Traveling across Cook Strait

Interislander's Cook Strait Ferries travel between Wellington and Picton New Zealand. The 92 km voyage takes 3 hours and has been described as "one of the most beautiful ferry rides in the world".

We traveled on a ship called the Kaitaki, a Māori word meaning "challenger". With the capacity to carry up to 1600 passengers, it is both the largest ship in Interislander's fleet and the largest ferry operating in New Zealand waters.

We completed the ferry crossing around noon,picked up a rental van, and headed south to the town of Blenheim. There we met with the local coordinator for educational programs for the REAP program. She was a former teacher and regional education advisor for the Ministry of Education.

 

We learned about her current work in supporting and connecting schools and in mentoring new principals. New Zealand has a fairly elaborate system for inducting new school administrators, including an eighteen month mentorship with an experienced advisor.

From Blenheim, we made it through a wonderful valley framed by farmland and hills. That gave way to a nerve-wracking ride along another windy road high up a mountain side.

Fortunately, we made it through to the other side to the town of Nelson. This is an extremely beautiful part of the south island which served as the base of operations for the cast and crew of the Lord of the Rings movies. After supper downtown, we travelled six kilometres east and then about one straight up to the Harris Hill Cottages. During the climb up the windy gravel road, I alternately closed my eyes, said silent affirmations, and clenched the door handle tightly.

We settled into a couple of cabins high above the bay with cows, horses, and sheep around us. We lit a fire in our cabin and spent a couple of hours talking about our experiences during the past week in New Zealand.