A Few Days in Hanmer Springs

We spent two days relaxing at the NZMCA park by the Hanmer Bridge, which is about 7kms from the village. In October when we had stayed I'd written a blog post of this little alpine village, so this post is about a couple of forest walks.

The morning started with a little fog slowly rising upward from the ground - unfortunately there was no spectacular sunrise.

There wasn't any movement in the campground. I'm guessing the campers must still have been snoozing. - smart move.

Before lunch I took the dogs for a walk along 'Dog Creek' (It's now named Dog Stream, but when I grew up in Hanmer we always called it 'Dog Creek'). There's something so therapeutic about this area. The scene was set with an astounding variety of every shade of green, the trees were full of bird song, plum trees scattered about were dripping in ripe fruit, rowan trees weighed down with an abundance of berries, the gentle bubbling water (free of toxic algae) ... it was incredibly peaceful and inviting.

I googled what the colour 'green' represents, this is what I discovered ...
'It symbolizes growth, harmony, freshness, and fertility. Green has strong emotional correspondence with safety. Green has great healing power. It is the most restful color for the human eye'.
No wonder this place felt like the perfect tonic.

Plum trees smothered in plums (both red and green) were growing along the track. Remember the good old-fashioned wild apple trees with apples that had black spots, dimples and that sweet tasting russet? Those very trees were along the walk - the apples were crisp, juicy and ohhh so tasty!

Rowan trees were also dotted about, with prolific orangey-red berries bending branches with their weight - does that mean we're in for a harsh winter?

The tracks near Squirrel Lake were also stunning, and we were lucky enough to be there when the blackberries were ripe. It brought back childhood memories of eating so many blackberries our teeth had a purple tinge. 

It's an ideal area for dogs. So much space and places to explore. A huge open paddock near the lake gave the dogs a massive space to run around and chase each other.

Boo and her out of control ears.

Worth a try ...but "No Paddy, you can't swim in that lake".

Fifty shades of green.

I couldn't leave Hanmer without a photo of the Waiau Ferry Bridge. I was hoping to get one with sunset colours but the sky didn't play its part, instead it remained plain grey - maybe next time?

Hometown Hanmer Springs

I was looking forward to visiting Hanmer - my childhood home. My parents grew up there too, so it's always been a special place.

We arrived early afternoon and set up. We were getting low on groceries so headed to the local supermarket in the village to stock up. After a quick tiki-tour we headed back to the rig to relax the evening away.

The resident roosters woke me at 6am. 

What an awesome start to the day. I got up, grabbed the camera and took Paddy to 'The Hammer Reserve' across the road. Although it wasn't raining, the temperature was cool and the cloud cover indicated we were in for a wet day.

We walked beside the Hammer River to where it joins the Waiau River. Paddy was keen for a swim but although it doesn't look like it's swift in the photo - it was. Plus it was freezing.

I arrived back at the rig just as the first drops of rain started. I snuggled back into bed and fell asleep to the pitter patter of rain on the roof. Bliss.

Later, we took the dogs for a brief walk under the cover of the trees in the forestry. 

The two park roosters made certain no-one slept in. I'm sure they went from van to van making sure everyone knew it was morning! It looked like we were in for a nice day.

If you want to feast your eyes on different shades of green, the Hammer Forest tracks are the place to go. 

Each track has different species of trees growing, which creates differences in the amount of light filtering through.

After walking a few tracks on the right side of the road, Oakly had had enough and sat down on the track and refused to move. Luckily Bernie was still in the area, so he came and picked him up. 

I continued on ....

Across the road and over the creek is a path that leads to Squirrel Lake. The photo of the track above opens up to a large open field, that's bordered with soft pink blossoming trees, a variety of deciduous trees and conifers.

Through childhood eyes, I remember the lake being much bigger - but it's tiny! However it's still as lovely as ever.

Leaving the forestry area on my way to the village, I stopped to look at Hanmer Primary School. The school my parents went to and their siblings. And a few years later where my brothers and I went.

Next was the village - it's certainly changed. So touristy now and busy with people on holiday, soaking up and enjoying an alpine environment.

The Banana House with a monkey puzzle tree behind it.

The Avenue - lined both sides with cars and campervans.

The old Post Office. Both my parents worked here on the  telephone exchange, back in the day.

Cars, cars and more cars! 

The NZMCA park where we're staying is 7kms south of the village - I hadn't planned to walk all the way back because Bernie had said to give him a call and he'd pick me up. But it was a gorgeous day and there were a few more photos I wanted to take, so I started wandering and reminiscing.

The paddocks were lush with yellow dandelions scattered about.

Below is the Hammer dump station, which has a dumping area on each side. It has an easy access and is suitable for all size campers.

Some trees still looked as though they had autumn tones.

 Grazing sheep and their lambs kept me entertained as I past several farm paddocks. 

After I'd walked down the stretch of road in the photo above, I was startled by a loud swoosh and a woosh of wind right beside my ear, as a magpie flew within inches of my head. It seemed to appear from nowhere. He/she landed on a power pole in front of me and with it's beady eyes watched as I passed beneath it.

Once I had walked about 50 metres passed, I turned back to check where it was ... it suddenly dived down from it's perch and headed straight for my face. Eeeek!

I shoved my camera towards it hoping it would abort it's flight path. It did - until I had my back turned and then it came at me again and again and again!

By this time, I could almost see the NZMCA park. Yay. Soon I'd be safe from the manic magpie. Plus I was so looking forward to a cold drink.

Home sweet home ... and my wee furry friends were waiting for me.

It must of been the season for stroppy birds because the park's roosters were having an aggressive afternoon too.

Next morning I was woken by the feathery alarm clocks, in time to see a gorgeous sunrise.

By 11 o'clock we had packed up and were on our way to Balmoral Reserve. We'd had a fabulous time in Hanmer and both agreed we wished we could have stayed longer.

Road works caused some delays crossing the Waiau Ferry Bridge - the road had been narrowed to a single lane.

Crossing over the gateway to Hammer Springs, the Waiau Ferry Bridge. Its length is 78 metres and the height above the water is 31 metres.

Heading south to Balmoral Reserve, just before the Hurunui Bridge.