blenheim, and saw a real contrast in a very short distance, from deep ravines and very steep and windy roads to flat country with a extensive grape growing industry with plenty of large and small wineries along the way.

Leanne was warned off taking "the scenic route" by a local, so we missed out on the best direction to travel it (Havelock to Picton).

After arriving in Blenheim, we really struggled to find anywhere for lunch. Nothing was open ! After a walk around a couple of streets, we found a shop with a sign announcing they were closed for "Marlbourough Day".

At that point, we decided to head off to Picton and enjoyed a short scenic trip which was largely more of the same.

A very nice lunch ensued, with Leanne demolishing a bowl of local Green Lipped Mussels and I thouroughly enjoyed a seafood chowder.

We then threw caution to the winds and concluded that nothing could be as bad as the bus trip from Salerno to Amalfi we did back in 2014, so we headed off back to Nelson from Picton via Havelock (the dreaded scenic route).

What can I say ?!

Just fantastic scenery, and the opportunity to "play" with the car a little on a very twisty road, while continuously having to pull over as one amazing landscape after another suddenly opened up.

I mentioned above that we didn't travel this route in the best direction. That is because Picton to Havelock (the way home back to Nelson) has all the amazing scenery to your right while driving, as were the only places to pull over. These were often just before (or after) a very tight blind corner, so actually pulling over for photos involved having the window down, listening for other cars as you crawled to stop, then diving across the road to pull up on a little patch of gravel, but with stunning views behind it.

Getting back on the road involved a similarly hairy manoeuvre !