25 degrees, sunny
After such a downpour yesterday we woke to clearing skies and warm weather so we spent some time drying out, doing some necessary van housekeeping (you don’t want to know, Sue!), stocked up in the supermarket and then drove south towards Hokitika.
Reached Pancake Rocks at about 12.30 pm. We were just going to carry on through but decided to have a quick look as we were passing. So pleased we did. The rock formations were completely different to anything we’ve seen before. Followed a walkway round the headland to see these rock formations in the sea, literally looking like stacks of pancakes, with arches and blowholes to add to the scene, along with long views down the coastline.
After lunch we drove to Hokitika which was a nice town on the coast but didn’t have anywhere suitable for us to stay so we drove on to a Department of Conservation campsite at Lake Mahinapua. The DOC campsites don’t have much in the way of facilities, no power or water and only rudimentary toilets but are always in lovely locations and only $26 (£13) for the night. We had a lovely lakeside pitch and only a few neighbours which made for a very peaceful evening.
