Twin Lakes

Locals know them as the Twin Lakes, but the official name is Stuart McCaskill Lakes, and these are the water storage lakes in Upper Hutt.  Drinking water is collected from the Hutt River in Kaitoke, goes through the Water Treatment Plant, and then provides water to the Hutt Valley, Porirua and Wellington.  We joined a few other interested car loads of people at the lookout on the side of State Highway Two.

This way to the lookout

The view from the top looks out over the storage lakes.  This seemed a good place for a photo opportunity, using the magic of the delayed shutter on Robin’s camera.  Mist hovered over the hill tops in this water catchment area.

We look like tourists

This lake is full to the brim

The other lake has been emptied and plans are to extend it to increase the storage capacity and add extra earthquake strengthening around the sides.  The aim is to provide high quality water (150 million litres each day) at a reasonable cost, with minimal impact on the environment.

Empty and awaiting maintenance

We took a drive down by the lakes, and the surrounding area is open for recreational users.  A car full of keen young men in wetsuits had just climbed out of the river after a turbulent ride on rubber inner tubes.  There are plenty of picnic spots available for those who just want to enjoy the surroundings. 

Old valves on display

The Millennium Totara Grove was planted as part of its Arbor Day 2000 celebrations.  It marks not only Arbor Day, but also the twentieth anniversary of the Wellington Regional Council and the new Millennium.  Before settlers arrived and cleared the land,  totara and other native species covered large areas of this region.  

Young totara trees and mature specimens

This is an area we had not explored before and were intrigued by what was available. As well as the picnic spots there is access to a number of walking tracks but you are not permitted to use the lakes not even the ducks.  Sadly no camping in this area of the park (Water Treatment Area), this is only allowed at the other end of the park at Waterworks Road (Kaitoke Regional Park).