It was a long 6 miles to the closest gas station with a cafe. Shadow was quiet as he fought off a caffeine headache. To our dismay it was Veteran's Day and the cafe was closed. An early lunch was had on the sidewalk. 2 meat pies, a bag of chips, and a LARGE coffee. Our walk into Hamilton consisted of backroads and cycle ways. After a 19 mile walk we stopped by the grocery for dinner supplies and headed for the hostel. Our feet hurt from pounding the pavement, but not a drop of rain!
The town of Hamilton was a good size town with lots of little cafes and restaurants. Shadow and I spent the next morning cooking our normal larger welcome to town breakfast. This time it was french toast and a pound of bacon. They actually call it streaky bacon. Regular bacon here is like Canadian bacon back home. Next was our normal errands. A free bus gave us a turn of town.
Back in the South Island we met a group of hikers out side the Richmond Range. We had been in contact and they were following the blog. They live in Hamilton and offered us a place to stay and dinner. We took them up on dinner. One couple picked us up at the hostel and drove us to a great little Turkish restaurant where we met another couple. 3 hours later we had had a wonderful time sharing hiking stories and life adventures. They belong to a local tramping (hiking) club that is very active. They helped us with camping options the next few nights since they are familiar with the area. We were dropped back off at the hostel way past our bedtime with full bellies. They even gave us a full homemade dehydrated meal. Thanks Sharon, David, Margaret, and Keith! We had a great time.
A nice greenway followed the river on our way out of town the next morning. People stopped to talk to us as we walked by. We past an equestrian horse show before a long road walk to the Hakarimata mountain range. Our friends from dinner told us about a spot near the lookout tower on the ridge line. Tonight we lay here listening to Australian Opossums swinging from the beams.
Dairy Cows
Pukeko
Dinner with friends
Maori Meeting Building
The view from the lookout tower.
Country Mouse and Shadow
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