I was oh so tired last night. In my world it is called "grumpy cross patch" and the faster I got my head on the pillow and asleep the better. Once in the night I woke up to quench my thirst and stumble across the cold campsite grounds to the bathrooms. At 1am the frost was about to take hold, so I crawled back into bed. Then at 5am I checked the weather reports. It was confirmed and official; no paddling. But it was to be a sunny day, so that was a positive.

Over breakfast we made a to do list. Then headed towards Nelson as we needed reliable phone connections and Internet. We sat in the sun looking like we both wanted to be twins in matching woolen leggings and our STAR hoodies. Both of us set to work making calls and sending emails. Me asking for the local knowledge about this next section and talking to a friend or two, while Jase had to apologise to his clients that he was needing to stay south for an extra week. I have to say the hugest thank-you to all of them for being so understanding and supportive. Or maybe they wish to thank me for keeping the personal training devil with me so that they have another week of peace!! I am thankful for his support these past few days.

We sit for a couple of hours, me drinking peppermint tea, Jase on a couple of coffees and carrot cake, gosh he can eat! We eventually ticked off a few of the to do lists and I needed lunch. We headed for a favourite location and carried on job listing. By the end of lunch I was starting to feel better. Oh my goodness I had seriously drained my brain of energy yesterday, and I only have one person to blame: Me! We then grabbed some food supplies and drive out towards French Pass. We both needed to see the coastline and what was ahead of me on the next paddling section. The drive felt amazing. The views are incredible, I am very pleased to see this section of the coastline from the road, and have a birds eye view from high above. We get to the lookout as the tides turn and watch the flow of French Pass pick up and start to swirl. Again it is nice to see before actually paddling on it. Sometimes the unknown is better, but sometimes it is not.

As we sit looking out at a calm bay this evening, support crew Jason has started planning.
Dinner is underway and Cuzzie is parked, doors wide open looking out at the calm bay and watching a brilliant sunset with the sound of Weka calling all around us and the ocean lapping at these golden sands. My mind and body feel rested thank goodness. We are looking forward to this new week, dare I even say that out loud!

My smiles today:
A regrouping of my mind and body.
Food glorious food.
Talking to family and friends.
Sunshine after a day of rain.
The gentle sounds of the ocean tonight.

My thoughts today:
Always end your day with a positive thought, no matter how hard things were. Tomorrow is a fresh opportunity to make it better.

Goodnight from Red, Jase and Cuzzie.
Ma Te Wa.