Up early today, I was able to glimpse the sun coming up over the harbour before the small boats headed out to sea. The sounds of birds filled my ears with the sweetest music. In all of my many travels, I have never seen or heard such incredible birds as I have on this trip. Tui, Fantail, Pukeko, Herons, and more have caught my attention. I may become a bird lover after all.
The clock was ticking the day away and I was antsy to see the local countryside... so around 11:30 I convinced Catherine, Travis (and Sophia) to come with me down the steep ravine. I found the suggested path that begins that the edge of the property and heads directly down to the harbour. True bush-whacking! Steep, plant covered... we slowly made our way down... a little bit more cautious because 2 year old Sophia was being carried by her loving father. 
At the end of the rugged path we spotted two staircases. One went up, and we chose the other, that went down to the harbour. Since it was low tide, we were able to explore the shell covered beach and spot the boats up close. We decided not to go up via that rugged trail again, so we ventured further north and found a road with an extremely steep incline that lead us back up. It was the longer way home, but another spectacular view. I stopped to snack from the kumquat tree.
At home we all fended for ourselves to find food for lunch. I decided to help out and do all the dishes and some letter writing before signing up for cardio boot camp round two. Knowing that we needed some milk, I threw a cloth grocery bag over my shoulders and started for the edge of the property once more. Rugged paths and a simple waterfall were experience within twenty minutes. God’s glory!! This time choosing the up stairs... I climbed up in to the small town of Leigh. Within moments I found the general store/post office. Paying for a few groceries and stamps, I took a deep breath and started trekking back down into the depths of the earth. By the time I popped back out of the thick bush, at the lower end of the property, my heart was racing madly and I almost wanted to yell up for someone to come and carry me the rest of the way. Actually, it wasn’t that bad... it felt good to do some hill climbing.
All of us had the feeling that we didn’t really get out today, so around 5:30 pm all six of us loaded in the van to bond amidst God’s phenomenal creation. New Zealand is where “Lord of the Rings” was filmed, but in my head, I kept thinking... HE is the LORD of the land of the rings. Words cannot describe the beauty... the sun was creating deep shadows on the immense grass-covered lava terraced hills. Story book trees decorated the view and risky roads lead us further north to Pakiri Beach. I loved making footprint dances in the white sands as I jumped over loads of clear jelly fish that got washed up with the tide. Gannets dove for their dinner and God’s presence filled my heart.
Back at the cottage for the evening, we shared a chilli dinner and had some great fellowship.
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