On the 31st December we got up super early to leave Picton just before 6:00am so that we could be at the beginning of the Lake Rotoiti circuit track by 7:30am. Our New Year’s Eve consisted of walking 26km around the lake in the tiny village of St Arnaud. How wholesome.

The walk itself was lovely, an easy gradient but long distance. The entire loop is 31km but by crossing a river we were able to shave 7kms off the trip – so worth it.

The river was absolutely freezing but we managed. We were happy to see the car at the end of the circuit where we headed up to the alpine lodge with our bottle of pre chilled veuve to settle in to our NYE.

The following day we drove to Motueka where we stayed for three nights. From here we visited the Abel Tasman National Park by boat and walked part of the track. The following day we visited my Aunty in Bainham as well as the beach. It really is a beautiful part of the country.

Following this we headed to Nelson where we caught up with our friends, went to Bay Dreams festival as well as some other exploring in the area.