Success is getting what you want; happiness is liking what you get

Tuesday 9 August 2016

From the Mountains to the Sea

We live in a beautiful country here in New Zealand, there is no denying that.  We are spoilt for choice with so many outstanding scenic views packed into our small country.  Our drive north to Palmerston North this morning took us passed snow capped mountains glistening in the sun shine.  The mighty Tararua Ranges were definitely looking their best.  On the way back we just had to stop and take a few photos.

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Snow topped Tararua Ranges behind a dairy farm

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And a close up of the view

Also in the area beside the road where we stopped we came across a very interesting old sign.  Wonder if the old-timers still talk about the “Flood of 53”.  It seems unbelievable that the flood waters could reach that high.

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Memorial sign post of extra high flooding levels

Heading south again, we travelled down to Paraparaumu to collect a parcel.  And enjoy our fish and chip lunch on the beach.  Not just any fish either, we had a tasty fillet of Chatham Islands blue cod each, delicious. We enjoyed our lunch sitting in the car,  because it was mid winter after all.  What could be a more Kiwi past-time than that!  And right in front of us we had a view of Kapiti Island.

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Enjoying our lunch on the beach

The small Red Billed Gulls with their matching bright red legs and feet were facing into the wind just by our car.  But still keeping an eye out in case any food was thrown to them.  The much larger Black Backed Gulls were happily wading in the shallows.  Look closely and you can just make out the faint outline of the South Island through the haze.

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Gulls on Paraparaumu Beach

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Kapiti Island just across the sea

We had a great day out, tooing and froing as we ticked things off our “to-do list”.  Lovely weather for the middle of winter, and as we mentioned before, outstanding scenery.  But then, we could be a little bit biased.

4 comments:

MDM Searle said...

Kapiti Island looks inviting. Have you ever sailed to this island?

Jenny said...

Yes, we have been to Kapiti Island. It is a bird sanctuary, and everyone needs a permit to land there. It is a lovely place, brimming with New Zealand native birds living in a forest.

Janice said...

What a wonderful way to spend the day. We enjoyed some blue cod sitting by a lake when we visited. Yummo.

Marilyn, nb Waka Huia said...

Hi Jenny and Robin, We are lucky, aren't we? I didn't get to see the Tararuas this week, and they do look wonderful in your photos. I posted some snow scenes from my flight over to Hokitika on Monday and that evening from groundlevel.
Looks like I am going to be working in Hokitika till April next year - so I hope your South Island trip is before then so we can catch up down here as well as in Kapiti/Horowhenua!
Go well, stay well, Mx