Banks Peninsula

Things have been so busy lately I have hardly had a minute to sit down. We have been involved in so many activities, from watching the Springston Trophy competition at the Rangiora A&P Show Grounds to going to see a local production of The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe to spending a couple of days at Hanmer Springs, that it seems I have once again failed to update my blog.

Today, we headed out to Banks Peninsula. Arnold wanted to do some surf casting so we headed to Birdlings Flat. Now, I believe that Birdlings Flat isn't technically on the peninsula but it is close enough. Today we happened to be the only people there. Would this happen anywhere else?
Birdlings Flat is a very interesting area because it is rugged and stony. There is very little sand here and it would be very dangerous to swim in the ocean due to the waves and the contour of the foreshore. We settled into a nice spot and Arnold set up his fishing rod. The children enjoyed sliding down the huge hills of stones, beach combing, and playing at the playground. I relaxed and took a break for a minute or two and took in the beautiful scenery and the ocean spray.
After leaving Birdlings Flat, we headed over Gebbies Pass towards Lyttelton. Lyttelton is a fabulous area which I will have to devote a whole post to at another time. Suffice it to say that the scenery is also stunning and the trip around the various bays is awesome.

We stopped at Corsair Bay so the children would be able to get out of the car and play at a lovely bay side playground. I never had a view like this from any of the playgrounds I frequented as a kid!
We headed into Lyttleton proper for some ice creams and then headed through the tunnel to Christchurch. The areas of Sumner and Scarborough are so nice. We decided to stop at Scarborough so the children could play again and Arnold could drop a line into the water off of a rocky outcrop. Here you can see the walkway along the ocean at Scarborough.
Here you can see the way the houses are built along the hillside with spectacular views of the city, the sea and the hills.Unfortunately, Arnold was unable to catch anything so we headed to our favourite fish shop on Manchester and picked up some nice fish, scallops and whitebait to have our own fish and chips at home.

After a day like today, I know I'll sleep well tonight!