Nelson

Landing into Nelson on the afternoon of July 3rd we grabbed our car from Europcar and headed toward our AirBnb located just a couple blocks away from Tahunanui Beach.  The place was beautiful - newly built with a great gas fireplace, a 5 minute walk to the beach and just a short drive away from Nelson's main town center.  

Once we had settled in, we decided it would be best to pick dinner up to go as River had missed his nap and was bound to be a handful if we went out anywhere.  With so many options in town to choose  from, we decided on Nahm a highly recommended Thai restaurant and were glad we did.  Last time we were in town we had hit another great Thai place called Chokdee - and we had loved it, so it's apparently hard to go wrong with Thai food in Nelson.  

After a good night sleep we were off to Tahunanui Beach the next morning.  Set just back off the beach is a fantastic playground.  The playground seems to go on forever, as it is laid out in a linear fashion behind the beach it appears that around each turn or tree is a new play structure - including a castle, a giant whale, and large cubes with rock climbing holds on them.

After spending quite a while at the playground we extracted the boys, shifting them onto the beach - where Sharyl began finding shells and Reef found his first Sand Dollar, calling it a "sand coin."  The beach wasn't quite as spectacular as we had hoped, given the large tidal shifts the sand has a fair amount of sediment in it, but it still provided ample entertainment for River who was grabbing sticks, chasing seagulls, and getting his long pants a bit wet on the shoreline.  From the beach we headed over to Te Pa Harakeke an amazing zone designed as a natural playground, and just down the way from the more traditional playground where the boys had spent the last couple hours.

Te Pa Harakeke is a mix of logs, climbing structures, stone pathways, and waterways which also includes a purpose built storm water outflow zone - something that in the US would certainly be an unsightly concrete channelized waterway here in Nelson has been crafted into a beautiful spiraling sand and stone waterway, traversed by pedestrian bridges and surrounded by this natural playground.  After running around on "the floor is lava" course for a while we headed back to the house for River's nap before going out to dinner with our local kiwi friends, Marc & Kiely at Eddyline Brewery.

We had been looking forward to visiting Eddyline again after our last trip out, knowing the incredible beer and pizza they had on offer, and it was kind of Marc & Kiely to join us there especially given Kiely can't do gluten, making pizzas a less than ideal dinner option.  It was fun to see our friends and talk story with them about what was new since we were last in town 3 months ago.  We let them know about our wildly successful Sand Dollar finds . . . to which they gently let us know that Sand Dollars are actually animals - related to starfish - and its probably not a great idea to collect them.  Whoops!  Not having Sand Dollars in Hawaii we had just assumed they were compacted sand which formed in tidal areas, but as it turns out we were wrong . . . so we committed to setting our Sand Dollars free on the shoreline rather than keep them.  Marc demonstrated his bravery by taking on a condo sized calzone (I think the calzone might have won the battle), and we moved our way through the tap list.

The next day, per Marc and Kiely's recommendation, we headed out to Aniseed Valley, an area just outside of Nelson previously unknown to us.  Enroute we stopped by Alioke Eatery - which again wowed us with an excellent and huge breakfast - the white chocolate raspberry muffins as well as the waffles are particular favorites!  

Just about 10 minutes from Nelson we turned up the road toward Aniseed Valley.  Our first stop was Twin Bridges Reserve - set right on the Roding River the park looks like a perfect place for a BBQ in the summer with awesome spots - including a rope swing - to swim in the river right next to multiple picnic tables and BBQs.  The river was picturesque as might be expected in NZ - and looked to be a world away from the busy roads of Nelson and its outlying towns. 

From the Twin Bridges Reserve we continued another ten minutes up the road to the trailhead for the Hacket Track.  Also the trailhead for Whispering Falls day hike, the Hacket Track map struck me as typically New Zealand.  This somewhat off the beaten path trail isn't simply an out and back event - the "track", or trail as we'd call it in the US, leads to the Hacket Hut, then beyond that the Browning Hut . . . then further afield the Rocks Hut, the Middy Creek Hut, the Captains Creek Hut, the Roebuck Hut, the Starveall Hut, Slaty Hut, and all the way out to the 5-bunk Old Man Hut.  Basically, on this otherwise unsuspecting trailhead you could hike out into the "bush" for 9 nights, each spent at a different (no doubt breathtaking) location without bothering to pack a tent.

We went for a few mile hike along the Hacket Track, passing over a really cool swinging bridge along the way - and enjoying the beautiful topography and stream which ran alongside most of the trail. We maybe passed 2 people walking their dog on leash the entire time.

After the hike Nicky and Pete, the owners of our Airbnb, came over to watch the boys while Sharyl and I went out for a date night at Hopgoods & Co. an amazing local Nelson restaurant.  When we were thinking about a date night, Sharyl had asked Nicky for a recommendation for a babysitter and Nicky quickly volunteered to watch the kids.  As a retired elementary school teacher she was excited to spend time with the kids. The dinner was fabulous, highlights included the locally produced Gin which was mixed into an incredible Gin & Tonic, along with the Ricotta Gnocchi & the Steak filet we got for our main courses . . . all absolutely incredible.  When we returned home, River was out cold and Reef had clearly had a great time with Nicky & Pete.  They were very complimentary of the boys and seemed to have genuinely enjoyed their time with Reef & River. They were wonderful, taking no payment, instead asking us to pay it forward.

The next day we made our way over to Pic's Peanut Butter World for a tour of their peanut butter factory.  Pic's is a Nelson business which has grown to global distribution while maintaining a strong focus on health and sustainability . . . they are in fact a Certified B-Corp, just like Skyline!  Pic Picot is quite a character, and started Pic's in part because he was losing his vision to Macular Degeneration and had to retire from his prior job at 55 due to his poor eyesight.  Without much income he turned to making Peanut Butter, something he had done as a hobby for himself for years, and selling it at the popular Nelson Farmer's Market in 2007.  This is a fun little video where you get to hear Pic tell the story of growing the company, first working out of his garage with a stainless steel concrete mixer and eventually growing to the size the company is today.  

On the tour Reef was able to ride the Peanut Butter Bike which grinds peanuts with each peddle - he and River liked it so much Reef had to get on the bike a second time to grind more!  

After the tour we had a Peanut butter tasting (they make several unique styles including a 5 nut blend called Big Mix, a 1/2 chunky 1/2 smooth one called Smunchy Peanut Butter, Almond Butters, two types of Honey, and a 1/2 peanut butter 1/2 chocolate blend!  

From Pic's we made our way to Founder's Heritage Park, a beautiful area with many old time shops and displays telling about the history of Nelson.

That night we set off for Mapua, a nearby town with a brewery set right along the waterfront called Golden Bear Brewing Company.  The area had been recommended by our server from Hopgoods who said Mapua was a great town, and really family friendly.  The setting was beautiful, but unfortunately the brewery was closed.  As we would find out a little later they apparently close for 2 months every winter and the owner goes home to the US where they are from.  With the brewery closed we went to Rimu Wine Bar, located right next door and had a great pizza and Sharyl was able to try out several local wineries with a wine "tasting tree".  The guy sitting at the table next to us by the fire at Rimu was a big beer fan and filled us in on Golden Bear, saying they had just closed the prior weekend for their long break.  The Mapua Wharf where both Golden Bear and Rimu are located is definitely a hidden gem near Nelson, just a short drive away with a very relaxed atmosphere, often hosting live music during the summer.

The next day was Friday the 7th, and was our last full day in Nelson.  We headed over to Red Art Gallery and Cafe for breakfast.  The place is famous for having the best scones in Nelson, (but they weren't anything special in my book).  I think in New Zealand the traditional British scone is king, so the options were either a cheese or a date scone . .  . nothing like La Provence's fruit scones, or my wife's berry scones.  River was also not really in an "art gallery mood", so I took him outside to watch the road construction underway just down the street.  He was enthralled with the various machines and sat quietly for the next 10 minutes entranced by the action until Reef & Sharyl were done with their food & buying a few gifts in the gallery.  We then did a walking tour of the few blocks which comprise downtown Nelson - getting a decent handle on where everything was.  We stopped into The Gravity Well the local Bouldering Gym in Nelson to find out more about the place.  It looks like a great little climbing facility but unfortunately climbers need to be at least 10 years old, since with Bouldering no harnesses or ropes are used (all climbs are under 15 ft) the lady at the gym said they were concerned about young kids wandering under a climber who might fall and land on them for 6-8 feet up - a reasonable concern.  From there we headed toward the Centre of New Zealand.

The Centre of New Zealand is the point at the top of a prominent hill (called Botanical Hill), just a two minute drive from downtown Nelson.  Named because that particular point was used as the central survey point during the 1800's, the hilltop boasts stunning views in all directions.   The hike to the top of Botanical Hill was short and steep, climbing 500 feet over the course of about a mile.  Reef trudged his way up, while River enjoyed a scenic backpack ride - occasionally prodding me along for good measure.  

After the hike we stopped by Nelson Central School where Reef and Sharyl walked around the campus as River napped in the car.  The school is on a two week break so no one was in the office, but they were able to look around the campus which is just a few blocks away from the central business area of town.  From there it was on to Two Thumb Brewing Company just a few blocks away, for some great burgers.  Two Thumbs is a Christchurch based brewery and apparently currently do not actually brew any beer in Nelson, but the offerings they had on tap were excellent even if they were made a few hours away.

Before it got dark we headed back to Te Pa Harakeke, just a short walk from our AirBnb, so River could run off his energy (having been in the backpack for our hike he was the only family member who hadn't gotten in a good workout in the form of climbing 50 stories).  That night the rain hit, but Sharyl was undeterred, and the next morning set off soon after dawn to the Nelson Farmers Market, where she found some great locally made items, including goat milk body soaps, cooking items such as BBQ sauce, honey & paste made of Black Garlic and picked up enough fresh apples, pears, and kiwi to keep us well fed during our next few days in the nearby town of Motueka. River has always been our fruit monger and his love for fruit has only grown this trip.