June 10-11: Being able to make spontaneous adventure decisions is super fun here! The Heaphy Track was calling and reservations were easy to get at the Perry Saddle Hut, so we went for a familiar bike ride. In fact, no one else had reserved space there so we had the entire hut. It is a Great Walk so the huts are very nice. Brrrrr! Slept by the fire since no one else was there, and Mark stoked it at 5:00 am so slept "in." The bikes were frosty! A few people came by going in both directions.... Mark biked to Gouland Downs in the cold morning and was rewarded with pictures of the takahe. "Although they look similar to their distant relative the pūkeko/purple swamp hen (that are common and can fly), takahē are much larger and more brightly coloured." The last weekend of June was spent on the east coast of the South Island in and around Kaikoura. Fur seals, sperm whales, blue whales were National Geographic moments for us. We had a fun, albeit muddy, loop ride on the Kaiterau Trail and another loop on the Kaikoura Cycle Trail. The Kaikoura Peninsula Track was lovely, mountains meet ocean, dinner at The Pier Hotel, and FRESH fish and chips (Rig fish - shark) at Nin's Bin. Driving through Marlborough, land of many vineyards and a chocolatier, we stopped at Makana Confections and loaded up! Back in Nelson just in time for the last night of Te Ramaroa. New Zealand celebrates the Maori new year with this artistic lighting event. Four corners of the city centre had light installations that were varied in their creativity. A swimmer friend, Jan, had an exhibit in which she took copper wiring from old washing machines and created replicas of doilies on large frames, then lit by your phone's flashlight to create large shadows on the walls. She told us it took her 1,000 hours. Beautiful, just like the people and their country!