Balmoral - North Canterbury

After leaving Weedons (just south of Christchurch) the plan was to stay a couple of nights at Amberley Beach on our way to Hanmer Springs. We'd stayed at Amberley Beach four months ago and really enjoyed it. So we were surprised (and disappointed) when we pulled into the camping area to discover it had gone from being well maintained to run-down. The grass was no longer green, instead it was dry, dusty patch of ground. It was so uninviting we decided not to bother. Instead - we drove half an hour further north to the Balmoral Reserve.

We found a place to park up just to the left of the entrance. Being nice and private it suited us perfectly. With a relaxing outlook of trees we settled in for a peaceful evening.
Then as the sun began setting we witnessed another of nature's spectacular performances. It seemed as though the sky was presenting its very own show - starting with pastel lemon hues, which quickly transformed to a golden saffron-yellow before ending in a grand finale of blazing fiery orange. Heaven's impressive light show was further enhanced by the striking ever-changing cloud formations.