I can fly!

What a night! I was parked overnight a few metres from a small cliff above a beautiful east (Pacific) facing beach. The southerly that howled in yesterday had turned to a sou' easter and its winds buffeted the van all night long. It was a bit like a free roller-coaster ride. At least I was in a relativley shelterd van - the person in the wee pup tent that I woke to find just behind the van would have had a very different experience!

Had a slow breakfast then back on the road heading to Moeraki, just a few kms down the road. What a stunning section of coastline! I've been to the Moeraki Boulders several times before but they still hold me in total fascination. Maybe it's the way some people act around them, hopping, jumping, clambering and generally being silly, or maybe it's their very uniform shapes which are so at odds with what nature usually produces. Then there's' the tide and the lapping ocean which always adds an intersting variable depending on its height, direction and force. And finally, the Pacific sky backdrop which today, looked quite broody for a while but quickly blew over into patchy blue sky and sunshine. Whatever the mix, today was enthralling though I didn't quite manage to get 'the' image I'd hoped for. Still - there's always another time.

After having driven to Palmerston (and taken time to think about Blaze as I passed the site of his accident) I then had to decide whether to continue south or cut inland which would mean returning via the West Coast. Inland won.

Tonight I'm treating myself to a powered campsite and a hot shower in Ranfurly. It's been a few yeas since I was here and I'm looking forward to being amongst the Grahame Sydney-esque landscape for a short while tomorrow.

Oh - and today's image is of a young cormorant who really tested his flying skills as he leaped off the cliff he was sitting on (just south of Kakanui) and took off directly into the howling wind. He passed this lesson thankfully! I thought he looked like a dancer!