No more bike riding but we did have one more activity on the way back to Christchurch – the Natural Flames Experience. Guides Steve and Shelley drove us out of Murchison for about 40 minutes to start a 1 hour hike through a Conservation Park. Steve explained how they were trying to remove the “wilding pines” that are taking over from the native beeches.
To get to the walk we had to pass through private property, so we had the area to ourselves. It was very beautiful – over creeks, up and down the trail with ropes to assist on the steeper sections. The destination was a natural gas seep, discovered in 1922, that was set alight and had been burning more or less ever since.
Steve and Shelley made tea and pancakes for morning tea – much appreciated after our walk even if the tea was a bit smoky flavoured.
It was about 2pm by the time we got back to the bus and started the long drive back to Christchurch. We had a great tour with lovely companions in a beautiful part of NZ. Road closures created some challenges but did not stop our enjoyment over the 6 days.