Dear Friends,
I left Auckland on May 7th to fly home to California…lots of wedding details to be hammered out before the big day on May 21. I flew on the same flight as one of Rob’s work mates, Jarrod. Jarrod was flying through SFO to business meetings in Amsterdam and France. It appeared that our flight was going to be early….something I always celebrate!! Then… we flew over SFO in a holding pattern for what seemed to be forever! Ugh! I am so glad I did not have a tight connection to try to make, as customs was at high alert due to the recent news regarding Osama Bin Laden. I was a very happy camper to get through customs, and out the door to meet Emmy. We bid farewell to Jarrod and got on the road for our trip to Sacramento.
We drove straight back to Sacramento, as Emmy had what we thought was going to be the final fitting of her wedding dress. But…somehow they made a boo boo in the previous alterations, and now we needed to come back again for the final fitting. I was completely knackered! At one point I was talking to Emmy, and then I was completely asleep…needless to say that when we returned to Emmy & Chris’ house, I went straight to bed. This jet lag had really hit me hard.
My plan was to work with Emmy on all the loose ends, and tighten up all the plans that were already in motion. If I had gone to Sonoma…we all know that I would never have been as productive as I was in Sacramento. I also had the privilege of cooking a bit for the kids. I loved having Chris tell me how much he appreciated home cooked meals…I will cook for those kids anytime!! I can’t tell you how fast that first week flew! Blink, blink, and we were picking up the wedding dress, packing the car & driving to Sonoma for the week before the wedding activities.
One of the greatest concerns for us was the weather…that first week in Sacramento was nice enough, but the forecast was changing dramatically…rain, rain, and more rain! Heaps and heaps of rain with lovely bits of hail as well. Oh joy! Once we got to Sonoma, we had one last meeting with the cake baker, and then off to the site to meet up with the caterer and the photo booth vendor. We still were trying to assess whether or not we would rent an event tent…but seeing that the wind was howling through the site, it only took me one minute to make a decision to rent that tent. And, of course, Maryellen, the caterer helped me decide by telling me we really needed to define the space. Whilst we were checking out the barn I was having a difficult time envisioning simple décor…but after going through the layout with Neil & Maryellen, I was feeling a bit more confident that we could achieve a simple yet elegant décor for that very empty barn. The wedding site, with the views through the vineyard to the surrounding hills in the valley, would be what most people would take home with them…. It is like any re-do…the vision will come to life as you are able to get your ideas into action.
And action is what occupied us throughout the week. We even had an action register with people assigned to each action. So organized! First item on the list was a lovely bridal shower hosted by the maid of honor, Megan. I was in charge of organizing all of the food. Many thanks to my sisters, sister-in-laws, mother-in-law, and friends for bringing such delish food!! Megan put together such an amazing setting in her parent’s back yard. This girl knows how to set the scene…and every detail was carried out with finesse! There were 45 or 50 women in the family, and a few very close friends in attendance. It was definitely a great way to set the stage for the activities to follow throughout the week. Next time I have a party…I will be consulting with Megan!
After the bridal shower, all the girls headed out to San Francisco for the bachelorette party. They had a custom game that was designed by one of the bride’s maids…Michelle. It sounded very clever, and from their stories it sounded like they all enjoyed their night out with Emmy. I could not believe that some of the bachelorette party would get up so early and run in the Bay-to-Breakers, an annual SF event…but there was proof via Facebook, that Megan, Emmy, Leanna & Tracy got in their race outfits and started the race…good on ya girls! I did hear that they were thoroughly freaked out by all the naked, old men jogging/running along- side them…eek!
After the girls left the shower…I went off to my dear friend, Anne’s house. Ross came up from Alameda, and the three of us walked into town and had a lovely dinner together at Harvest Moon. Oh my! If you have never been there…it is fantastic! It was very crowded, but we were able to huddle under some over head heaters and enjoy the back garden before the rain let loose. And then the rain started…aaak! All night it poured!
Sunday, Ross went off to his company planned outing, and Anne & I went off to Inverness. My first wish was to be able to visit the spot where my mum was laid to rest. We had planted her favorite colored rhododendron, and I wanted to see that it was doing well. It was gorgeous! One of the flowers had come into full bloom, with many more buds getting ready to burst open…also, some very special person had found some more heart shaped stones and set them on the large heart shaped rock that was put near the rhododendron the day we had the burial service. It was a peaceful, beautiful visit. A very emotional moment for me…
I had also rallied a few girlfriends to brave the weather and join me on a hike to the top of Mt. Vision. At the start of our hike…we just had little spits of rain, and then it seemed to clear nicely for the majority of our climb up the mountain. This was a hike that I had done many times during my childhood, and I was honored to have Nichola and Lisa join me and Anne. We reached our picnic spot on the top of the mountain, overlooking the Point Reyes Peninsula just as a huge, black cloud was moving our way. Anne & Lisa came prepared with winter garb…I lent Nichola a waterproof jacket…and we all huddled around our picnic table as a fierce hail storm unloaded on us. I will have to say we laughed hare at the irony of the timing! What? Hail storms on Mt. Vision in May? We managed to eat our lunch, and set off for the return trip down the mountain. Not long after we left our picnic spot…the rain/hail stopped, and we enjoyed a gorgeous hike back down to Inverness. Oh what a special place Inverness is…very close to my heart!
As soon as we returned to Sonoma…the wedding work went into full gear! Emmy & I set out on a very rainy Monday to Santa Rosa to shop for decorating supplies at Michael’s Crafts, look at rental plants, and exchange some gifts that had been duplicated. That kind of shopping really drained me…when we were leaving the car park to head home in a driving rain storm…I had a panic attack! Was this rain ever going to go away? And were we going to be able to get this venue decorated and ready in time for Saturday? I couldn’t believe how calm Emmy was…hmmn…I was the one who was supposed to be keeping Emmy calm.
Relatives started arriving on Tuesday, the tent went up on Wednesday, a trip to the flower mart in SF was at o’dark hundred on Thursday, pedicures/manicures were scheduled for Friday as well as the wedding rehersal & dinner…and Saturday after hair and make up there were photos…lots of them before the wedding! All the time in between was spent on set up…
Thankfully, and army of friends and relies pulled together and helped out so we could achieve the setting! We have so many people to thank for their amazing generosity and support! Those thank you wishes will be personal…I am sure you all know who you are!
My mum must have been up in heaven helping out with the weather! Saturday was sunny and beautiful with a slight breeze! It was such fun to be able to be with Emmy & her girls getting ready for the ceremony. Lots of nervous jitters riveting through me…but I managed to keep my composure better than I thought I would. Before I knew it…the limousine arrived, and we were off to the wedding site for more pre ceremony photos. Laurie, our photographer, did an amazing job with all the photos…what an incredibly talented friend!
All the gorgeous guys had cleaned up, and donned their tuxedo’s…what a beautiful group of friends and relies! As soon as these photos were taken, Rob & the girls all went back to the limousine to have a little drive around while the guests began arriving. I had one little adjustment to my wedding outfit…a little surprise that I had kept from everyone. I had a custom hat made for me in NZ to go with my dress…a big surprise to most everyone! Joe & Denise and I welcomed the guests as they arrived…what fun catching up with all the friends and relies!! Very brief catch ups…and lots of love and happiness was flowing!
And then… the ceremony! Joe escorted both Denise & me down the aisle, then the bride’s maids & groomsmen…followed by the most adorable little ring bearer holding the hands of the two darling flower girls! One of the little flower girls got into throwing the rose petals down, while the other got upset and tried picking up the petals…soooo cute! And then…the aisle runner came down and our gorgeous Emmy on the arm of her Daddy. Gulp…got a big hitch in my heart, as tears started to escape…deep breath…and got that flow to stop briefly. Emmy & Chris were brilliant! There were some fun moments in the ceremony that had everyone giggling…as the feeling of love and support was incredible! In a very short time we were all cheering and welcoming Mr. & Mrs. Christopher Kirkwood! There was just so much happiness in my heart!!
Once this wedding started…there was only a good time to be had…and that we did! From the awesome setting, to the photo booth , the food, the wine, and the dancing!! Oh boy was the dancing a blast!! And of course it was fantastic to see family friends, and meet more family and friends. Emmy & Chris sure have some amazing people in their lives! It was a total shock when the DJ announced the last song…we wanted to dance for days! We stayed until the wee hours visiting with the late crowd and Tony & Christine…our friends that own the venue. It was all just the greatest party!
After the relatively easy clean up on Sunday, we gathered once again with family & friends in the Sonoma Plaza to have a chance to visit some before we all went off on our next journey. Emmy & Chris were going off to Whistler, B.C. for their honeymoon, and Rob & I were going off to celebrate our 30th wedding anniversary in Sedona, Arizona. I have no idea how I was able to organize all of luggage…but being the early bird, I got up and started packing before we went to the venue to do the final clean up. Thankfully, Ross was able to hold on to our extra luggage at his cottage in Alameda until we flew back to NZ out of SFO.
So now I am on the plane about one hour out of AKL…I’ll be writing about Sedona in my next blog…as this post is getting on a bit in length…To all of you who were a part of the wedding times…thank you all for making Chris & Emmy’s wedding so special! It is a very special privilege to officially be a part of Chris’ wonderful family!
Sunday, June 5, 2011
Wednesday, March 2, 2011
Tossing About in The Tasman Sea
Abel Tasman National Park – Tossing About in The Tasman Sea
Summer continues to be warm and at times very humid here in New Zealand. But today the chilly south wind is blowing and I have had to get my jumper on (aka sweater). It is nothing near as cold as it sounds back in the Sonoma! Snow? I guess those false spring days got you all in the mood that winter was over. Looks like winter has come storming back!
At the end of January, my brother, Todd, and his partner, Barbara arrived in New Zealand for a brief visit. We showed them around our little village, took them out to Tiritiri Matangi Island where I volunteer, and then sent them off to tour the Bay of Islands on their own. They returned the following Friday evening, and we heard all about their adventures in the Northland. The next day we ferried over to Waiheke Island and did an interesting art/sculpture walk along the coastline. Todd & Barbara seemed to have had a great visit here in NZ. Barbara especially loved combing the beaches for beach glass…what a collector she is!
Just a little over a week after Todd & Barbara left NZ, Ross flew in from SFO. We had been planning a trip down in the South Island in the Abel Tasman National Park. We signed up for a combination 3 day/2 night kayak/tramping trip with a company called Wilson’s Abel Tasman National Park. Ross arrived at o’dark thirty on the 10th of February, and Rob & I drove out to AKL airport to pick him up. Back home in Devonport we finished our last minute packing and left on the 11th for Nelson. Rob had to pack two different kinds of bags, as he was travelling on to Amsterdam as soon as we finished our kayak/tramping trip.
The company that we booked with to do the Abel Tasman Trek with picked us up at our hotel bright and early on Saturday. We weren’t sure when they were going to arrive…hoping to be the last pick up…but we were the first, so we scrambled downstairs to check out and hop on the bus. Luckily, we could keep our extra luggage at the hotel, because Ross & I were going to return to the same hotel. After multiple stops at the various hotels/motels and bus stops, we headed out to Motueka. Motueka is about a ½ an hour drive from Nelson on the way to the gateway to the Abel Tasman National Park. There were 21 in our group including 3 guides…2 guides for the kayakers, and one guide for the trampers.
We arrived in Kaiteriteri about another ½ hour out of Motueka, where those of us who were kayaking departed the bus. Mike and Gina were are fearless kayak guides, and in a very short time they had us briefed on technique and safety…and off we went…into the Tasman Sea. We were all in double kayaks except Mike, who had a single kayak. Considering none of us had any experience kayaking, I was pretty impressed that we all looked to be doing well as we got into our trip. The wind picked up a bit before we paddled ashore for lunch, and Mike instructed us to go straight into the waves to avoid capsizing. He and Gina also instructed us on how to land a kayak on the beach without toppling out of the boat. We all passed our landing lesson onto the beach at Stillwell Bay… joining our group of trampers .
As we were getting ready to continue our journey to the next destination where we would stay at Torrent Bay beachfront lodge, Mike and Gina gathered us up to talk seriously about safety again, as the wind was starting to pick up. They told us about a stretch of coastline known as the ‘Mad Mile’…and they wanted to make sure that we were all prepared to paddle hard. They also told us that once we got going, we would not have an option to pull out…so we really better make our paddling count. Head into the waves, and not let your boat get hit by a side wave. We all thought that the Mad Mile was going to be over when we reached a prominent point that we could see from our lunch spot. So…it did not seem like it would be such a horrible challenge. I don’t think any of us realized that after our trip to that point was when the Mad Mile began… and around that point was where the wind was HOWLING heaps!!
We were taking wave after wave after wave…head on. Our skirts that were supposed to keep us dry as the waves hit were leaking. After what seemed like eons, Rob yelled up to me and asked if I had water in the boat. Well, yes I did…I had a bath. He thought we should not have so much water in the boat, so he asked Gina about it. Gina and Ross, were towing an elder couple from Germany, who were really struggling to stay up with the group. I am not sure what Gina said to Rob, but within a minute of her answering, we got slammed by another wave that had us going sideways, and then BAM! We were upside down under water. Thankfully, we paid attention to how to release the skirt if you were to capsize. Out of the water popped Rob…and then me. Both sputtering, and remembering to hold onto the boat and the paddle. Unfortunately, we were getting blown about by the waves and it made it very difficult to swim to Mike’s kayak. I am a very strong swimmer, but I felt like I was not going to make it the way we were being tossed about. I completely panicked…swallowed water…and started hyper ventilating. And I thought there was no way we were going to be able to get back in that kayak without further distress. We were losing ground rapidly, that had taken us ages to paddle. Once we were able to get the water out of our cubbies, Mike flipped the kayak, and rafted up to our kayak. At this point, time was of the essence, as we were continually hammered by wave after wave. Mike had a line that he secured over the lip of my seat that was long enough to create a step for me. He was yelling at me to just get on the step and pull myself into the boat. Sounded so easy…but I was stuffed, and I was still panicking, and I felt like my arms would not move. Adrenaline kicked in as I thought of a shark coming to get me… I catapulted from the water into the seat. My knee was bent wrong, and it took further strength to wrangle myself into my seat. Whew! Mike helped me snap my skirt back on, and then he moved on to get Rob in the boat. Rob was up and in a lot easier than me, and as soon as he was in Mike attached a tow line from his kayak to our kayak …and we started paddling as fast as we could to shore. An Aqua Taxi came by to check on us, and help out with some of our debris that came loose from our kayaks. Mike and Rob both assured him that we would be fine, and that we could make it to shore…they didn’t give me a chance to beg for a ride…
The rest of the group was struggling as well…luckily, no one else had capsized. The German couple had started paddling alone, and they were paddling to the wrong cove. So, again, Ross, and Gina had to paddle like mad towing another kayak to get to the German couple and get them to head toward the Torrent Bay beach. Finally, Rob & I were back in our kayak with 95% less water sloshing under our skirts…we were still crashing up and down through the waves, but we were making some progress. At some point Mike unhooked the tow rope, and we began paddling in toward the beach. Instead of hitting the waves head on, we were surfing the waves in…I was still terrified that we would be swamped again. I just wanted to get to land and collapse. Our paddle into land on the beach was classic…I ended up face first in the sand thanks to Rob jumping out first before I could get out. Hmmn…I had serious doubts about any further kayaking…especially if it would be in rough seas. The rest of the kayakers landed safely, and we all pulled our kayaks up to the racks outside the Torrent Bay Lodge. The only things on my mind at that point were a shower, and a nap…in that order. Got the shower, and felt revived enough to skip the nap.
That night after an amazing dinner, Mike & Gina wanted to have a little download on the day with the Kayak group. It was pretty evident that once we started on that Mad Mile, we were all pretty overwhelmed by the power of the raging ocean. Everyone spoke of their real fears and experiences…and Mike wanted to make sure we were all ok with kayaking on the next day. It took quite a bit of persuading to get me to concede that I would go out on a raging ocean. My concession was…if it was calm on the water in the morning, I would go with the kayakers…otherwise, I would be a tramper, and join the other group. I was truly traumatized out there in that tossing sea, and there was no way I was going to repeat that experience.
Before going to bed, I packed my pack as if I would be tramping the next day. I don’t think I moved an inch after my head hit the pillow that night...my arms felt like concrete, and everything was swaying. I slept like a brick. The morning arrived and lo and behold…there was not a ripple on the ocean. So…now my pack had to be repacked, as I was once again going out into the ocean with my team mates. We had an easy peasy paddle compared to the day before…went around two islands that were teaming with fur seals & rafted up with Mike & Gina to get a history of the coastline that we were kayaking through. The baby seals were adorable, and Mike had a special call that they answered back to him. We also had a little blue penguin pop up in front of us. It was a totally different experience than the day before. And…no capsizing today! We kayaked in to our lunch spot, Onetahuti Bay, had some swims, and waited for the trampers to catch up with us. The water was definitely refreshing, but once you got in, you could stay in for a good bit. The colors of the ocean were amazing green blue, aqua blue, turquoise…just amazing colors!
An Aqua Taxi arrived at the beach to pick up Gina and the kayaks, as we were now going to be tramping for the rest of our stay. We bid farewell to Gina …we were going to miss her! Eventually, the trampers arrived and we joined them on the last bit of their tramp to the Meadowbanks Homestead Lodge. Now we had Mike and John as our guides as we tramped up through the Tonga Saddle and the bush toward Meadowbank Homestead Lodge. All along the way, the guides imparted a lot of their knowledge of the flora and fauna, and the history of the area. Another long day out in the open air and sea, had me plum tuckered once again. That shower felt like a true luxury! Once again we were treated to a delicious dinner and great socializing with our group mates.
Day three had us tramping to Totaranui…the end of the trek. After breakfast, we all boarded a barge and were taxied up the estuary at Awaroa Bay. Getting off the barge into the mud flats was quite textural experience as the mud gooshed through our toes until we reached the trail head. It was almost like walking through a pot of porridge…but mud colored and full of clam shells. We tramped in and around a number of coves with green glistening waters and golden sand beaches…through the bush until we arrived at Totaranui. The scenery on this trek was outstanding…I guess it helped that we had perfect weather…except for the first day in the kayaks… Our ferry taxi picked us up at Totaranui, and ferried us down the coast to Anchorage Bay where we got off and ate lunch and had the option of a walk with our guide, John, or a swim at the beach. Rob & I joined the walkers as he was going to be going right to the airport for a flight to Amsterdam. Thankfully, he was able to find a shower when he got to AKL. Ross & I were delivered back to our hotel and spent two very relaxing days in Nelson. The day Ross flew home to SFO, Rob arrived back from Amsterdam. We had a lovely lunch together, and then took Ross via the ferry to the Airbus.
Two days after Ross left NZ, there was a devastating earthquake in Christchurch, which is on the South Island. Christchurch is a city in ruins, and today they announced that the rescue of the missing has become a recovery effort. They continue to have pretty significant aftershocks, and recently there was a news story about a guy predicting that another big earthquake will hit the region in March or April. Enough already for those poor people!! Please rest assured…we are fine, and far away from the area that was affected. This earthquake has really shattered us all here in NZ.
Here’s hoping you all are gearing up for a gorgeous Springtime in the States!
Summer continues to be warm and at times very humid here in New Zealand. But today the chilly south wind is blowing and I have had to get my jumper on (aka sweater). It is nothing near as cold as it sounds back in the Sonoma! Snow? I guess those false spring days got you all in the mood that winter was over. Looks like winter has come storming back!
At the end of January, my brother, Todd, and his partner, Barbara arrived in New Zealand for a brief visit. We showed them around our little village, took them out to Tiritiri Matangi Island where I volunteer, and then sent them off to tour the Bay of Islands on their own. They returned the following Friday evening, and we heard all about their adventures in the Northland. The next day we ferried over to Waiheke Island and did an interesting art/sculpture walk along the coastline. Todd & Barbara seemed to have had a great visit here in NZ. Barbara especially loved combing the beaches for beach glass…what a collector she is!
Just a little over a week after Todd & Barbara left NZ, Ross flew in from SFO. We had been planning a trip down in the South Island in the Abel Tasman National Park. We signed up for a combination 3 day/2 night kayak/tramping trip with a company called Wilson’s Abel Tasman National Park. Ross arrived at o’dark thirty on the 10th of February, and Rob & I drove out to AKL airport to pick him up. Back home in Devonport we finished our last minute packing and left on the 11th for Nelson. Rob had to pack two different kinds of bags, as he was travelling on to Amsterdam as soon as we finished our kayak/tramping trip.
The company that we booked with to do the Abel Tasman Trek with picked us up at our hotel bright and early on Saturday. We weren’t sure when they were going to arrive…hoping to be the last pick up…but we were the first, so we scrambled downstairs to check out and hop on the bus. Luckily, we could keep our extra luggage at the hotel, because Ross & I were going to return to the same hotel. After multiple stops at the various hotels/motels and bus stops, we headed out to Motueka. Motueka is about a ½ an hour drive from Nelson on the way to the gateway to the Abel Tasman National Park. There were 21 in our group including 3 guides…2 guides for the kayakers, and one guide for the trampers.
We arrived in Kaiteriteri about another ½ hour out of Motueka, where those of us who were kayaking departed the bus. Mike and Gina were are fearless kayak guides, and in a very short time they had us briefed on technique and safety…and off we went…into the Tasman Sea. We were all in double kayaks except Mike, who had a single kayak. Considering none of us had any experience kayaking, I was pretty impressed that we all looked to be doing well as we got into our trip. The wind picked up a bit before we paddled ashore for lunch, and Mike instructed us to go straight into the waves to avoid capsizing. He and Gina also instructed us on how to land a kayak on the beach without toppling out of the boat. We all passed our landing lesson onto the beach at Stillwell Bay… joining our group of trampers .
As we were getting ready to continue our journey to the next destination where we would stay at Torrent Bay beachfront lodge, Mike and Gina gathered us up to talk seriously about safety again, as the wind was starting to pick up. They told us about a stretch of coastline known as the ‘Mad Mile’…and they wanted to make sure that we were all prepared to paddle hard. They also told us that once we got going, we would not have an option to pull out…so we really better make our paddling count. Head into the waves, and not let your boat get hit by a side wave. We all thought that the Mad Mile was going to be over when we reached a prominent point that we could see from our lunch spot. So…it did not seem like it would be such a horrible challenge. I don’t think any of us realized that after our trip to that point was when the Mad Mile began… and around that point was where the wind was HOWLING heaps!!
We were taking wave after wave after wave…head on. Our skirts that were supposed to keep us dry as the waves hit were leaking. After what seemed like eons, Rob yelled up to me and asked if I had water in the boat. Well, yes I did…I had a bath. He thought we should not have so much water in the boat, so he asked Gina about it. Gina and Ross, were towing an elder couple from Germany, who were really struggling to stay up with the group. I am not sure what Gina said to Rob, but within a minute of her answering, we got slammed by another wave that had us going sideways, and then BAM! We were upside down under water. Thankfully, we paid attention to how to release the skirt if you were to capsize. Out of the water popped Rob…and then me. Both sputtering, and remembering to hold onto the boat and the paddle. Unfortunately, we were getting blown about by the waves and it made it very difficult to swim to Mike’s kayak. I am a very strong swimmer, but I felt like I was not going to make it the way we were being tossed about. I completely panicked…swallowed water…and started hyper ventilating. And I thought there was no way we were going to be able to get back in that kayak without further distress. We were losing ground rapidly, that had taken us ages to paddle. Once we were able to get the water out of our cubbies, Mike flipped the kayak, and rafted up to our kayak. At this point, time was of the essence, as we were continually hammered by wave after wave. Mike had a line that he secured over the lip of my seat that was long enough to create a step for me. He was yelling at me to just get on the step and pull myself into the boat. Sounded so easy…but I was stuffed, and I was still panicking, and I felt like my arms would not move. Adrenaline kicked in as I thought of a shark coming to get me… I catapulted from the water into the seat. My knee was bent wrong, and it took further strength to wrangle myself into my seat. Whew! Mike helped me snap my skirt back on, and then he moved on to get Rob in the boat. Rob was up and in a lot easier than me, and as soon as he was in Mike attached a tow line from his kayak to our kayak …and we started paddling as fast as we could to shore. An Aqua Taxi came by to check on us, and help out with some of our debris that came loose from our kayaks. Mike and Rob both assured him that we would be fine, and that we could make it to shore…they didn’t give me a chance to beg for a ride…
The rest of the group was struggling as well…luckily, no one else had capsized. The German couple had started paddling alone, and they were paddling to the wrong cove. So, again, Ross, and Gina had to paddle like mad towing another kayak to get to the German couple and get them to head toward the Torrent Bay beach. Finally, Rob & I were back in our kayak with 95% less water sloshing under our skirts…we were still crashing up and down through the waves, but we were making some progress. At some point Mike unhooked the tow rope, and we began paddling in toward the beach. Instead of hitting the waves head on, we were surfing the waves in…I was still terrified that we would be swamped again. I just wanted to get to land and collapse. Our paddle into land on the beach was classic…I ended up face first in the sand thanks to Rob jumping out first before I could get out. Hmmn…I had serious doubts about any further kayaking…especially if it would be in rough seas. The rest of the kayakers landed safely, and we all pulled our kayaks up to the racks outside the Torrent Bay Lodge. The only things on my mind at that point were a shower, and a nap…in that order. Got the shower, and felt revived enough to skip the nap.
That night after an amazing dinner, Mike & Gina wanted to have a little download on the day with the Kayak group. It was pretty evident that once we started on that Mad Mile, we were all pretty overwhelmed by the power of the raging ocean. Everyone spoke of their real fears and experiences…and Mike wanted to make sure we were all ok with kayaking on the next day. It took quite a bit of persuading to get me to concede that I would go out on a raging ocean. My concession was…if it was calm on the water in the morning, I would go with the kayakers…otherwise, I would be a tramper, and join the other group. I was truly traumatized out there in that tossing sea, and there was no way I was going to repeat that experience.
Before going to bed, I packed my pack as if I would be tramping the next day. I don’t think I moved an inch after my head hit the pillow that night...my arms felt like concrete, and everything was swaying. I slept like a brick. The morning arrived and lo and behold…there was not a ripple on the ocean. So…now my pack had to be repacked, as I was once again going out into the ocean with my team mates. We had an easy peasy paddle compared to the day before…went around two islands that were teaming with fur seals & rafted up with Mike & Gina to get a history of the coastline that we were kayaking through. The baby seals were adorable, and Mike had a special call that they answered back to him. We also had a little blue penguin pop up in front of us. It was a totally different experience than the day before. And…no capsizing today! We kayaked in to our lunch spot, Onetahuti Bay, had some swims, and waited for the trampers to catch up with us. The water was definitely refreshing, but once you got in, you could stay in for a good bit. The colors of the ocean were amazing green blue, aqua blue, turquoise…just amazing colors!
An Aqua Taxi arrived at the beach to pick up Gina and the kayaks, as we were now going to be tramping for the rest of our stay. We bid farewell to Gina …we were going to miss her! Eventually, the trampers arrived and we joined them on the last bit of their tramp to the Meadowbanks Homestead Lodge. Now we had Mike and John as our guides as we tramped up through the Tonga Saddle and the bush toward Meadowbank Homestead Lodge. All along the way, the guides imparted a lot of their knowledge of the flora and fauna, and the history of the area. Another long day out in the open air and sea, had me plum tuckered once again. That shower felt like a true luxury! Once again we were treated to a delicious dinner and great socializing with our group mates.
Day three had us tramping to Totaranui…the end of the trek. After breakfast, we all boarded a barge and were taxied up the estuary at Awaroa Bay. Getting off the barge into the mud flats was quite textural experience as the mud gooshed through our toes until we reached the trail head. It was almost like walking through a pot of porridge…but mud colored and full of clam shells. We tramped in and around a number of coves with green glistening waters and golden sand beaches…through the bush until we arrived at Totaranui. The scenery on this trek was outstanding…I guess it helped that we had perfect weather…except for the first day in the kayaks… Our ferry taxi picked us up at Totaranui, and ferried us down the coast to Anchorage Bay where we got off and ate lunch and had the option of a walk with our guide, John, or a swim at the beach. Rob & I joined the walkers as he was going to be going right to the airport for a flight to Amsterdam. Thankfully, he was able to find a shower when he got to AKL. Ross & I were delivered back to our hotel and spent two very relaxing days in Nelson. The day Ross flew home to SFO, Rob arrived back from Amsterdam. We had a lovely lunch together, and then took Ross via the ferry to the Airbus.
Two days after Ross left NZ, there was a devastating earthquake in Christchurch, which is on the South Island. Christchurch is a city in ruins, and today they announced that the rescue of the missing has become a recovery effort. They continue to have pretty significant aftershocks, and recently there was a news story about a guy predicting that another big earthquake will hit the region in March or April. Enough already for those poor people!! Please rest assured…we are fine, and far away from the area that was affected. This earthquake has really shattered us all here in NZ.
Here’s hoping you all are gearing up for a gorgeous Springtime in the States!
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