Stream walk

While our friend Emma was here, we tried to fit in as much wonderful Wellington adventure between my 6 am training and 5 pm training. One day we took her through the Korokoro stream area of Belmont Park. It is really our backyard, and super cool.

A start is looking out at the harbour from the water tower.

First we went down to the falls and checked out the wildlife behind the dam

Trav and Emma were rather into their geometric algebra discussions -- I got a bit a lost somewhere towards the start of them:)





Then we decided to take a shortcut and follow the stream. We knew the stream was easier than going off the trail and it ends up at the bottom of the farm. It was probably less than a km, but it sure was a long km of good fun.

Makara with Emma!

We also took our friend Emma to Makara beach. This is a very rocky beach with lots and lots of wind. I sometimes am underwhelmed by it, and then when I look at the photos I remember how much I love it.
We walked up along int he interior track this time... as many trails are here, it was rather steep!


A new wind farm is installed now... this was the only one we could see from the trail...View back to the beach/car park.


The top of the headland...A perfect place to talk math while checking out the Cook Straight and the South Island just beyond that.

Kaitoke

We also went up to Kaitoke for a walk with our visiting friend Emma recently.
There are few places left near here with big trees. Oh how I love and miss big trees.

I love this place .. it is like a NZ version of the mossy forests I grew up in back in Oregon
Then it was time for lunch

Which always leads to wading and playing in the water... just like any school trip as a kid where they let us eat by the water and then tried, with little success, to keep us out of it.

sick sick sick

As if the swine flu wasn't enough. Nor was the second flu I had. No I had to get another virus, one that sent me to bed for nearly 3 weeks, and then reduced me to a fatigued pile of tears after four hours of work each day. Two weeks of 4 hour days four days a week, and I could just barely manage to go back to full time work.
One day in there I took a vacation from my bed and went for a ten minute walk on the beach at the bottom of our hill. There was a wee fort someone had built and I just wanted to curl in and hid away for a bit.



And a tree that I even stopped to photograph... too bad I didn't remember it when we were racing the pair along the beach and we nearly SMASHED into it a few weeks later. Oops. Driving backwards in a boat is not my forte.

I was one sick girl. Fever, infection, glassy eyes, but I was most impressed with my neck. Do notice the swollen neck. My lymph nodes took almost 5 weeks to return to normal!

Run away with me

Last week I ran away with my lover... I can't remember the last time Traveler and I ran away together. And then we FLEW back together ON THE SAME plane. Traveler and I have piloted planes. We've traveled. We've even been in the same small plane together. But I can't think of the last time we flew on the same jet and sat next to each other - we have this habit of flying separately and going our separate ways until we reunite.

Anyway, the coromandel is an amazing place.
This is at least my 3rd trip and if I lived closer I'd go every month.
I just love walking the beaches and seeing the views and exploring the bits that are forest.


THE DRIVE:
NEARBY BEACH



with a lady walking her dog and using the leash as a way to drag her sandals behind her!

Then we walked up a hill in a town which I think started with a T. Yes, it was that kind of weekend. We just drove around chatting until it was decided that we should stop to explore. I have next to no idea where I was most of the time.



And of course more driving
And the obligatory trip down to cathedral cove