In New Zealand when the snow and ice melts in summer, it causes algae to leave the mountain tops too and float downstream.

 

Kaupokonui Beach:

It was a fantastic day to go to the beach. So putting on our swimming costumes and packing the car we headed for Kaupokonui beach. The beach can be seen on the map, below Mt Taranaki, on the south-west coast of New Zealand’s north island. 

 

We had been there before a few times already. So I’m going to use photos we took about three weeks earlier. 

 

But this time we came, it was in warmer weather. Crossing the pedestrian bridge we walked towards the sea with the river on our left.  

 

The collage shows different views of the bridge (from previously taken, photos, when I had walked up stream) 

Our artless floundering:

If you are comparing photos, the water of the river wasn’t flowing so strongly or very deep this day we swam in it. But just deep enough to wade and wallow in. And that is what we women did. The water was moderately warm and irresistible to splash about in. 

I took in the fact this was an unusual way of swimming and that this was on a most unconventional type of beach. Very dramatic place with glittering black-grey beach sand and smooth oval pebbles… and that made me chuckled quietly to myself.  

We messed around there for some time, while the men went off on a little walk of their own. Here are some photos our son took of the hills on the other side of the river. Personally I never got a change to walk up there myself. 

Drifting algae:

After a while I noticed little bits of algae floating down stream towards us. Not lots, just a little here and there. I was told that generally occurs in summer when the mountain snow and ice melts.  

And the public is warned not to swim in the rivers under those conditions. So we got out of the water, collected our towels, etc and headed home again. But I must say our little bathing frolic was great fun! 

A few days later:

Off to the beach again. This time to Ohawe beach, which is eastward along the coast from Kaupokonui beach. We had been there quite a few times before.

 

Walking onto the beach I sat down on a long dry log. Looking around me, I soaked in the warm of the day and the serene beauty of the sea. Then, I noticed that our daughter-in-law had entered a biggish puddle, dammed up on the seashore, and was splashing happily about in it. 

Shame, I lost out on a great frolic!

The puddles on the beach weren’t filled with water from the river, but with seawater. So there were no algae in the water. 

As I watched her, with envy I felt somehow I had lost out, by not wearing my own costume, because she was having such a great time messing about in that glorious puddle! 

I guess you win some, and you lose some, hey!  

It’s so much fun doing silly things, like wallowing in rivers and puddles, somewhat like a bunch of kids would do. Wish I could go back to New Zealand and splash and wallow about… in every puddle you can imagine! 

Next week’s blog:

…Nowells Lake adventure.  Plus an oil painting.