heading north

We never did get up in the helicopter; the clouds stayed low and the helicopters were grounded.
We moved on at coffee time, and by lunchtime were sitting in the sun having our lunch!
Our next stop was Panakaiki, right on the beach, with waves rolling in off the Tasman sea. Some rugged rocks on the headland next to us, called Pancake Rocks, which were spectacular, particularly when seen at high tide. I can't add photos on this Hotel computer, but will try with John's later.
we're now in Nelson, at the North end of the South Island. The journey yesterday started in sunshine, with a magnificent coastal drive, and a long winding river gorge, Buller Gorge, taking us into the mountains. However, there we met the rain and cloud which stayed with us into the night
We've stayed at some fantastic hotels: Franz Joseph was a set of studio rooms with varandas which backed straight onto the rain forest. Punakaiki was a type of log cabin just up from the beach.Now we're at Nelson, in a complex which is a mock-up of an English village - brick, half timbering the lot!
A sad day yesterday: Susan had a phone call from her daughter to say that her mother-in-law, mother of her first husband, had died, so it has been a sad day.
Today we've been at Abel Tasman National Park; I'll tell you about that tomorrow