Going Out The Door

It is safe to say we’ve been getting plenty of exercise with this trip. Our first full day in Stoke, in the Nelson region of the South Island, was spent with another hike, this one in Abel Tasman National Park. We’ve been told that we should have started the trip in the North Island, as the landscape and scenery becomes more impressive as you go south. Based on this particular hike (pretty though it was), it really didn’t have the same impact as the Fiordlands, or even the Otago region. Nonetheless, it was a nice excursion along the coast with some particular added benefits.

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The Nelson region of the South Island certainly seems the be the agricultural area. Pine forests for lumber, wine grapes, hops, cabbage, onions, etc.

But, the most important (to us as least) would be the grapes and hops. So the highlight of our time in Stoke was renting a couple of electric bikes and pedaling through the countryside. Throw in a couple of wineries and a brewery and you have some pretty happy folks. We went through some charming little towns, along a river and through those vineyards and fields I mentioned. All in all, a “4 bell” day of biking.

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My wine friends will probably be disappointed that we didn’t go to the Marlborough region, known world-wide for the Sauvignon Blanc they produce. Since you can buy so many of those in the U.S. (and they are among my favorite wines lately), we made our stops at a couple of wineries in the “little brother” Nelson region. Unfortunately, one of them has stopped production and have already taken out their vines (a little unclear as to why), but the other is in a lovely setting putting out some really good organic wines there. I’m usually not a big fan of Rieslings, but it’s one of the two bottles I left with.

The ride back was made a little shorter with a stop at Eddyline Brewery and a cold pint (particularly good beer!) to wrap up the day.