Love is in the Air- Napier

A stay in Napier is not complete until I've paid a visit to my favourite suburban park to check out my favourite exotic ducks. Though sadly, another duck is missing, leaving just one lonely Plumed Whistling Duck from the original three who have made Anderson Park pond their home for the last 4 to 5 years.

It is not known where the ducks came from but it is thought that they were either storm blown vagrants or perhaps illegally imported eggs that hatched and then been dumped at the pond. Their natural habitat is in tropical northern Australia & Indonesia so they were a very long way from home. Here are the two ducks, taken last October.

The remaining duck has latched onto a pair of black swans, following them around on the grass and in and out of the water. It passed close to me while walking with the swans but as soon as they moved off a way, the duck gave me a wide berth.

The male black swan was very protective too, hissing and chasing me if I got too close. Although I suspect he was probably protecting his lady, it had the desired effect of protecting the duck too.

Amongst the mixed menagerie of domestic and wild ducks that call the pond home, are a number of ducks suffering from 'Angel Wing'; an incurable disease caused by a high-calorie, low vitamin diet of bread. Anderson Park is a favourite place for parents to bring their children to feed the ducks and while there are notices asking that they don't feed the birds, it would seem that nobody takes any notice. This poor fellow will in the end, pay the price.

There was a lot of noise and activity coming from the weeping willow on the island across the pond...

Love is in the air....as dozens of Little Shags/Kawau Paka squabble over nest building duties, feeding duties (for the few that have chicks already) and love making duties! 

Meanwhile, back on the mainland a Barbary Dove is making cooing sounds to his mate in a tree...

...and showing off his exceptional skills at collecting nest material. 

This is the first time I've seen Barbary Doves at Anderson Park; Barbarys are an introduced species with small wild populations in Northland, Auckland, Waikato and the Hasting areas. I've also seen them near Tauranga in the Bay of Plenty. Since my visit to the park, one has visited Mum & Dads' bird feed table for the first time and I've seen a few sitting on power lines out near Meeanee, so I'm assuming they are fairly well established in the Napier area too.

I walked around to the far side of the pond and who should be making their way at speed across the pond towards me? A loved up pair of swans with a duck in tow...someone needs to tell that duck "...threes a crowd!"

The swans put on an elaborate courtship display of synchronised swimming just for me... 

and him...who was waiting patiently in the background while they circled each other, swam back and forward...

...bowed and twisted their necks together, and then tapped bills..

...forming a perfect heart. All the time their little friend just floated about in the background. Eventually the show was over and the swans headed back towards the island with the plumed whistling duck following at a respectable distance. I wonder what will happen to him when the signets arrive.

I carried on around the edge of the pond and managed to get a quick shot of the notoriously flighty NZ Shoveler Ducks/Kuruwhengi before they took to the pond.

I had one more bird to check out, and he is usually found on a third pond at the far end of the park. I walked along the edge of the stream which joins the ponds, spotting bellbirds, tui, warblers, swallows and kingfisher along the way.

And two or three White Faced Herons/Matuku Moana fishing for their breakfast in the shallow waters. This one is wiggling his foot in the mud, see the bubbles? He's hoping to dislodge a small fish or eel that he can quickly snatch.

It was a thrill to get to the end of the path and find an old favourite still lording it over the back pond. For as long as I can remember there has been a White Heron/Kotuku at Anderson Park. Not all the time and not always by himself (once there were 3 white herons) and probably not the same heron either, but I've very rarely missed seeing a white heron on this pond. 

It's quite ironic that we spent 4-5 weeks on the West Coast- the home of the White Heron- a couple of months ago and failed to see one. Well, that's not quite true. I did manage a fleeting glimpse of one near the Haast River bridge as we sped by. A small white dot on a gravel island as the far end of my view. And then to later hear that one hunts in the NZMCA Park at Hokitika on a regular basis really upset me. He's never called in when we've been there.

You can see that the long feathery breeding plumes are forming on the wings. The only Kotuku heronry is near Whataroa on the West Coast, they don't breed anywhere else in New Zealand (you'll remember we need to revisit Okarito Lagoon to do a tour during the breeding season). It's likely that this heron won't be breeding this year; they are already gathering on the Coast.

'Mirror, mirror on the wall....' He (or it could be a she) stood like this, staring into the water, for over 10 minutes. Stock still staring, not flinching a feather, waiting for a fish to swim by. That is some patience. 

I left the heron to his fishing and walked back up the other side of the stream spotting a small flock of gulls resting on the grass near the middle pond. These aren't just any gulls, these are endemic Black-billed Gulls/Tarapuka and they have the undesirable status of being the most threatened gull in the world. Black-billed gulls mostly breed on the gravel of South Island's braided river systems and are often found around inland lakes and waterways.

I wonder how many people, both residents &/or visitors to Napier know the history behind Anderson Park. The city's largest passive recreation park was once a racecourse and the home of the Napier Park Racing Club which was formed in 1886. Racing ceased in 1960 and moved to Hastings.

Anderson Park has been a constant in my life since childhood; as children we rode our horses to Greenmeadows and the river, skirting the edge of the park on the way. We once walked our show pigs (on harness and leads) through the park to the shops (that's a whole 'nother story) and rode our bikes along the paths. (I also occasionally took shortcuts through the park on my motorbike- naughty girl) We flew kites, attended Christmas concerts, had school sports days, went to the circus, took nieces, nephews & cousins to the playground, watched a brother skateboard and learn to drive in the carpark. 

Later, when Mum & Dad left the farm they purchased a house right across the road from the park, and then shifted again to just around the corner from it. I also had a house not too far from the great green expanse and walked my dog regularly through the park. Over the years I've also walked and run (or staggered) along the paths on a multitude of exercise regimes. I've visited it at sunrise and sunset and at all times in between; it's a park of many moods but it can look quite stark during winter when the trees have shed their leaves or at the height of a typical Hawkes Bay summer when the grass is burnt to a dry cinder. But it's still a lovely park with beautiful mature trees and interesting waterways and birdlife. And it's still a favourite to me.

Around Camp- Kerr Bay, Lake Rotoiti

We, once again, had a lovely time at the Nelson Lakes although it was extremely busy with all the comings and goings of  tourists, campers and people attending the Classic Boat Show which was held over the weekend while we were there.

I wonder how many people travel with a huge garden umbrella and deck chair in the back? He made a great subject for me though.

I don’t think this little Bush Robin can read, "Hey mister, the ‘Robin’ section is next door" (Kaka is a native parrot- and a noisy one at that).

Once all the overnighter campers had left the site in the morning, the birds came out to check over the campsite. The robin (toutouwai) to see if David had any spare bacon fat, a Silvereye (tauhou) feeding on the hebe next to our van and a weka that skulked through camp checking for leftovers and disappearing quick as a wink if he sighted anyone. Which is very unlike a weka indeed, they are usually cadging food.

And down on the waterfront was my little mate, the Mandarin Duck who was keeping company with another rare & endangered visitor to the Lakes, the Black Billed Gull. DOC has had to erect signs asking people to stop feeding the gulls bread (not good for their health) and also to stop throwing stones at them. A small flock took up residence at the lake in December and people seem to think they are just your regular old gull (not that people should throw stones at them either!)

The Kaka section of DOC’s Kerr Bay campground has 12 unpowered sites & is usually for sleeper vans and tents but with the Boat Show on over the weekend it filled up with caravans & motorhomes instead. With no larger sites available for the length of our stay (8 nights) we tucked up into a corner with plenty of room for tents & vans later in the week. That was after convincing the DOC lady that our footprint wasn’t any bigger than a caravan, awning & car…..

….or even a large tent, sailing boat & car!

Unfortunately for the boat show, the weekend was a disaster. The rain started on Friday evening and was torrential overnight and for most of Saturday. It dawned fine on Sunday but it wasn’t long before the rain set in again. It was such a shame for them as most of the activities were either cancelled or were shortened versions. I did manage to get quite a few great photos of the some of the boats and I’ll post a blog when I have them uploaded.

There are definitely some different & unusual mobile homes about and plenty with heaps of character. I love this little caravan; given it’s size I wouldn’t be surprised if that’s not a toilet roll in the front window!

David went fishing a number of times but failed to catch one single trout which was a bit frustrating for him, although he said he enjoyed the trying. If he hadn’t have seen a trout rise and grab a bumblebee off the surface he would have convinced himself there were no fish in the lake!

On one of his trips I got him to drop me off halfway up the lake so I could walk the Lakehead track back to camp. I didn’t want to walk the whole length (8kms) and thought the half way mark would be about right. As it turned out it was 6kms back home which was fine although it was a pretty boring track. It did have lots of birdsong but the birds were all up high and other than a couple of rock slides to cross it was just a well worn mossy track through lovely bush with the odd ‘lakehead peep’ and gravel beach to visit.

Once the boat show was over the Kaka campsite returned to it’s usual purpose; an overnight camp site for the passing parade of people on the move. The Kaka site is on a large grassed area on a slight slope. We had one of the flatter sites and still had to double our leveling blocks on one side. Campers in tents or sleeper vans didn’t have that luxury and often had to re-position their tents or cars trying to find a level position.

I know people choose how to travel but I’m not so sure they know exactly what travelling in a sleeper van or with a small tent involves, especially at this time of the year when the mornings are damp & chilly. It may sound romantic and it may save money but it's not my idea of fun.

Most are only staying overnight as they move through the country trying to see as much as possible. Mornings involve wet tents and damp gear and if they've set up in the shade then the mornings are extra bleak. Laundry (when they can do it) does not dry in the hour before sunset- unless it’s your really small, smalls (oh how I wish). And three people, one car, one small tent and all their gear needs plenty of juggling to fit, although I see they have their priorities in order- beer, front of the row. And then again some people must do it just for the love of it- the older couple on their bikes, with just a small tent & a roll up squab to sleep on.

Monday after the boat show was a brilliantly fine and hot day, David went fishing once again but the lake was quite dirty after the rain. I met him over at West Bay for lunch and then he headed off again. West Bay was where we stayed for the unexpected rally last year, the camps were open now but there weren’t too many people in them. Most preferring to stay at Kerr Bay I suspect.

I drove down the road to check the bridge over the Buller River outlet, David had mentioned it was being replaced. I wonder if they’ll close the old one off completely, maybe it’ll be two one way bridges. What a shame if they do close the old bridge, another piece of history gone.

Nelson Lakes & in particular Kerr Bay is fast becoming one of our favourite spots. Hopefully the next time we’re passing through David manages to catch himself a trout.

We've now moved on to Murchison where there is a large NZMCA Park. Murchison is a small township with many cafes, it’s a half way point between the West Coast and the Nelson/Blenheim region and popular stop off point for travellers passing through, either for lunch, a rest or overnight. It’s also very close to the Lewis Pass junction and the route back to Christchurch. There have been at least 20+ NZMCA vans staying here the last 3 nights and I’m pretty sure we are contributing to the local economy extremely well.

The last two days have been extremely hot and each evening a violent thunderstorm has formed above the surrounding mountains. Luckily we've only heard the thunder & seen the lightening, the rain has kept to the hills.

To the Lakehead- Nelson Lakes

…and don’t spare the horses (horsepower)!

It’s only 8kms to the top of the Lake Rotoiti so once the weather settled David got the boat out so we could go exploring and he could go fishing.

When we’re camped beside the water David manages to manoeuvre the boat in and out by himself but when we’re a little distance away, like we are here at Kerr Bay, we've come up with a novel way of towing it to the boat ramp. We used to walk it all the way to the water from wherever we were, but after doing something to my hip at Kaiteriteri and being in pain for days, I refuse to pull it any distance now. It wouldn't be so bad if the outboard wasn't on there but then David would have to cart that and set it up at the water so it’s easier towing it down complete.

A rope is attached from a centre back eyelet underneath to an upright that’s in the wellside and David sits on the tailgate holding it off the edge of the door and balancing it as I drive very slowly down to the water. The drop down back wheels allow it to roll along quite nicely on the road and I just have to watch turning any sharp corners as the boat catches the corner of the tailgate. We’ve had some odd looks and comments from people but it works for us. And anyway they’re just jealous!

Black billed gull #E61 was at the jetty to see us off.

The snow capped Travers Range comes into view as we round the bend past Mt Robert on the right.

Along the way we hear helicopters again, this time over the St Arnaud Range that runs right along the left hand side of the lake. And far off in the distance we see two helicopters with buckets underneath, this time, we know from the date on the signboards, they’re doing the placebo 1080 poison drop. They must have a very good tracking system of where they've dropped as they look like tiny dots on the landscape as they move back and forward along the range.

The lake, mountains, hanging valleys, beech forest & SANDFLIES remind us of the Mavora Lakes (still our favourite lakes), along with the rock & scree slides off the mountains which fan out towards the bottom killing trees along the way. This slide must be quite a few years old, scrub and regenerating forest is already taking hold.

As we get closer we can see the Travers River gravel flat and a tiny hut tucked into the trees, there are many tramping tracks & huts up the valley and into the mountains here, to the right behind the Robert Ridge are the tracks through to Lake Rotoroa. The Nelson Lakes National Park is very popular with trampers and a good area for families to experience the great outdoors.

A little closer and we can see a couple of boats beached at Coldwater Hut (no, you’re not blind, one is out of shot on the right)

There’s no one in sight, they’ve probably carried on up the valley to the another hut which is about 2kms up stream or to a swingbridge further on.

This is as far as we’ll go this trip, we had lunch at the picnic table on the hut deck looking back down the lake with just the ducks and pesky sandflies for company.

That was until I heard a noise, and a sweaty, boot and pack clad guy stumbled around the corner of the hut and sat on the steps. I don’t know who got the biggest surprise, he rested there for about 5 minutes telling us he’s walked up the lake from Kerr Bay, on up to the swingbridge and was now making his way back down the otherside of the lake. Each side is around 12kms long as it weaves around many small bays and the round trip takes 8-10hrs without adding the walk to the swingbridge into the mix. It was now about 2:30pm so he had a few hours walk ahead of him.

We finished our lunch and headed back down the lake, this time a little slower with David trolling on the way. The wind was picking up and there were a few whitecaps about but we stuck to the side as I wanted to visit the Whisky Falls which were about half way back along the lake edge.

David stayed with the boat and I walked up to the falls which are almost 40 metres high. The remains of an illicit whisky still were found here in the 1880s, giving the falls their name.

It was a short sharp climb up to a viewing area which happened to be on top of a whole lot of interwoven and exposed tree roots where many people have stood over the years. It was with some concern, that in amongst the roots I saw a pack & jacket. There was no one about, I looked over the edge; perhaps somebody had thrown themselves over- not likely it wasn’t that high and it would have hurt hitting those rocks ;). I looked all about and wondered what to do. Perhaps someone had forgotten them, again not likely, you would know you’re missing your pack after walking in to here for 3 hours.

I was just about to check the inside of the pack when I saw a tiny red dot (a cap) appear over the rocks at the top of the bottom cascade (see left photo) and a guy came slithering and sliding very carefully down the wet and mossy rocks. The Czech Republic guy we’d seen at the hut! He’d made good time but what a silly man venturing up to the base of the falls. He told me when he got back that he’d been very worried as the rocks were extremely slippery and he’d had a couple of near misses. If he’d slipped and hit his head on the otherside of the rocks nobody would have known he was missing; well maybe I would have as I’d have had to check the pack. But still what a drama it would have been. Now he was keen to get back to Kerr Bay and asked if he could fit in our boat!

“Sorry mate” I said, “It’s a squeeze with two people and we're going fishing, you’ll have to get walking, you’ve still got a few of hours ahead of you” 

I walked back down to the track with him and he headed off again, I carried on out to the jetty to find David had disappeared. He’d decided to do a little fishing while he waited.

We cruised back along the lake, David fishing on the way. The lake had settled down and it was very pleasant. I stretched out across the boat, lounging in the warm sun. Arrrr…..this is the life! But I do need to paint those toenails when I get a minute.

David hooked a small brown trout on this run but it spat the hook before he got it close. It would have been released anyway. He’s been out three or four times since, nearly all day on Monday and is thoroughly enjoying it and the Takacat. Unfortunately he’s yet to bring home the bacon, he has had two beauties on, played them all the way to the boat but both have managed to get off. I think it’s because he’s being super cautious; he’s darn scared the hook will puncture the boat!

And while he’s been fishing I’ve been keeping an eye on the duck families and they’ve been keeping an eye on me.

Remind us to never park beside nesting ducks ever again! It's been a very stressful week; the duck with 9 ducklings now has only 4, I’ve had to round up a wayward Mum & Dad a couple of times when they've disappeared after chasing other ducks and not returning to their babies who were squeaking under the van. I found them sunning themselves beside the stream way down the other end of the park! I think they had a brain fade and forgot they were parents, and this has happened more than once too. This family is the only one that has a drake in attendance, although a fat lot of good he does most of the time; he pecks the ducklings heads if they get in the way. He sometimes returns to the van late in the evening with another couple of drakes, it's like he's out with the boys for the night.

These ducklings are the cutest though, they feed on the sandflies that hover around my ankles when I sit at the table, jumping and grabbing them and scampering over my feet as they chase them. Mum is adorable too, I call her Daffy Duck, she stands beside me, as I sit at the table, peering over my knees just staring at my face, she lets me pat her neck unlike the other mothers who launch attacks on me if I get near.

The family with the eight bigger ducklings now has only seven, one disappeared overnight a few days ago which was strange after such a long time looking like they'd make it through. This family are spread far and wide when they're moving through the area feeding and I've found some of them lost without their mother anywhere in sight. Most of the time they seem to meet up at some stage and the next time they pass through they're back to being all there.

I did have to catch one lonely duckling who squawked his way through the vans while we were sitting outside one evening, I tracked his family down to the stream way over the other side; luckily as he wouldn't have made it home before night. And just today I played pied-piper and dropped a bread trail across the park so Mum & 5 ducklings would follow me to the stream mouth where two ducklings were fending for themselves.

And then to add to the mix another duck came out of the bushes a few days ago with another 9 tiny ducklings. I swore I wouldn't get attached to them but I did notice that they only numbered 8 the next morning and yesterday I found another one of them upside down dead in the stream behind the van- he must have been the one with the sore foot. Then to add to their(my) woes DOC came to mow the lawns & weed-eat the stream edges and that scattered the family far and wide, She now only has 3 ducklings!

I can tell you, I’m ready to pull out of here today, that’s for sure, I'm sure the families will be fine, there's plenty of other suckers in the campground each night.

 We're heading back to Blenheim for a couple of nights then onto Picton before we cross over Sunday morning. We've enjoyed out time at the Lakes but it's time to move on.