28th Dec 2010 - Floods and Landslips and Stuck in Murchison
Still at Murchison, indeed stuck at Murchison since last night's rain (it rained for about 18 hours or so from yesterday evening through to early this pm) was so heavy it cut the road to the west and so the town is chock a block with campervans, campers, cars (people who can't get through to hotels, etc. The River Buller isn't the only problem since there are a few landslips too along the road to Westport. So it's reckoned that there won't be any way of getting West until tomorrow at the earliest. Between my slight cold and the sound of heavy rain, I didn't sleep that much so in some ways dozing at the campsite and reading books, and doing the washing, is what I need. The road situation will be updated tomorrow. Murchison isn't a bad place to be stuck if you've got a camping space since altho' there is no bank it is possible to use a credit card at the 4 Square to get food [actually this proved false in the eventuality - you need a NZ issued card not a UK one] and there is a good supply of Harrington's Wobbly Boot and Belgian Tempest, two of NZ's best beers.The campground is very busy. Mostly RVs - basically a medium sized bus with all you need. There's one brand of RV I particularly like because it's got a Magritte-like name - Magritte did a picture of a pipe with the title, in French, of 'this is not a pipe' and similarly there's a range of enormous RVs which go by the brand backpacker. And, of course, that is exactly what they aren't. Associating the youthful romance of trudging the roads and tracks with a pack on your back (a rare sight these days but not extinct thank God) with a enormous gas guzzler which allows you to take everything including the kitchen sink is a beautiful, though perhaps a tad sad, bit of delicious nonsense.
Still at Murchison, indeed stuck at Murchison since last night's rain (it rained for about 18 hours or so from yesterday evening through to early this pm) was so heavy it cut the road to the west and so the town is chock a block with campervans, campers, cars (people who can't get through to hotels, etc. The River Buller isn't the only problem since there are a few landslips too along the road to Westport. So it's reckoned that there won't be any way of getting West until tomorrow at the earliest. Between my slight cold and the sound of heavy rain, I didn't sleep that much so in some ways dozing at the campsite and reading books, and doing the washing, is what I need. The road situation will be updated tomorrow. Murchison isn't a bad place to be stuck if you've got a camping space since altho' there is no bank it is possible to use a credit card at the 4 Square to get food [actually this proved false in the eventuality - you need a NZ issued card not a UK one] and there is a good supply of Harrington's Wobbly Boot and Belgian Tempest, two of NZ's best beers.The campground is very busy. Mostly RVs - basically a medium sized bus with all you need. There's one brand of RV I particularly like because it's got a Magritte-like name - Magritte did a picture of a pipe with the title, in French, of 'this is not a pipe' and similarly there's a range of enormous RVs which go by the brand backpacker. And, of course, that is exactly what they aren't. Associating the youthful romance of trudging the roads and tracks with a pack on your back (a rare sight these days but not extinct thank God) with a enormous gas guzzler which allows you to take everything including the kitchen sink is a beautiful, though perhaps a tad sad, bit of delicious nonsense.