Life’s a Beach

We zoned in on Hokitika,our best chance to enjoy the Kiwi outdoors. It nestles between the Tasman Sea and the Hokitika river. The four-hour road journey from Christchurch to Hokitika took us through a national park,and scenic reserve,through coastlines and gorges. From green open meadows dotted with grazing sheep (an intrinsic part of New Zealand landscape) to a mountainous terrain that quickly changed to flat beaches,it was a delightful journey.

We stayed for three nights at Punga Heights,a holiday home with lake and mountain views and a large sheltered deck that was great for lunch and evening BBQs. We did most of the cooking here. The house was located on a quiet street and a two-minute walk from Lake Kaniere. The lake is a rower’s paradise. The first day at the lake was spent soaking in the sun and taking in a view that seemed fresh out of a painting. The water was so clear that my daughter could count the pebbles in it.

Later,we headed to Hokitika’s main square. They say on a clear day Mount Cook,the country’s highest mountain,can clearly be seen from the main street but we had no such luck. The entrance to the town is marked by a 100-year-old old clock tower. The city is also home to the finest nephrite jade or Pounamu as it’s called in the local Maori language.

There are many options to explore in the city including trekking,boating,fly fishing and kayaking but with children in our group,we settled for a visit to the Jade Factory,Hokitika Sock Museum,followed by Sunset Point at the beach and a night out at Glow-Worm Dell,a sanctuary in a ravine for glow-worms.

The West Coast is called “the land of greenstone and gold” and for a shopaholic Indian,it brought dreamy visions of splurging on the choicest of jewels. Hokitika was the centre of the West Coast gold rush in the 1860s. Today,one can watch jewellers create beautiful and exquisite gold nugget jewellery. The Gold Room,a studio and gallery in the city’s heart,is a good place to begin a tour. We followed that with a visit to the Jade Factory. It was interesting to see how the stone emerges as a work of art. The designs,as one “worker” explained,are based on traditional Maori designs. The fish hook,for instance,represents prosperity and good health while Koru,a spiral design is derived from the unfurling fern frond and depicts new beginnings,growth and harmony. You could bring home a memorable souvenir,like I did,for under 20 dollars.

The next day,we explored Hokitika by foot. It’s a good idea to pick up a heritage walk map and follow the route,through many historical sites,restored buildings like the museum and walkways. The West Coast Historical Museum is not something you would want to miss. It’s a rich tapestry of life on the west coast goldfields,revealed through a wealth of original artefacts and relics. The audio-visual display captures the lives of the pioneers,and the hardships they endured. It’s a walk down history and it stays with you even after you step out of the century-old Carnegie building.

We headed to the quay side,tired from all the walking for fish and chips. Cafes dot the street and there’s plenty of things to try,from quintessential Kiwi delights to continental specials. We were re-energised with cappuccinos and muffins at Cafe de Paris on Tancred Street. The cafe has been here since 1869 and the staff was more than helpful in pointing us to the beach. For Indian palates,there’s ‘Priya’,a restaurant that offers Indian food. It’s good if you are really homesick but skip the gulab jamuns here,even the microwave couldn’t thaw them.

With all conversations directed towards the beach,we reached Sunset Point and took a long,leisurely walk on the shore. It’s impossible to walk barefoot there,due to stones,pebbles,wood,and rocks around. We looked hard for the South Island nephrite jade which apparently washes up on the shore frequently. But more than that,a look at the sea gobbling up the sun is what vacation postcards are made of. We photographed the fireball like the paparazzi who had just spotted a hard-to-get celebrity. Since it was late evening,the winds were getting chillier but we braved them for perfect sunset memories.

Hokitika,a seaside town — the population is just over 3,000 — steeped in heritage,also offers some rare sights for children. Among them is the Hokitika Sock Machine Museum which has on display a collection of antique sock-knitting machines and invites visitors to knit their own socks. The place houses vintage machines that were used when the settlers first arrived and had to face bitter cold winters.

Nights are low key in Hokitika but if you are looking for an alternative night life,there’s the Glow-Worm Dell,even if you are above the age of 12. Armed with torch lights,we headed to the dell that’s situated on the main route from Greymouth. The path leading to the ravine is unlit,but had handrails to guide us. It takes a while to get used to the darkness and my daughter almost made us return but when we were there,we were glad we didn’t.

It houses a colony of thousands of glow-worms. It reminded me of summer back home when as a child I would chase them in the garden and under the hedge. Glow-worms twinkle the same half way across the globe. The dell is certainly worth a trip if you’re staying in Hokitika,which as we were told on our way back,means ‘a place of return’. We are already planning ours.