After our six-week expedition in the South Island we are back at the Whangarei shipyard. We decided to leave New Zealand at the beginning of May for Australia. But before we give ourselves 12 days at the shipyard to prepare the boat and sell our car.

The northwest coast of the island still reserves us beautiful stages between the glaciers, caves or cliffs in the shape of Pancakes... We can't wait to be there.

From the village of Twizel we reach the coast by making some "tourist" stops along the coast. Then we continue to the west coast in regions with the highest rainfall in the world. So we will have to deal with the weather and acclimatize.

We are right in the heart of the Canterbury region in the Mackenzie Plains at the foot of the snow-capped peaks of Mount Cook and Lake Pukaki. Mount Cook National Park is the starting point for hikes about 60 kms from Twizel where we have our Airbnb.

We are in the heart of the lakes all located in beautiful settings whose purity of light and intensity of colors we will never forget.

We are ready to leave by Van to the South Island. We are planning a six-week tour without specifically targeting tourist areas! We join Wellington (South North Island) where we booked the ferry crossing to Picton.

The beginning of the year starts well with our sailing program to the islands of the Hauraki Gulf and the dry boat at the Whangarei shipyard.

After passing 3 month in France we are back in New Zealand. It takes a few days to get the boat back in working order and plan the rest of our journey.