Rain falling on and off for most of the night. I was tired and so I went to bed early last night, which was a mistake as I woke up at midnight. Then I was awake on and off, just listening to the changing weather and the ocean. Eventually I gave up, got up and read, and then after a while, curled up and went back to sleep.

As usual, I was up before the birds, waiting for a small break in the rain and also for a low tide to go for my morning walk. Today, it was a “no go” so far as any type of paddling was concerned. I was able to walk myself along this long beach at low tide, collecting large cockles off the beach (due to the rather stormy night) and annoying my feathered friends as I went. As you might imagine, my feathered friends cussed at me in bird chatter today as I got a fantastic yield of cockles for my dinner. I think I was the only one on the beach this morning. Well, at least the only one walking in the shallows at low tide!

It was wet feet, wet face and wet body. The rain and wind were intense, and on and off all the time I was on the beach. I walked until the tide turned, then I turned and headed back to the furthest point in the other direction. I was determined to be outside in the fresh air for as long as possible, even though this was really a day for being inside and not doing a lot. Perhaps a day for reading a book, knitting or having cups of coffee with friends. The walks I wanted to do were all very exposed or close to rivers, which is not that wise when bad rain is forecast, but I wanted to keep this caged tiger as busy as possible!!

What did I do instead? Some cleaning (not a lot of time needed to do this when you live in a camper-van!!), chatted to a few other campers and a couple of people back up north, tried to repair Cuzzie’s wiper blade (!) and then, needed to go grab some fresh produce. My fridge is bare, no greens at all, so I sped off to Takaka supermarket for a basket of fresh greens and a stop at a roadside stall for some eggs. Then a quick detour to look at a walk called The Labyrinth (Scotts Road). It's a cute little walk that consists of a maze-like pathway through limestone rock formations for which they have crazy names. I struggled to see what they saw in each rock. Then there’s the smurfs and plastic toys along the way, hidden in the nooks and crannies and on the rock ledges. Today it was rather wet but, away from the wind. I can see why some could get lost for a while in this maze.

At last I got back to the start, then to Cuzzie and headed back along the well-driven road to the campsite. Wet, windy and generally an inside afternoon. One on which to write emails, read my book and then, race onto the beach (whatever the weather was) for another walk before dark. I do wish I was blessed with the ‘sit still and read’ kind of mentality and body. Anyway, Sunday in my world has felt a little weird. I dared to get my hopes up a little, trying to look for a bright light for paddling up the coast, but I reckon I have more chance of nailing a couple of great walks before Mother Nature lets me back onto the water anytime soon.

At present, I keep hearing a voice in my head, reminding me of the time before I left home, when someone asked me what I would do if the weather was bad. Ever the optimist, I chimed back: “Just wait”. Oh, Mother Nature, you are truly making me eat those words over and over and over again!!

My smiles today:
Wrapped up warm and gathering cockles from the beach.
Rain jackets that keep me warm and dry.
At least I’m in Cuzzie and not in my tent. How bad would that be?
Still no leaks in Cuzzie. (Jase you may just have solved the matter!)

My thoughts today:
REMEMBER: not getting what you want is sometimes a wonderful stroke of luck.

Enjoy your wintry Sunday. Goodnight from Red. Ma te Wa.