High on Muriwai

Allie and I made a quick trip on Saturday out to the Muriwai area to buy hay for our group of guinea pigs.  Allie has been buying hay from the same farmer out there for some time. She only knows the farmer's first name though, which is Sally. Years ago, when Allie first bought hay from her, Allie had pencilled some additional reminders into her notebook about Sally so she wouldn't forget who she was. The notes were 'Muriwai' and 'haybale'. Now, given the passage of time, and the repetitions of reading her name and the notes in the notebook, her name has officially evolved to 'Sally Muriwai Haybale.' I think it sounds like a very plausible proper name.  (Allie tells me she also has a Craig Soccer Coach and a Suzy Adam's Mom in her book.)

 The lane leading from the road into Sally Muriwai Haybale's farmyard. 

Part of the farmyard

After we loaded two bales of hay into the car, we headed for the beach. This was not to be an hours-long visit, rather it was going to be just a quick look. The beach after all, was only about 8 minutes away from the Haybale farm. It would be a shame to come all this way for hay and then not make a stop, however briefly, at the beach. I had both my phone and camera charged up and was ready to snap as many as I could. I'm always ready when the opportunity to take photos for another post presents itself...

The boys had declined to come along today. That was fortunate actually. Since Jeanne would also stay behind with them, that meant we could bring home two bales instead of just one, as we had always purchased in the past when we had a car full of us. The boys were deep into a game involving, in part, two recliner-sized boxes that pieces of our new living-room sectional had come packed in. So that was the reason Allie and I would only briefly visit one of the Auckland area's great beaches. 

 The window in the closed position.

The window open and shelf automatically deployed.  Arram reportedly came up with the design of this ingenious system and Amiri added interior comforts as well. 

This next set of photos looks rather odd I think. We were up on the highest turnout above Muriwai Beach, way above even the parking lot for the beach and we're looking north to the rest of Muriwai. The gannet colony is about 1/2 mile away and the distant beach is probably a mile or so. 

That's one of the gannet colony rocks down on the left. 

The sea is reflecting the blue sky on the left of the picture, but the right side, where the beach is, looks grey and boiling.

Here, I think the waves coming in look menacing, like they are arching up and crashing down. 

I've done a little zoom here to try to show you the 'texture' of the beach surf. 

It's raining heavily over there.  The beach has only a very slight slope for a long ways out so the breaking waves and white water covers a wide area. 

A tour bus got in the way. The squall is moving inland. Happily, we could stand outside the storm and watch it from a distance. 

The land really doesn't need any more rain right now.

The storm I showed you is in the north. This was taken at the same time, but looking south-west. What a difference.  

Here is a video I have on Youtube that shows what I've talked about so far. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ehBvZw18uXI

I'm about half-way down the ramp between the parking lot and the beach in this shot. Here is the view of the Tasman Sea. If you look very carefully at the end of the video, the last few frames show mist from the surf drifting shoreward in the sunbeams. 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QBG-7IejSc0

On the black-sand beach with Allie and a pillow-lava boulder. I take a look back at the way I came down and admire the cliff. Take a look...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V_w7409_WWA

Now, take another look back at the waterfall and see what else is going on up there...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vHbWRDI_NkQ

Still on the beach, I'm looking up at the people who are standing about where I stood to take the first video.

 This is taking place about 15 minutes later than the last picture, and I'm going to walk to the headland you see behind Allie. 

Another sea cave

I've never been in this one. I'd like to, but it appears that the window of opportunity is very short. Further, if I did happen to be there at the lowest tide, I'd still have to cross a section of deep water before I could climb up onto a sand floor within the cave. 

I'm back now to the base of the path that leads up to the parking lot. The rocks seem to offer doubtful comfort at best but what do I know? Many of these rocks are pillow lava after all.  Maybe she found just the right ones...
At any rate, time is passing and we have to get home. 

It's only after 3, but the sun is getting lower already. 

Almost to the parking lot now.

 One last zoom back to the cave, 

 And one last look out across the Tasman Sea. What a place!          -djf