Paws Awhile: Relaxing Ruby Bay

We're so lucky to have such stunning places to stay that are only a short distance from home. Last weekend we went to Ruby Bay and stayed at McKee Domain. We'd planned to meet Amanda & Paul there (they also own a Big Country), plus their two friends were staying there too. Rob, who owns a Big Country and Graeme who owns a Sundance (a fifth wheeler made by Heartland). So we were excited to be spending a few days among experienced fifth wheelers.
McKee Domain is strictly no dogs, in fact you aren't even allowed to have them in your car while you drive through. Thankfully Becs and Hamish stayed at home and babysat the dogs. And, in fact, as much as we love and miss our furry friends, we knew we'd relax that little bit more knowing the dogs wouldn't be under our feet.

The truck was still at Heslops having the injectors replaced to correct the starting problem, and although we'd asked for the repairs to be finished by Friday, that wasn't to be! So our rig was parked in Richmond without a truck to tow it! When Paul heard about our dilemma he said he'd be happy to pick the rig up and take it to Ruby Bay for us. So we arranged, for Bernie to meet Paul at our rig and help hitch it up. I was to meet them at McKee Domain. Again, things didn't go as planned! Paul's truck's hitch, wasn't compatible, even though his truck tows a Big Country like ours. Fortunately, Paul's friend Graeme was with him and he suggested going back to get his truck, a Dodge Ram, that has a hitch which tows a similar fifth wheeler.
So, to cut a long story short.... Graeme towed our rig to Ruby Bay. We parked beside Amanda and Paul and enjoyed a few drinks that evening. McKee Domain was packed with people enjoying the last of the holidays before school went back. There were tents, caravans and camper vans everywhere!

Here's a few photos of our first night.

The view from our door, tents everywhere!

We both slept well that night, drifting off to the sounds of waves crashing onto the beach,(we were 500 m from the beach).

The next day, Bernie cooked a massive bbq breakfast, it looked really delicious but at that time of the morning I was only thinking of a cuppa. We pulled out the deck chairs and sat and enjoyed the scenery, which is one of many aspects that's drawn me to this lifestyle. To our left we had a bank of native trees, which were obviously home to many native birds. We watched the native wood pigeons (kereru) swoop, glide and demonstrate their acrobatic displays. I was impressed with the agility of this large, and usually clumsy bird. I tried to capture a pigeon in flight, but they're too quick, and I am still a novice at photographing things with a fast shutter speed!

I've always been interesting (and baffled) by solar power, even the terminology confuses me... 12 amps, 24 amps, invertors etc. At this stage, it sounds like another language to me. However, I am intrigued and somewhat obsessed with the panel that shows our solar power. Here I was turning off all the lights that weren't needed, only to see that LED lights really use minimal power. I guess I had to see it to believe it.
On Saturday, a very knowledgeable guy, 'John' knocked at our door, he specialises in camper van LED bulbs. Almost, all of our bulbs were LED, except the ones above the kitchen and dining room. So, we replaced them through John, and have decided to replace bulbs in the storage compartments with LEDs in the future.

The gauge showing our solar power, this is showing how much we were using at that time.

Most of Saturday was spent discovering and learning. We had a notebook and a camera. Bernie was interested in how Rob had set up the storage compartment behind his truck. We had similar ideas and seeing one in practise was valuable.

We made a list of things we needed in the rig and went into Motueka to stock up.

Main street in Motueka

On Sunday, we woke to blue skies and the sounds of people packing up their camping gear. While Bernie cooked another bbq breakfast, I decided to go for a walk and experiment with my camera. I found a walking track beside the beach. The track meandered amongst native bush, while remaining close enough to the sea to appreciate the sound of the crashing waves.

I put my camera on manual, (and remember I'm new to photography), but eager to learn, I was keen to try one or two manual settings. I spotted a tui foraging on the forest floor amongst vines to find insects. Also, there were several wood pigeons feasting on berries and clumsily landing on branches. I got all excited ... I had a great photo in my sight and while I changed my camera settings to a faster shutter speed, this so called, model pigeon, swooped and flew inches towards me before gracefully flying upwards.I missed a perfect shot!

Here are some more photos of our weekend...