It is 2pm at Percy's Bar and Cafe in Westport. It would have been cold outside but warm within as a coal fire roared in the corner.

Lunch would have been winding up and waitresses would be busy preparing for the evening meal service.

Some people would be curled up on the couches reading books and drinking coffee while a young South Korean man was at the counter paying a $38 bill.

This eftpos transaction on September 29, 2003, believed to have been for two meals, is the last known trace of 25-year-old Jae Hyeon Kim.

Kim's movements leading up to his disappearance are a mystery.

His last known address was Alan's Backpackers in Nelson, which he left on September 8, but police believe Kim was still in Nelson until September 16 because a banking transaction shows a purchase was made at Warehouse Stationary.

He also phoned his mother in Pusan to say he was planning to travel to Australia after leaving New Zealand.

Kim did not mention where he was and, because of the length of time that has passed, police are unable to trace where the call was made.

Apart from his height, 185cm, Kim probably went largely unnoticed travelling alone on his adventure throughout New Zealand.

His last words, sent in an email to his family on September 7, are a poignant reminder Kim had a family who loved him and that he should not be dismissed as just a face on a missing-person poster.

Kim was keen to master English, insisting on speaking English when he called home as well as writing in English, and he seems to have been embracing New Zealand culture.

"Kia ora, you guys. Its Jase in Nelson," he wrote.

He describes feeling "rich", having made many friends in Auckland, as he wrote about arriving in Nelson.

"(I) thank the friends in Auckland again for farewell for me doing another start. I will not be able to forget the last night with you.

"I left Wellington, the capital of NZ, to Picton soon. And I had meet a few kind people before departed Picton. They gave me a ride to here (Nelson), yes, it was lucky for me to meet them," he wrote.

He talked of the hostel and its owners being "very helpful, kind and friendly", barbecues for guests every weekend, as well as plans to take part in the Willing Workers on Organic Farms (WWOOF) scheme, which involves working for free board and food.

"I guess I will do gardening and housework. I'm used to them you know. I believe I have no problem to have them feel a good impression for me," he wrote.

"So far my trip has been pretty good. I could enjoy great views of fiord (Maulbourough sound) on the way to Picton, the entrance of the south island in NZ.

"For Wellington, it was much more narrow and sloper than Auckland because of a lot of pretty tall mountains which made me think of Pusan, my hometown. When you go to Wellington you can take a cute cable car."

Kim had been biking around Nelson taking in the sights, and described a humorous adventure he had.

"I wanted to go somewhere nobody has ventured but gave it up in about an hour because I slipped down on mud. I saw myself covered with mud as if somebody threw me paint balls and laughed out on my own for a while because I found it silly," he wrote.

"If i did it in Korea my mother might tell me off or some friends laugh at me. However nobody was with me. I realised I was thoroughly alone. But I think I like this life. anyway it is my life."

Initially, the police investigation into Kim's disappearance was focused on Nelson, until they found a "footprint" an eftpos transaction leading them to Westport, where they believed Kim probably hitchhiked with the plan to go WWOOFing.

Charleston coalminer Derek Fowler, whose family is involved in the WOOF scheme, said WOOF farms were dotted along the Coast and were popular for people of all nationalities, particularly in summer.

His family's farmstay is part of a network and runs from a gravel driveway off State Highway 6.

The old weatherboard home looks empty but inviting. There is a key in the front door, and a note, nailed to the weatherboard, inviting people in.

Fowler could not recall anyone fitting Kim's description having stayed on the farm.

"He would be hard not to remember, being so tall."

However, Kim would have largely gone unnoticed to the cafe staff who served him, said Chris Mein, who was the owner of Percy's Cafe and Bar, now called Dirty Mary's.

"A face is just another face when you work in a cafe and serving people, especially during the lunch hour," he said.

"No-one would make an effort to talk to him.

"They are just not that sort of people, unless maybe if he made an effort to talk to them. It just seems strange; the whole thing. I just find it quite bizarre."

Nevertheless, someone talked to Kim, and Detective Inspector John Winter said a small group of Westport people knew the truth behind Kim's death, but had not come forward.

A police search of thick bush last week near Four Mile Bridge, about 5.5km from the seaside village of Charleston, about 30km from Westport, prompted by a tip-off, failed to find anything connected to Kim.

Some locals had provided "snippets" of information, proving they had a conscience "that this man's disappearance and death actually means something," the detective inspector added.