Le Bons Bay & Hinewai Reserve

After several days being cocooned at Okains Bay, I was leaving to climb back up to the Summit Rd, and do some exploring en route to Akaroa. The weather this last morning at Okains was a bit cooler, but you can never really tell what weather changes might be coming when you are nestled down low in the valley.

When I arrived up the top onto the Summit Rd, I found there was indeed quite a cool southerly raging, and I quickly had to add some more layers of clothing. But that wasn't going to stop me exploring.

My first deviation was down into Le Bons Bay, a very similar bay to Okains Bay, but there is no camping ground there. The geological history of the rocks seems to jump out at you as you walk onto the beach- and you can easily imagine past volcanic eruptions. As I headed back up the valley, I bought a bag from the village store, which was helping to raise funds for efforts to trap predators of the local white flippered penguins. Le Bons Bay School are actively involved as an EnviroSchool. A lot of the buildings in the bays in this part of Banks Peninsula seem to tell a story of the colonial past, so it was a surprise when I came upon a small, more recent Anglican church in the village.

 Further up the valley, I headed down a side road to see some art by a Dutch couple who have emigrated. Saskia van Voorn has made some exquisite prints of the local area using a woodblock printing technique.

 When I reached the Summit Rd again, I was back into the raging southerly. My friend had told me to go and visit Hinewai, a reserve funded by a Trust.

 The native bush is being allowed to regenerate in this reserve, by natural methods. Trees are being spread over what was farmland by birds dropping seeds.

 There is gorse in this area that is not being eradicated. It acts as a nursery for native seedlings, that eventually outstrip it, and the gorse dies off. 

 My Camino buddies might be interested to know there is a problem here also with tissues being dropped (though perhaps not of the toilet kind.) Maybe if gorse was grown like this along the Camino trails, it might dissuade the pilgs from dropping tissue waste indiscriminately...

 The view down into the nearby bay was beautiful, and you can see quite clear lines between the farmland and the regenerated bush areas. I finished my quick look at the reserve with a climb up Mikimiki Knob, where there were many species of divaricating plants, that were growing low down close to the rocks and substrate. Given the almost alpine conditions this day, it was easy to imagine such a growth form was an advantage against exposure to some strong coastal winds.

Okains- Morning 4- the top of the hill

Bit shocking really that it took until the fourth morning in camp before I finally climbed the 'Big Hill'. But this morning when I peeked out at the beach, it was great to see that the mist had cleared.

Here is the view from near the top of the hill, looking back at the other bays I have passed through. Okains Bay camping ground is nestled in the pine trees in the third bay along.

When I reached the top of this hill in 2008 I had fun taking photos of a 'solo' tree up here, and I was keen to see if it still stood. And it did...

On the way down again, I could see everything clearly: the mist was well gone.  Here is a view of the islands the seabirds nest on from above...

...and here is a view of the same islands at sea level in Little Okains Bay, the first bay along.

Now, I know you might all be thinking this trip is a bit of a 'solo effort' as you see no people in my shots. That's pretty general with my blogging- for privacy reasons.  I was sharing the camping ground with a few friends though, and here are a few camping scenes.

I did tend to rise before most of my friends, and by the time I got back from  my morning walks, breakfast would be served....

Okains Bay is a lovely camping ground where you spread out and find your own spots under pine trees. Not all square and confined.

The young lady of our party was about to commandeer this hammock for some relaxed holiday reading.

And here is some of our swimming gear drying off for the next swim. I was the North Island Wimp of the party- moaning about the cold South Island water, but I did get in once or twice....

7: Walking in the morning

Tree on farmland a few bays over from Okains Bay

When I camped at Okains Bay with friends in 2008, I was 'training' for my April start on the Camino, and was keen to keep finding hills to climb, even on holiday. One route I took several times that January was across to Little Okains Bay, on to the next bay, then up onto the farmland nearby. This year, mist covered the hills for two mornings, but this morning dawned clearer, and I reached the farmland. It was a steeper and tougher climb than I remembered, so I had obviously already built up my fitness back in 2008! The sun was still quite low in the sky, and cloud dimmed the landscape. Ten minutes after I had descended the steepest part of the climb, the sun broke through above the cloud, and this scene would have been very well-lit. But I wasn't fit enough this year to want to climb all over again for the sake of a brighter photo!

Taken 7:58am 7.01.2011;   Canon PowerShot SX20 IS

Shutter: 1/500     Aperture: f/4.0      Focal length: 6.98mm     ISO: 80

Okains: two misty days, then glorious sunset

Last time I was at Okains Bay - three years ago in 2008- I was keen to climb hills as part of my Camino training. No such compulsion existed this time, so when the next two mornings dawned with thick mist covering the tops of the hills, I was happy enough to shorten my morning walks!

 When I was walking along the Old Wharf track, I had seen a tern diving repeatedly for food, then disappearing. Chances are it was nesting on the lower of these two islands, where many seabirds could be seen, safe at a distance from interfering humans.

 By later in the afternoon of the second day, blue skies had returned, and soon people were taking advantage of the surf and the estuary, swimming or paddling, or with kayaks and boards of varying kinds.

After dinner at the campsite, we were all slipping into relaxed laziness, when someone came to say there was a cruise ship passing the bay. This we had to see!

It was just as well we had been roused from a lazy state, as there was another glorious sunset to be seen this evening.

This little boy seemed to be enjoying the colours in the sky as he ran out several times to the surf.

And the colours over the hills were quite spectacular.

But the most glorious colours were seen where the sun set in the west, inland from the camp.

6: Estuary at low tide

A family enjoying the estuary at Okains at low tide 

Each day the estuary at Okains Bay emptied and filled as the tides changed between low and high. If you timed your swimming well, you could enjoy slightly warmer water as the estuary emptied out to the sea, its water warmed while it covered the flat estuary sands. During tidal changes, the currents could be quite strong in the river, and water levels changed quickly. But there was always a time when the low tide provided a perfect play place in the river for families with young children, while deeper pools also remained for more confident swimmers.

Taken 3:41pm 6.01.2011;    Canon PowerShot SX20 IS

Shutter: 1/800      Aperture: f/4.0     Focal length: 8.52mm      ISO: 80

5: Misty Coast

Coastline seen en route to Little Okains Bay, on a misty morning

Near the entrance to the Okains Bay camping ground there is a route that leads you off uphill towards the next bay along, Little Okains Bay. The third and fourth days at Okains dawned with clouds hiding the tops of nearby hills. The two little islands seen here are home for some seabirds, including terns that can often be seen diving into the seawater for food in the bay.

Taken 9:18am 5.01.2011;    Canon PowerShot SX20 IS

Shutter: 1/200     Aperture: f/4.0     Focal length: 5mm     ISO: 80

4: Okains Walk

Farm barn seen on the road to Okains Bay

 

When the tide was out, you could do a circuit by walking up the river estuary, visiting the Okains Bay settlement, then returning to the campground via the road. There were various old buildings to see along the way, as well as an interesting museum. This barn stood in the midst of farmland, easily visible from the road. 

Taken 12:28pm 4.01.2011;    Canon PowerShot SX20 IS

Shutter: 1/250     Aperture: f/4.5      Focal length:23.04mm     ISO: 80

Okains Bay- Jan 4th

For my first morning at Okains I decided to just take it easy and take the 'low road' along to the remains of the Old Wharf. The waves were crashing in a little, so you could easily see why the track/cliffs were being eroded away.

 There was lots of evidence of the volcanic origin of this area, with many rock outcrops that seemed to have once been lava outflows, as well as these much softer red rocks that were perhaps originally more ash-like.

 You can see the remains of the Old Wharf in the distance. I didn't quite go all the way: the seas were a bit high and the track a bit narrow while I walked on my own.

 Later that morning, since the tide was low, I opted for a walk up the river estuary, a popular place for parents with young children. You can see it is quite overcast by now... a promise of even more cloud to come.

This white-faced heron was one of the birds feeding in the mud of the estuary.

 Following the estuary upstream for several kilometres, I eventually came to the village. Here you can see sheep grazing quite close to the local cemetery.

 The village garage had an array of interesting signs, but was 'out of petrol'.

Last time I was here, I visited inside the village church, but that wasn't an option this time. Even though Okains Bay is quite a distance from the Darfield earthquake epicentre, there was obvious damage to the old stone structure. Like so many historic stone and brick buildings in Canterbury, it has borne the brunt of the shaking.

3: Sunset at Okains Bay

People hoping for some flounder- sunset at Okains Bay

On January 3, I drove to Okains Bay for a few days camping with friends. The colours at sunset this evening were delicately beautiful, and it was peaceful near the sea. I quite liked the way the people were 'almost' silhouetted' in this shot. (I will put a selection of other photos on my Kiwi Nomad blog later.)

Taken 9:22pm 3.01.2011;     Canon PowerShot SX20 IS

Shutter: 1/125     Aperture: f/4.0     Focal length: 16.45mm     ISO: 160

Off to Okains Bay

I joined my friends in Christchurch for a couple of days, and saw signs of earthquake damage at their home, largely due to soil liquefaction. Here is my wee doll Arohanui checking out their garage which has to be demolished and replaced.

Soon it was time to be off to Banks Peninsula for camping at Okains Bay. 

It took no time at all to sink into that relaxing feeling.... These next three photos from the sunset that evening.

 

These two oystercatchers are part of a group  of three I saw often along the beach. I think that one is a juvenile. Certainly, one of these three was very belligerent, perhaps protecting the young one. I am much further away than you might think, as this camera has an excellent zoom, but I was dive-bombed several times on various occasions, and saw the same happen to others who inadvertently strayed too close!

It was a peaceful time of evening to take out a flounder net, but I think their efforts only scored them crabs this time....

2: Christchurch

Arohanui examining earthquake damage to my friends' garage in Christchurch

I was keen to see my friends in Christchurch, but not quite so keen to expose myself to possible aftershocks from their major 2010 earthquake. In this photo, my wee doll, Arohanui, who loves to go exploring, is checking out my friends' garage. Because of liquefaction on their property, the garage has been damaged so badly that it needs to be demolished and replaced.

Taken 11:56am 2.01.2011;       Canon PowerShot SX20 IS

Shutter: 1/1250      Aperture: f/2.8       Focal length: 5mm      ISO:125

1: NYD-Kaikoura

 

Seagull drinking from puddle in carpark at Seal Colony, Kaikoura

I started the New Year morning by spending a couple of hours dawdling around the rock pools by the Seal Colony in Kaikoura. The tide was out and the rock pools were exposed, though only a few seals were around. I took many photographs of algae such as Neptune's Necklace, Hormosira banksii. But in the end I chose to put up this photo of a seagull. At Kaikoura, these seemed to be easy to photograph as they were so tame, very used to humans, who no doubt provided easy pickings for their daily diet.

Taken 9:08am 1.01.2011;     Canon PowerShot SX20 IS

Shutter: 1/500      Aperture: f/5.7      Focal length: 100mm      ISO: 200

Kaikoura- New Year's Day

 I woke early on New Year's Day, slipped out of the backpacker's hostel as quietly as I could, and drove down towards the seal colony. Someone had used stones to mark the onset of 2011....

I spent a whole two hours down at the Seal Colony, before too many other people had even arisen. There weren't very many seals resting here, though this one gave a good yawn; but the tide was low, and the rock pools were exposed.

There was an abundance of Neptune's Necklace (or as I learned in my NZ Flora paper- Hormosira banksii.)

There was an abundance of kelp in the lower tidal area

 a variety of shellfish in the quiet pools,

 and various algae.

And all the time I was aware of the remarkable setting Kaikoura has, with the mountains rising close by.

The previous evening I had enjoyed fish and chips on the beach, and took many photographs of the seagulls that tamely waited nearby, hoping for some throw-outs. The seagulls seem so very used to humans, and don't seem to be afraid of them.

But of all the seagull shots I took, this is my favourite one, in the carpark at the Seal Colony, where this bird was drinking from a puddle on the tarmac.