Moeraki Boulders to Champagne Gully

January 18

Charlotte:

We went to the park again this morning because it was so much fun. We went in the hamster wheel and played with some other kids on the roundabout and the swings.

After about an hour, we were off to a new place on the way to our next campsite. A guy at the park told Mom and I about a place called Moeraki. He said it had big round boulders on the beach that were formed by the waves. It was so neat how smooth and round they were. The waves were big and sometimes splashed us when we were climbing on them.

There was also a gift shop that we went to, where we could buy food to feed the alpacas in the field. We bought a bag. The Alpacas were so cute! We named them Brownie, Toffee, and Sammy (because it looked like it was wearing a sweater and Sam always likes to be extra warm).

Because we needed to get to the campsite sometime today and wanted to enjoy the beach there, we started driving again.

Sam:

When we got to Warrington campsite, the first thing we did, after finding a great camping spot, was check out the beach. It was a huge, sandy beach with lots of bodysurfers.

We swam for a while until we were told that we could borrow bodyboards for free. Dad and I went to the shop where we could get them, but it actually cost ten dollars to rent them! We got two of them then walked back to the beach and surfed for about an hour. I caught a great wave and went about 100m. It was kind of hard to learn what kind of wave was the right one.

Then we walked back to our camper to have a steak supper.

January 19

Sam:

We left the campsite and drove to a place called Champagne Gully which is on a lake near Alexandra. It was really busy when we got there with lots of locals enjoying Sunday afternoon in the sun. We swam in the small lake next to the campsite for a while. The water was warmer than the glacier lakes.

Charlotte:

Then my parents started talking with another family from Australia. The other family had a daughter who was also 10, and her name was Lizzie. We played lots and had lots of fun. Her brother was younger than us, but he was nice and played with us, too.

When it was time for bed, I asked my mom if Lizzie could sleep over in the loft, and my mom said yes! I was so HAPPY!!! We didn’t stay up all night because it was a different kind of sleepover but it still was fun! It was really nice to make a new friend on our trip. It makes me less homesick.