A drizzly morning was on the docket today as Dr. Moran and I
awoke around 5:30am due to the large skylight above us in the sitting room of
our ‘apartment’. I made my way to the
Rental Cars New Zealand this morning around 8:15 only to learn that our missing
trailer was not missing, it was non-existent!
Unfortunately, the agent I worked with in Auckland a week ago never
found our group a trailer to rent, so we were without a trailer! I spent the next two hours talking to every
and any car rental agencies that would listen trying to get a trailer for the
remainder of our trip. Louisa and Magda,
at Ace Car Rental, worked to find a trailer in Picton for me, but again, to no
avail. Keeping my calm, I made my way
back to our hostel to talk to Dr. Moran about our predicament. It was then that the owners of the YHA came
through for us. Ok, so the room
arrangements, as we learned, got mixed-up the previous night, but today, the
owners, Kahu and Peter Bugler, would come through for us! Peter asked his brother, Lloyd, whether we, a
group of complete strangers, could borrow his trailer for the next 12 days…and
then leave it 4 hours away in Christchurch.
To my amazement, and without having to sign my life away, Lloyd took a
nominal fee for the ‘hire’ (Kiwi for ‘rent’) of his trailer. So, we were back in action and on our
way! Many, many thanks are extended to
the Bugler family for their generosity!
The trip to Marahau from Picton took us through Nelson, a
coastal town with its own community-supported wildlife sanctuary, and miles and
miles of vineyards. This region of New
Zealand is known for its vineyards and hops and it was evident throughout our
journey. The students slept most of the
way to Marahau since we were up so late the previous night. When we arrived in Marahau, we quickly got
our gear out of the trailer and made our way to beach!
Marahau is the gateway to Abel Tasman National Park, one of
the most-visited parks in the country.
Beaches line the main road through Marahau and our students were quick
to do some exploring on the vast tidal flats that become evident during low tide. The students searched-out hermit crabs, seastars,
limbs of seastars (!), and clams that would be boiled or cooked on the grill at
our accommodations for the evening: The Barn.
We have had great learning opportunities that have been fairly structured,
now the students have taken the reins and are exploring and learning more about
their environment without prompting.
Awesome!
We returned to the The Barn to cook dinner, including the
clams from the beach, and prepared for our sea kayaking and backpacking trip
into Abel Tasman National Park tomorrow.
The Bugler's trailer: a very functional solution to our problem!
Chris Lorch (Nursing, 2019) and Dorian Shann (Physical Therapy, 2016) looking at a seastar on the Sandy Bay (Marahau) tidal flat.
Our students soaking-up the Austral summer sun on the tidal flats of Sandy Bay (Marahau).
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