Mt. Taranaki

The last weekend of February we took a trip over to the west coast of the north island. We rondezvoused with Roger's sister, Judy, and her friend and traveling buddy, Susan. We stayed in New Plymouth, but Mt. Taranaki is close by. It is part of a very large national park and has beautiful hiking trails and some very good skiing in the winter months. The weather forecast for Mt. Taranaki this weekend was for 200mm (7.87") of rain! Yikes, no wonder it's so lush and green. Glad we were there LAST weekend when they only got about an inch of rain.

Cape Kidnappers

When we returned home Roger, Judy and Susan went on a tractor/trailer ride (think: hay wagon) to Cape Kidnappers. Cape Kidnappers is home to the Gannet Reserve. Gannets are large sea birds that have been nesting on Cape Kidnappers since the late 1800s, but more about gannets later.

Interesting geography

Some of the scenery on the way to Cape Kidnappers.

Up to the top.

Part of the hike to the top of Cape Kidnappers. More than just a leisurely stroll, but a gorgeous view of Black Reef and the Tasman Sea.

Cape Kidnappers from the top.

Looks like a dragon's tail. In the middle of this picture, on the flat expanse of rock, is one of the gannet colonies. The colony used to extend all the way out to the white arc, but there are fewer of them now.

Gannet

Gannets are large birds (their wingspan can be as much as 2 meters) that belong to the booby family and have a life span of 25-40 years. The Gannets in this area live almost all their lives here except for an excursion to Australia. At the age of 16 weeks baby Gannets, that have never before been airborne, make their first flight over the Tasman Sea (about 1700 miles) to Australia where they stay for 2-3 years. They then return to NZ where they live the rest of their lives.