Yet again we sleep well which still surprises me. Perhaps it’s the longer nights this far South where daylight doesn’t come calling until after 7. As I am now an intrepid photographer I have to be up at dawn to catch the “blue” light but it still feels like a sleep in.
I don’t need to say “I told you so” to WH, re the Crayfish, as his foot is doing it for me so I make no comment as he reaches for the gout pills. I simply ask if ice would make his swollen, red foot feel any better?
We head upstairs and after breakfast get another history lesson from our skipper Robb. Its a fascinating history and I aim to go home and get a book and read all about it. The wind is ferocious and I try to take pictures of the squalls as they rise from the sea and into the air.
We leave Sportmans’ bay and head back to back to Luncheon Cove where we have the option to watch the rugby test which was recorded on Saturday and with no cellphone or internet coverage nobody yet knows the score or the other alternative is to take the tender to Anchorage island and walk up to the lakes. I opt to walk to the lake and WH decides he will do the same (I know right, surprised me too).
We head back to our cabin to put our tramping gear. I am feeling a certain smugness as prior to our departure I had to get some new sports shoes for the trip as my old ones had holes in the toes. I purchased some gortex waterproof ones for no other reason than they had my size. Unfortunately for WH his are not waterproof. We pull on elastic waisted waterproof pants and for me a Japan rugby world cup waterproof poncho which I note to WH, with added smugness “told you I would use it again”. WH has a good waterproof jacket purchased in Sweden so he can be smug in his jacket and I in my shoes. We do have our warm woolly socks and layers of merino underneath so we are like boy scouts or girl guides or whoever says “be prepared”. As we make our way to the rear of the boat to get in the tender I am yet again reminded of what an amateur I am. Only one camera body. Two lenses and no zips.
For real photographers there are zips everywhere and no elastic to be seen. There are zips up trouser legs, there are zips upon zips on jackets, there are zips up over shoe boot things, there are zips across pockets both horizontally and vertically for all manner of much needed tramping things. I hunt for a zip but alas I am yet again an imposter.
Tender to Anchorage Island
Its really, really, wet and to say the track is muddy is an understatement its more like a creek. Each step takes concentration as the foot is placed gingerly to ensure there is some sort of solid ground beneath. In many places the sure ground is below the top of the shoe and the wet muddy water rolls in over the top. It is surprisingly warm and squishy and I am sure that despite my lack of zips I have the best tramping socks of all happy bush walkers (can’t have zips in socks). I also have the piece se resistance as I have Bev’s home knitted beanie on so added to my elastic pants and rugby poncho apart from the feet I am dry and warm.
We shimmy over fallen trees, walk across logs bridging the creeks, limbo under branches and I love the feeling of being in the bush but wish I could stop and smell the roses. The return trip we take slower and whilst the roses aren’t there it is good to stop and smell the bush. We have a wonderful lady with us who knows the bush well and she points out native winter flowers and how to tell the difference between a male and female Rimu, the males are way pricklier and you can definitely feel it. (I didn’t say a word).
It felt good to be off the boat and walking further than the 20 metres to our cabin. When we get back to the meeting point we have to wait for the tender to get back so we talk to Ellie the crew member extraordinaire. Ellie hails from Sweden and is enjoying her time in NZ and in the small world that is our beautiful globe WH spent 3 weeks in her home town in Sweden a few years ago. So we all tell stories and hardly notice the sandflies nibbling at any exposed skin. I hope she gets to stay here like she wants to and that the uncertainty many working visa people have finally gets some resolution. Along with all this chatter we of course we watch the seals.
We have to select two photos to show this evening in the review and I am nervous in my amateurism but I am also happy with what I have taken. They will forever remind me of this place and time and I hope whoever views them feels a little bit of what I did when a clicked the shutter. We are told not to over process them but as I don’t have any software to process them with mine will be purely be as the button clicked.
A moment in time captured forever.
I am a lucky girl.