We found a community fundraiser selling bacon wrapped green lipped mussels so started our walk with a quick snack while the children hung out on the playground and Half Moon Bay beach.
The walk around Half Moon Bay from Oban was nice and flat, but we needed to walk on the road. There aren't many cars on Stewart Island, but the roads are narrow so we were very mindful of passing traffic mixing with carefree children.
We left the road to head over the saddle to Ringaringa beach. It was a steep climb up through quite Australian feeling bush and with a relatively dry path.
As soon as we were heading down the other side the plant life became much lusher.
After a walk along Ringaringa beach, with plenty of stops for bird photography, we found a scramble route up to the path back to Golden Bay.
There was a fair amount of scrambling to get up from the beach, and at the top of the climb I think there were the remnants of an old kitchen garden as we were climbing through a mint plant.
This is us above Ringaringa beach.
Mike and Andy got some great photos of a white faced heron at Deep Cove. There was a picnic table and we'd planned to stop for a drink of water and a shared pack of chips, but biting midges encouraged us to keep moving.
The path from Ringaringa to Golden Bay had far more steps than we'd anticipated ... by the time we got back to Inlet View, my fitbit was measuring 69 flights of stairs.
We were all pretty tired by the time we got back.
After a rest at home, we decided to take the hike back into town to collect fish and chips (and something nice to drink!). Total fitbit stair count by the time we got back, 90 flights!
Stunning scenery and such varied bush. The beanbag on the balcony looks like the perfect place to recover.
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