Just scraped in at the end of June with my (briefer than usual) monthly Waikawa Newsletter. One of the things I like about Buttondown is that it checks for alt text and the validity of links before I send.
Glanced up from making breakfast to see our neighbour's Huntaway dog bounding through the paddock next door. Not something he's ever done before.
Then I grabbed the binoculars as he bounded back again to discover it was in fact a deer!
What the heck? But also: yay! Nice start to the day.
In this year's NZ Garden Bird Survey I saw (or heard) way more birds than last year:
6 sparrow, 1 fantail, 30 canada goose, 4 pheasant, 1 shag, 1 blackbird, 1 waxeye, 2 magpie, 1 grey warbler, 4 swallow, 2 hawk, 3 starling, 1 chaffinch, 3 thrush, 10 pigeon, 1 kingfisher.
Starting today (27 June) July 2023 will be a month where I focus on my health, in particular getting my body more flexible. I have my own stretches, plus two exercises from my massage therapist, and I’m adding in Yoga For Neck, Shoulders, Upper Back | 10-Minute Yoga Quickie with Adriene.
Had the most wonderful massage today with Natalie Waddell from Functional Bodyworks in Paraparaumu. My back and neck have been so stiff and sore lately — not helped by all the car travel of the past week or so. That was so good I’ve booked another in a couple of weeks.
Whew. After 2084 Km in our car plus another 220 Km with friends in their car, it’s good to be home. We saw some great sights and had good times with friends. We ate good food and excellent food. We’ve come home with an idea for the porch we’ve long thought about adding to our house. ✅
I wouldn’t normally dream of posting a naked selfie, but occasionally there are mitigating circumstances …
(Deb took the photos.)
Today’s drive was marked with narrow winding roads to start, pouring rain, crawling past an accident, a visit to friends, roadworks, 110 Kph on the Waikato Expressway (highest speed limit in Aotearoa), and a surprisingly good panfried fish, veg and mash lunch at a service area called Autobahn.
Time to head home now — a 12 hour drive. We’ll visit friends along the way and have a couple of overnight stops.
Rain forecast for the rest of our trip.
Cape Reinga/Te Rerenga Wairua heritage:
after death, all Māori spirits travel … to the pohutukawa tree on the headland of Te Rerenga Wairua.
They descend into the underworld (reinga) by sliding down a root into the sea … then return to the land of their ancestors, Hawaiiki-A-Nui.
From Taipā Beach, on the East Coast in the Far North of Aotearoa. Just before dawn. Also just before I got drenched in a downpour!
It was almost dark and still pouring with rain when we arrived at Taipā Beach Resort near Coopers Beach so I’m looking forward to dawn in a couple of hours to be able to enjoy our beach view.
Last time we visited Coopers Beach we spotted a couple of orca!
Yesterday afternoon we drove through pouring rain to our booked holiday home in Coopers Beach, Northland. There was delay getting in, then the house stank, was damp and dirty and hard to access. After I carried our bags in through the rain and upstairs we ended up leaving. Refund requested!
This corridor feels endless.
Last year I decided my personal year would run from (my) Winter Solstice to (my) Winter Solstice (as nature intended). That makes today New Year’s Eve. I actually have a resolution for the New Year: to do some stretches every day. I’m far too stiff and creaky.
Today we leave Paihia in the Bay of Islands and drive about an hour north to Cooper’s Beach. Tomorrow we do a day trip up to Cape Reinga, about 1.5 hours drive. Unfortunately the weather looks like it’s going to be rainy and windy.
Views from the Breakwater Motel at Paihia.
Tāne Mahuta, 2000 years old, is enormous and awe inspiring.
Today we plan to visit Tāne Mahuta, New Zealand’s largest known living kauri tree:
- Trunk girth: 13.77 m
- Trunk height: 17.68 m
- Total height: 51.2 m
- Trunk volume: 244.5 m³
According to Māori, Tāne is the son of Papatuanuku the earth mother and Ranginui the sky father (Papa and Rangi). Tāne pushed his embracing parents apart then clothed his mother in the forest. All living creatures of the forest are Tāne's children.
Source: Tāne Mahuta Walk: Waipoua Forest, Northland.
See also my posts:
- Visit Tāne Mahuta, 06 January 2019
- How huge Tāne Mahuta is, 06 January 2019
- Determination, 09 August 2019
