No Road Inn – Hike or Boat to Luxury c. 2011 Colleen Cowles
Come by foot or access by boat, helicopter or sea plane, but arrival at the No Road Inn on New Zealand’s Marlborough Sound won’t be by car. Five star dining, great wine, huge rooms, and hammocks on the deck with sea views are especially satisfying far from civilization. Bathrooms with one-way glass allowing magnificent lush forest views while in the tub or on the throne are icing on the cake.
The No Road Inn can be a one night stop for those hiking New Zealand’s Queen Charlotte Track, or it can be a destination on it’s own. Either way, allow time to relish the solitude and quality of this remote oasis. It’s easy to focus on hiking from lodge to lodge, but appreciating the lodge itself maximizes the entire experience.
Coming off the trail with dusty (or sometimes muddy) hiking boots, guests are greeted by host Garry and invited to rest on the expansive deck with sweeping water views surrounded by intensely green mountains. After settling into your large, bright, elegant suite, there’s time to enjoy the wine barrel hot tub set in the woods next to a stream prior to dinner on the deck.
Dinner has the feel of visiting friends – as hosts Garry & Barbara somehow balance gourmet cooking with joining guests for dinner –but these friends can COOK. The No Road Inn offers four suites and accepts only adult guests, adding to the intimate and personal atmosphere. Dinner is an opportunity to relax and converse with other guests and your hosts over a four course dinner featuring New Zealand seafood and lamb, with wine and beer options as well.
Breakfast is the best of B & B’s, without the structure. Each suite is provided with free range eggs and an easy to use egg cooker, cereal, juices, yogurt, breads, tea & coffee for a full breakfast, on your terms when you want it, in the comfort of your room or on your deck overlooking Marlborough Sound.
The Charlotte Track offers the beauty of New Zealand tracking with the benefit of luggage transfers by boat. For me, a small pack with water and lunch vs. a full backpack significantly enhanced the experience. If you choose to balance relaxing at lodges with hiking those portions of the track you choose, you can take the ferry between lodges and hike between others to minimize total miles hiked. The No Road Inn offers multi-day packages for those who opt for more relaxation time, or who would like to have a home base, with day hikes from there.
To access No Road Inn, take a 45 minute water taxi ride from Picton, or take a water taxi from Picton to Ship Cove and hike 5 hours to No Road Inn. For a shorter hike, take a water taxi to Resolution Bay and hike 2.5 hours to the No Road Inn. Three water taxi companies offer various options from Picton. Some water taxis offer a stop at Motuara Island Bird Sanctuary, but skipping this allows more time at Ship Cove and on the hike from Ship Cove to No Road Inn where birds are also plentiful.
Contact: No Road Inn, No 1 Endeavour Inlet,
Queen Charlotte Track, Marlborough Sounds, New Zealand, (03) 5798 300,
info@noroadinn.co.nz, website: http://noroadinn.com.
Open seasonally from September –April.
Water taxi options from Picton:
Endeavour Express, http://www.boatrides.co.nz
Beachcomber Cruises, www.beachcombercruises.co.nz
Cougar Line, www.cougarline.co.nz
