Castlepoint and other highlights

We had a beautiful sunset in Wellington the other day. This is the view from our deck.

















We went to the Wellington Botanic Garden last weekend. The garden is a mix of formal gardens and native bush with lots of trails throughout.

This waterfall and plaque are part of the Peace Garden. The little pagoda houses a flame from the fire created by the atomic bomb dropped on Hiroshima. The flame was given to New Zealand by Japan in recognition of NZ's efforts to stop the spread of nuclear weapons.

This weekend, we drove out to Castlepoint, on the east coast of NZ. The rock reef and headland form a small lagoon and protected beach. We decided to try out sleeping in the back of the station wagon Saturday night. It seems to work pretty well, so we may not get a tent while we're here.















We decided to go exploring from Castlepoint, so we drove north along the coast on the only other road in the area. Most of it was unsealed (gravel) but it was a beautiful drive and there were quite a few deserted beaches. Lots of nooks and crannies. There isn't much development on that portion of the coast, mostly oceanfront sheep farms and forests (which is quite nice).

























The surf wasn't that great on Sunday morning, but there were a few waves coming through. The water was cold but Scott went in anyway. There is a trail along the top of ridge around the lagoon and out to the top of the headland, so we went for a walk on Sunday before heading back towards Wellington.