Day 11: Franz Josef to Westport

October 24:

When we woke up in Franz Josef, it was misting/drizzling outside, but the clouds were lifting as we left town and headed up the west coast to Westport.

Our first stop was in Whataroa, to see the remains of an old bridge.

The water was so blue!

We then stopped in Harihari and walked through the Mosaic Garden.

We drove to the Lake Ianthe wharf, hoping for another chance to see eels, but just got a nice view instead.

Our next stop was the walk at Hokitika Gorge. 

The water was incredibly blue!

We then stopped in Hokitika and headed to the beach to see the sign. 

Once we reached Greymouth, we stopped at Monteith's Brewery for a late lunch of venison sliders and fish tacos. 

We continued driving up the coast and walked the Punakaiki Pancake Rocks and Blowhole Trail. 

We arrived as high tide was starting, so saw some blowhole action but not at its peak.

In addition to the amazing coastline, it provided a nice forest walk.

We finished the day by driving to the Cape Foulwind Seal Colony Lookout. 

While we didn't see any seals, there were lots of weka (adults and chicks).

We then drove to the Cape Foulwind lighthouse. The path there appeared to be closed and we were too tired to investigate further, so we just viewed it from a distance.

We then drove to Westport for the night. When we got there, we decided to get dinner (and breakfast and the next day's lunch) from the grocery store.