The InterIslander Ferry is not shy to publicize favorable reviews of its service and it's not hard to find Wine Spectator's opinion in the ferry terminal: "It must be one of the most beautiful ferry rides in the world." Interislander takes it a step further: "The journey is even better than getting there." I wouldn't go that far, but I definitely agree that it is a spectacular ferry ride across Cook Straight to the Marlborough region. We had great weather - the day seemed to get less and less cloudy as we got further away from Wellington - and the three hour voyage was easily spent gazing out the window (or out on the deck when the wind allowed).
Pulling out of Wellington Harbor.
Pencarrow Lighthouse
Entering Queen Charlotte Sound.
Once the ship docked in Picton, we met our shuttle bus driver (he had a white sign with Sarah’s name on it – Judy though this was particularly cool) and headed into Blenheim. Blenheim is a small town where many tourists stay when visiting the Marlborough wine region. So, naturally, the town consists of many inns and restaurants. Once we’d settled into ours – the aptly named 171 on High Street – we walked into town to find dinner. Despite the “No Vacancy” signs at many of the local accommodations, we saw almost no one as we strolled around Seymour Square.
Practically had the place to ourselves.
We settled on Scotch for dinner – it was packed (as opposed to many of the other restaurants) and was featuring a special Monday night burger and beer special. Say no more. We all enjoyed burgers and beers then headed back to our inn for some sleep.
I woke up early this morning to get a run in before a day of wine tasting. Sarah and her dad followed suit about the same time I got back. After taking turns in the shower and making coffee runs, we were ready to check out the vineyards. Sarah and I had such a great time doing a wine tour by bike in Mendoza that we booked a similar tour here. We were picked up in a van, dropped off in the middle of all the vineyards with some bikes and given a map of all the vineyards we could choose to visit.
The weather started out very pleasant, but turned a little cooler and windier as the day wore on. Fortunately, all the tastings along the way helped shield us from the elements! We visited four vineyards and a brewery over the course of the afternoon; our favorite was Wairau River.
We’re ready to go!
Wairau River Vineyard. We stopped here for lunch too since it was such a beautiful setting.
Post-lunch picture (including Michael’s new favorite wine, Reserve Viognier) at Wairau River.
Another vineyard we stopped at was Hans Herzog – we didn’t care for the wines much, but the grounds were very nice!
Hans Herzog is an organic winery and features less-manicured vineyards.
A rooster statue near the main dining room.
Clearly there is a strongly positive correlation between number of wine tastings and maturity…
We returned to our pick-up point by 5pm, exhausted. The morning runs and 10+ miles on the bikes had taken their toll on us (though Sarah and I were extremely impressed with Michael and Judy's athleticism all day!) We returned to our inn to rest up before dinner. None of us wanted to walk far, so we chose Mango, an Indian BYO restaurant close by. The food was good and hearty, and different from what we’re used to eating. (Sarah and I both couldn’t think of a time when we had Indian food so far on our trip so this was a nice change).
We walked back to our inn – though not before Judy could get some dessert at Scotch! – and went to bed. Tomorrow we take a bus to Christchurch. The drive along the coast is supposed to be very nice so we’re looking forward to that (and resting our tired legs in a bus seat for a few hours!).