Being woken by the sun on your tent is usually nice. Today I woke round 8.30 because my tent was overheating, which isn’t that great.
Having gotten on the road round ten, I arrive in Hokitika shortly after eleven and find a small market going. I buy fabulous cinnamon rolls and good bagels (two of each) at Miriam’s stand.
The rest of the market is mostly trinkets so I go to the beach where I eat, blog and relax for an hour.
On the road to Greymouth, I overtake an older man (65+) on his bike. A short while later he’s caught up with me and starts talking. We continue together at good speed almost all the way to Greymouth and he tells me quite a lot about local history, although he is from Dunedin himself.
He also shows me part of the West Coast Cycle Trail which we follow along the coast. Shortly before Greymouth, we part ways and I spend some time at the beach again.
By five I’m on my way to Punakaiki to see the famous pancake rocks and blowhole. The road gets hilly again soon and I soon get fairly tired.
In Punakaiki the campground has no space left and all the motels are fully booked. I’m too tired to turn around and go back to the rocks. As it’s now half past eight, I continue on and start looking for a campspot.
That doesn’t prove easy, as the local rainforest doesn’t have any grass or clearings. I finally find a place near a reststop but to my horror discover that it’s strewn with dead possum parts that some hunter must have left.
I move over the road and set up my tent next to a picknick table. Here, on a cliff above the sea, I can hear the waves crashing in and just see the sun go down.
