‘A 6 and a half-hour drive! Are you crazy? I am not driving for that amount of time just to get to Kenepuru Sounds.’

Reluctantly I got in the car. Turns out the drive was worth it – the views were incredible. The gorgeous sun shone down onto the aqua colour water. Oh, how pretty it looked.

We left our home in Loburn on Thursday the 12th of November and arrived later that day in Kenepuru Sound. Leading up to the bach (this is a New Zealand word for a holiday home), there was a windy road around 40 minutes long, and my family and I felt a bit sick after it.

A view of Kenepuru Sound.

As soon as we arrived, we were greeted by our friends who owned the bach. We unpacked and then sat down on the couch and relaxed for the rest of the day. 

On Friday our adventures started. We had a boat and two jet skis which we launched at the boat ramp and off we went. My brother and his friend were on our green, blue and black jet ski while two other boys were on the yellow one and 8 of us were on the boat. The ripply water was annoying to start with but calmed down along the way. On the inside of the boat, there was a cabin and 3 of us were sitting inside of it waiting to get to our destination. Halting to a stop we all came together and settle on a beach where some of the boys went off and played around on the jet skis, then when they came back it was time to switch. The parents stayed on the beach relaxing and watching the rest of the people left there. The day ended with a nice and bumpy biscuit ride back to the boat ramp. 

Day three was the best out of the four days we were there, the views were still glorious as ever, and again we went out on the boat and jet skis. This time we went to a different part of the Marlborough Sounds, it was called Queen Charlotte Sound and it was just as beautiful, if not more. The temperature of the water was bearable but a bit cold, although we didn’t mind, it wasn’t going to stop us. 

On our way to meet some of our friends out on the water, we spotted a pod of bottlenose dolphins. Oh my, they were gorgeous! They looked so smooth and shiny but I was told that they actually have quite rough and strong skin. Gliding through the water not scared or harmed, they kept swimming and playing, entertaining us and other people that were peering over at them. We turned away and set off and anchored up by a beach.

Bottle nose dolphins off the coast of New Zealand.

After this thrilling event, my brother came over on the jet ski and took me even closer to the bottlenose dolphins. I loved watching them glide through the water under us and jumping up and over the water. There were babies as well which were so cute. 

On our way back the water started getting choppier and choppier. There was one person sitting on the cabin of the boat who had to watch their head because the ceiling was low. It was quite challenging for the jet skis because they are so light, so they tried to stay inside of the boat wake to make it easy but it looked like they were going to tip-off. Along the way, the yellow jet ski was getting low on fuel but luckily made it back to the jetty. This day was very eventful but I still thoroughly enjoyed it. 

Last day, it was sad to leave but I was excited to get back home to see my animals and sleep in my own comfy bed. We packed up and said our goodbyes and set off back home. This time we had to start with the windy 40 minute long road, not a good idea but it had to be done, and by the end I was pale. 

Kenepuru Sound is part of the Marlborough Sounds.

We took a stop in a small town called Havelock so I could breathe in the fresh air. Continuing on we passed through Blenheim, Kaikoura, and Cheviot before getting back to our Loburn home. We were greeted by our dog Kip and my bleating goat Pong. Now that we are home it is back to school and work. Overall this was an amazing show weekend and I loved playing on the jet skis, seeing our friends, and seeing the bottlenose dolphins. 

MAISY = YEAR 8