'Yeah Right'

Real Time

But don't panic, I'm just taking a short break to do the next three blogs before they too become history. I'll be back to do the remainder of the Far North & Northland posts as soon as possible. I certainly don't want to miss those as they take in our travels down the stunning & more remote areas of the Hokianga and the west coast of Northland and North Auckland.

We are now back in the South Island having left Napier nearly three weeks ago. Our first overnight stay was at the 'famous in NZ' Tui Brewery in Mangatainoka in the Tararua District. More on that later, but I think this just about sums up why I get so far behind on my blogs!

We had a lovely time in Napier, parked once again at our own private POP in Greenmeadows- on the concrete pad beside Mum & Dads'. We caught up family & friends, had numerous lunches & dinners out, celebrated a significant birthday and generally had a relaxing time. I'd been a little disappointed that we wouldn't be back in Central Otago for autumn again but in fact Hawkes Bay put on a wonderful display of colour.

My first port of call was nearby Anderson Park, to not only check on the colours, but more importantly, to check up on my favourite ducks. 

It didn't take me long to locate them either; my two Plumed Whistling Ducks were resting on the far side of the pond. Check out the link to find out why these ducks are very special, I have been checking in on them (there used to be three ducks) since 2013. 

While on my walk I also spied two mallard ducks roosting in a tree which is unusual behaviour for them. Duck shooting season had just begun so the ponds had more than their usual amount of waterfowl visiting, perhaps they were looking for some space. A pair of NZ Shoveler/Kuruwhengi ducks (bottom right) kept a wary eye on me as did two cute wee Grey Teal/Tete Moroiti ducks (centre left). On a later walk I was surprised to find one of the whistling ducks all by itself along one of the streams that join the ponds. In all my visits I have never seen them that far away from the top pond or by themselves.

I also spotted two more vagabonds; large (dinner plate size) Red Eared Slider Turtles that quickly disappeared into the murky depths when they spotted me. I've seen them before in one of the other ponds but not in this one, abandoned pets that have adapted to their new lifestyle in a suburban pond. They are regarded by conservation people as a pest, one of the world's 100 most evasive species.

I walked to the south end of the park on the look out for another regular visitor to the ponds; many of the trees along the way had changed colour or were in the process of changing. 

And sure enough, tucked in behind a tree, resting in his usual place on the miniature railway bridge, was another familiar bird; a rare White Heron/Kotuku. This particular bird and sometimes a smaller female have returned to Anderson Park for the winter for many years.

"If I look like a stick she might not see me"

Here's a photo I took of him on the same bridge railing, 6 years ago in 2013. I must have been visiting later in the month back then as the Swamp Cypress had already turned it's rustic red.

I did a couple of tiki-tour drives around the Bay on the lookout for more autumn colour and especially the golden tones in the vineyards. With many of the vineyards planted on the Heretaunga Plains, it was a little difficult to get above them to get an overall view of the rows. I took this one from the side of the road, just south of Waiohiki near Taradale. 

Never one to miss a photo opportunity (or two), I stopped just a little further on at Omahu to shoot these two abandoned houses. Not all Art Deco homes make it to the big time.

The golden colours were much more noticeable as I moved into the open expanse of vineyards near Roys Hill in the famous Gimblett Gravel area. I walked to the top of a small knoll in a reserve to look down on this great swathe of gold.

My next stop was across the other side of Hastings at the Te Mata Estate Winery in Havelock North. Te Mata Estate has some of the oldest winery buildings in New Zealand...

...and also one of the most recognisable houses. Buck House' sits in the Coleraine Vineyard, started by John Buck as part of his Te Mata Estate Winery. The house was designed by the late Sir Ian Athfield for the Buck family, was built in 1980 and is a NZ Heritage listed building. Buck House is an important example of Modern Movement architecture in New Zealand.

On my quest for colour I also travelled to the other side of Napier and managed to shoot more golden hues at the Esk Valley Estate Winery near Bay View (see below).  But of course the best autumn colour has to go to the Acer/Japanese maple trees. I found this magnificent specimen (below bottom) with its beautiful range of colours...

...beside a road side stall that had a ready supply of my most favourite autumn fruit; the humble fig. Ok, first equal favourite autumn fruit, it also sold feijoas!  I think these are Adriatic Candy, they were very sweet and very delicious. Between Mum & I, we kept the road side stall in business for a couple of weeks. I so know where I got my love of seasonal fruits from.

Of course a blog post wouldn't be complete without a church photo. This isn't just any old church though, this is 'The Old Church', near Taradale. Now a restaurant & wedding venue, St Mary of the Assumption Church was deconsecrated in 1972 and subsequently leased to the Taradale Pottery Club of which Mum was once a member and secretary.

I took one last walk around Anderson Park before we left Napier...

...it was amazing to see how much the Swamp Cypress had changed colour in the three week time frame between these two photos. We had a glorious autumn in Hawkes Bay and like summer we had no significant rain during the five weeks we were in Napier. Towards the end of our stay Mum & I were both hoping for a wet day so we could stay in bed for the day. But winter had arrived and it was time for us to leave sunny Hawkes Bay and head south. South to the middle of the South Island for a snowy, frosty winter (hopefully).

So that is how we found ourselves at the Tui Brewery for the night. But not before we stopped just north of Norsewood at Anzac Park (#3946 $2pp per night), for a late lunch with the thought that we might stay here for the night. 

OMG- what's with that photo on the back, now I have to get used to having it in my shots! 

But after a bite to eat and a quick walk through the bush- which I'm afraid didn't inspire me- we decided to continue on south. 

Next stop, Tuiwood!

The Tui Brewery is a POP (NZMCA Park over Property #4930) and the instructions said to drive around to Gate 3. We found the Gate but weren't too sure where to park so drove through the open gate and around the back of the brewery onto a lovely wide open sealed area. Could this be where we park, we asked ourselves.  'OK, stop David' I said, 'I'll take some photos before we turn around and find out for sure'. 

Just as I finished clicking away a ute came speeding up behind us. A lovely young man climbed out and explained that we shouldn't be here, the gate had been left open by mistake and when his boss saw us driving past on the CCTV screen he blew a foo-foo-valve. 

NZMCA parking is back through the gate on the large sealed patch just outside, which we thought was the case anyway but we just wanted to make sure and grab a few photos of the iconic tower without a chain-link fence between us while we were at it! He also gave us a tip on where to park to avoid the nearby security spot lights that burned bright all night.

We left the next morning before the Tui bar & cafe were open but we had a wander through the garden, checked out the brewery and the museum...

...before making our way to the sign board where we make up our signs (which had been on my 'must do' list for awhile).

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.