Monday 17th Nov. Today we are booked to go on a walk in the Abel Tasman Park. There are no roads in the park so the only way to get about is on Shank's Pony or the water taxis that will take you from beach to beach. It's a very novel experience at the start of the day to be picked up from your accommodation by coach and driven to Manahue Bay where the water taxi is waiting - parked on a trailer attached to a tractor. The passengers board the boat, don their life jackets and are then towed by the tractor down the road for quarter of mile and then onto the beach where the boat is launched - Bit like a life boat beach launch. First we are taken to see what must be the most photographed rock in NZ. It is called the Split Apple as it looks just like that. (Will send photo when next able to find somewhere to download from my laptop) We are then taken 13Kms up the coast (a bit lumpy and M has a few white knuckle moments) where we are dropped off onto a deserted beach - feel a bit like Robinson Crusoe and look for human footprint. By now it is a lovely sunny day. The track through the sub-tropical forest is cool and fresh after the rain in the night and the waterfalls are spectacular. It takes us five hours - not a bad effort for a couple of old codgers and well worth the effort even though we were knackered by the end. At the entrance to the park there is a collection of wood carvings of gigantic size out of tree trunks. (Photos later). On the road again to Murchison where we book into a Motel. Sitting in car for 2 hours gives the legs a chance to seize up and so fell all over the place when we got out of the car. This township is beside the Buller River which is the centre of the white water rafting but don't think I am going to be able to persuade M to have a go. Supper in the local 'Hotel' - rather a grand description. Oh dear!! M says I must not tell Luke. We are asked if we want veggies or salad with the main course. When we enquire what the veggies are we are told that there is only one portion left and are shown a plate with pre-cooked Cabbage, carrots, potato and broccli covered with cling film ready to go into the microwave. We chose salad.