One of my earliest memories of New Zealand was staying in a cabin in Abel Tasman National Park. On this trip, I was lucky enough to drive to the park, catch a water taxi to Torrent Bay, and hike the 12-13 km back to where I had parked. Although I never found the cabin, I had a great walk, and the pictures speak for themselves.

One of the best parts of the hike happened before I even left. I had a short list of travel items I needed but could never find at the right price. One was a tiny collapsible backpack to use as a daypack. Just before leaving, I stepped into an outdoor shop and found exactly that. After trying it on, I knew immediately that I should buy it. It worked well on the trail, and I looked forward to using it throughout our trip in Europe.

After driving down from the park, I stopped for groceries. I was on dinner duty and bought plenty of kebabs for the BBQ. Back at the holiday house, I fired up the grill and started dinner. The kebabs were acceptable, nothing special, but there was plenty of meat. I played more cards, drank a little extra wine, and went to bed.