Trout, have no fear!

The 4 day week after Easter was pretty much as busy as expected and certainly more work was done than during the quietest imaginable 4 day on call stretch. After a night on the beers Friday, we spent the rest of the weekend up at Lake Camp a mere 1 hour 30 minutes inland. This was in part to visit another new area and in part to hunt down the elusive trout. Alas, a 4 hour walk in the afternoon provided fantastic views but allowed a pitiful hour for fishing before darkness quickly descended as the sun sunk over the mountainous backdrop of the Southern Alps. The morning broke with frost on the ground and after that same period of an hour a gale started blowing making casting impossible for this novice fisherman and so my landing net remained empty. Autumn has definitely started now with any clear night accompanied by cold temperatures, especially apparent when staying in the van or poorly insulated NZ houses! Still, as spots go there are few better to spend a night and with plenty in the area we tootled on further up the road to "climb" Mount Sunday. Our road map had the area marked as a Lord of the Rings film location and so we were not at all surprised to come across a Gandalf wannabe with a hoard of goblin-like tourists in tow, all posing under a Middle Earth flag at the summit. The views were spectacular despite the fact that this particular mountain had more in common with a mole hill that the surrounding lofty peaks. The 90 minutes was also made more lively by the need to cross a couple of rather nippy glacial rivers.

A week quickly passed and sure enough another weekend escape had been planned. The aim was for an early 1st wedding anniversary surprise for Amy as we will be at the end of 4 days spent tramping the St James Walkway come the 25th. 2 nights had been booked at Tree Crop Farm in Akoroa and having been recommended highly I am pleased to report that all expectations were exceeded. In fact I would go so far as to say that I have never payed to stay in a better place. We were in the Treehouse hut, completely secluded from the rest of the property and set in beautiful grounds. Arriving in the dark, we found our way by torchlight, creeping through the garden to the sumptuous hut before relaxing under the canopy of stars in the outside bath, a log fire crackling underneath and pink champagne in hand. Saturdays adventure was a trip on the water to swim with the harbours resident Hector dolphins. The trip was fantastic with plenty of these miniature dolphins coming to inspect the boat along with a host of bird life including Albatross and penguins. Unfortunately once we plunged into the water the dolphins did not stick around long but this did net really detract from our enjoyment of the trip and it meant we also got a bit of a refund, bonus! A meal of fish and chips watching the sun set over the beautiful Banks peninsular ended the excursion before heading back to our retreat. Sunday was for sleeping late followed by a short leg stretch and then the dreaded drive back home.

On a separate note, my camera repair came undone again up by Lake Camp despite having had little use since coming back from the repair shop unrepaired but slightly more solid. They did provide the required quote for my insurance claim so fingers crossed a cheque will be in the post for a replacement though knowing insurance companies I wont be holding my breath. I've got my eye on either another D80, a camera that has served me so well, or a Panasonic G1.....