03. Auckland

Te Arai Beach Walk

Te Arai Beach Walk

We’d spotted something in the water ahead. Black and rolling with each break. Turned out to be a dead penguin :( So cute.. but very sad to seem him in such a poor way – shrimpy things crawling out of his eyes :(

When we arrived the sun came out and the ducks and finches came to greet us. A sweet evening lying on the grass as the sun set and a well earned snooze! :)

Smoked Chicken Posh Nosh

Smoked Chicken Posh Nosh

Pakiri Stream Crossing

Crossing Pakiri Stream

Omaha Forest

Omaha Forest

Egg Trap!

Egg Trap

NickyNo possums in here :) Since coming across all those possum corpses before I’ve learned a bit more about why they are considered such a pest here. I didn’t realise but other than stripping trees of leaves they apparently raid the nests of all the rare and endangered native birds. A lot of the areas we walk through are Kiwi bird conservation zones so there are no dogs allowed for the same reasons. Every area features these trap boxes. I expected to see a piece of cheese in there like in Tom and Jerry cartoons! But the possums are partial to an egg for breakfast. And who can blame them I guess. I was tempted to have it myself ;)

Pike River Mining Disaster

Pike River Mining Disaster

NickyFor a few says now we’ve been following the events at the Pike River Mine where a methane explosion had left 29 men trapped underground in precarious conditions. We turned on the TV to see the Prime Minister John Key announcing a day of mourning and knew something terrible had happened. There’d been a second massive explosion in the mine. Up until then lots of people had still held out hope that some of the men might be alive… A really awful turn of events. And terrible news for such a small close knit community. Horrific, and extremely sad.

Warkworth, Water Scavenging and Unexpected Biscuits!

Warkworth Cutoff

Lunchtime leg shaving

Lunchtime leg shaving

Moir Hill – Stealth Camp #2

Moir Hill