1 February 2017 - Brown River Reserve, Rai Valley, Marlborough Sounds

Cattle along the way

On waking there were more vans in than the night before, however none jammed up against us as we seem to have endured so often of late. The skies were low over the Bay but we were optimistic that as the morning progressed visibly would improve. Alas, we were so wrong. We drove up out of Elaine Bay and headed north toward French Pass, mainly driving along a high ridge at first along a wide gravel road bordered with scrub. The map suggested there were views to be had to the left and right as we passed along narrow peninsulas, and a couple of narrow tracks led off to the side down into bays that may well have been picturesque had we been able to see anything. Alas the cloud was low, swirling about us, sometimes so dense we had mere metres clear ahead of us, and sometimes a little more. A sign on the roadside warned we would be passing through farming land where livestock wandered randomly, so we proceeded with care, coming suddenly upon a small herd of beef cattle fairly nonchalant about the through traffic. 

View over Anaru from Collinet Point

After about ten kilometres we crossed a cattle stop and were suddenly into well managed farmland, and so this continued right through to the end of the road at French Pass. Much of this land is owned by Te Kuta Station, who run Angus cattle and sheep on the absurdly steep hills of this spectacular country, or at least spectacular where it can be seen to be so. I ran a commentary when glimpses of bays far below the road could be seen, while Chris concentrated on the very winding road high above the sea level. Soon D’Urville Island came into view, just across the stretch of water known as French Pass. While this is part of the seas that make up the Marlborough Sounds, it is more like a wild tidal river, which allows a narrow pass between the shallow rocky part reaching out from the island and the mainland. It apparently has the fastest flows in New Zealand reaching eight knots, and when the tide changes, the current can be strong enough to stun fish.

French Pass, D'Urville Island in the distance

It is here at Collinet Point, above the Pass, that the famous Pelorous Jack is celebrated by a statue. We stopped here and braved the winds to look down upon this dangerous section of navigable water.  In 1888, a Risso’s dolphin appeared for the first time and continued to accompany boast to and from French Pass for the next twenty four years. He became the first dolphin in the world to receive the protection of the law, and was last seen in April 1912.

From this view point the road descends steeply into the little bay on the edge of Admiralty Bay where there is an intimate DOC camp for which forward booking is essential during the summer months, a wharf and a few houses, most part of the European farming community that has been here for the past one hundred and sixty years.

Hanging about Anaru / French Pass

Despite the relative shelter of the bay tucked around the corner from the pass, gusts still buffetted the motorhome we parked parallel to the beach. We decided to wait the weather out, sure that the wind would blow the low cloud away by early afternoon. And so we read and watched the occasional marine traffic, occasionally rocked by a mighty squall of salt water. By 2 pm, there was little improvement but we were optimistic that matters would be better once we climbed back up above sea level. Alas, we were wrong. The cloud was even denser than the morning’s run in and we crawled back toward Elaine Bay at 20 to 30 kph, buffetted by dust laden wind, with visability little more than ten metres. Sheep appeared from nowhere, and oncoming traffic only visible when their lights were right upon us.   

We pressed on, regaining the sealed road on reaching the turn off to Elaine Bay, still proceeding with caution, on back past Okiwi Bay back out to the main road, sixty kilometres from French Pass. By now serious rain had set in and we backed in beside the river, at this point with only one other camping companion. However by the time darkness fell there were nearer twenty little whizz-bangs vans and one other large van, all squeezed in with no regard to the safety requirement for a three metre gap. A quick exterior inspection of our van proved it was dirtier than it had ever been in the entire time we have owned it. Chris is rather upset.