If you look at a map of New Zealand (or Google Earth), you'll note a rather large uninhabited area west of Wellington. As part of our "training" for an upcoming 71 km hike along the Queen Charlotte Sound, we've spent the last couple of weeks exploring this area, and Red Rocks was this weeks installment. The coast is rugged, and in the Winter (May-Sept) is a "haul-out" for male fur seals who've finished second (or worse) in the late fall mating battles. Among the masses of bull kelp, we did see a single male twisting idly through the rocky shallows. Was he too old or infirm to return to the Southern waters, or just a confirmed bachelor?
In a moment of folly, we elected to take the mountain route back to Island Bay. So, 500 meters up we went, into the 70 km gusts that seemed almost sentient in their will to impede our upward progress. If we keep this up, we'll soon have legs of iron.
In other news, we had our first visitor (Ted, K's friend from SF), we celebrated the arrival of the Beaujolais Nouveau and the Kiwis won the Rugby League World Cup.
1 comment:
Ah yes, the beujolais nouveau! no doubt a perfect recovering agent after your (impressively) rugged hikes. you know they say it brings good luck in the coming year to drink the Beujolais Nouveau. We will toast you with our next bottle!
Post a Comment