While the Wellington region is known for its often very windy conditions its less known for thunderstorms. Further, most of the lightening and thunder that does occur seems to be above the Hutt Valley and over in the Wairarapa. I like a good thunderstorm, and perhaps have a naive view that these events are exciting […]
Pīwakawaka Hut
It was February 2021 when I booked Pīwakawaka Hut for Anzac weekend in 2022, its been very popular since becoming available in late 2020. Created by Taranaki Regional Council as an added attraction to the already impressive Pukeiti Gardens, Pīwakawaka Hut is easy to reach accommodation for those wanting an overnight hut experience, and it […]
Rainy day Zealandia
It has been cool and wet today so what better time to head into Zealandia? Yeah, perhaps not the ideal visiting conditions but we still had a good time. The wildlife doesn’t get the option to avoid the rain and we saw plenty of birds going about their business. The forest was often a scene […]
Mum’s birthday and driving north
Our final day in Timaru and the main reason we’d come down, Mum’s birthday. The morning was spent preparing food and getting everything ready for brunch as a bevy of family arrived. There were copious pancakes and croissants, fruit and Christmas mince pies. And then it was time for a birthday cake to be presented. […]
Timaru for a few days
From Hanmer Springs we continued on towards Timaru with a couple of stops in Christchurch, one to pick up some duplo we’d bid for on TradeMe and a second stop at Riccarton Mall to stretch the legs. We were looking for some new shoes for Alayna and found a pair on big discount at Rebel […]
The kiwifruit incident
We left St Arnaud in the morning with a plan to do a morning walk before lunch. This worked out quite well other than a couple of incidents, one during the walk and one afterwards. Lake Rotoroa was the first stop and we had lovely views from the pier and got to watch a swan […]
Cloudy with a chance of Aurora Australis
The last couple of weeks have had a few opportunities for some interesting night time photography. There have been a few nights with a good chance of Aurora Australis activity and on clear nights there have been some final chances to capture the brightest part of the milky way low in the night sky before […]
Wellington Lux 2013
The annual Wellington Lux festival of light took place from the 21st-24th June 2013 and for the general public the attraction was a number of installations set up around Wellington city. Due to the stormy weather earlier in the week the first night where the installations could be viewed was on Saturday 22nd. Saturday night […]
Pirates for a day
On Sunday Keryn and I took part in the Adventure Wellington Great Pirate Treasure Hunt. In teams (crews) of five we all raced around the Wellington waterfront and beyond competing in tasks to be rewarded with coins. We were part of the crew of the Gabriel along with Suzanne, Sue and our Captain Robyn. The […]
The day after
A more relaxed day was had following the Wedding. In the morning Keryn and I walked around Bondi, checking out the beach and views from the rocky headland nearby. We saw lots of people surfing, a guy fishing from the rocks with good success, crashing waves and plenty of dark clouds. The rain came in […]
Kate and Roger are Married
The rain persisted and it bought along some strong winds to party with, which ruined the planned peninsula cliff-top ceremony. Plan B was enacted. Kate was staying at the Hotel Bondi and the new plan was to have the ceremony on a balcony overlooking the beach, so at least there would be a feel of […]
The 2011 NZI Wellington Sevens
Beware, photo overload follows. Friday and Saturday were spent at the Wellington Seven’s tournament, a sporting event that is really just an excuse for a huge costume party. Keryn and I are generally far too reserved for dressing up (unless we’re on holiday with like minded people) so it was just as well we were […]