Mason Bay

Summer arrived today after weeks of rain, gales and wintry weather that has tourists and locals hankering for some sunshine; just as well my friends from New Plymouth are hardy souls as the weather disrupted their visit from the start. Our Coast to Coast flight to Mason Bay on Saturday 15 November was postponed when gale-force westerlies swept through. Sweet talking to the weather gods by Stewart Island Flights resulted in a calm beach landing at low tide on Monday afternoon instead. A short tramp to the DOC hut where we dropped our packs and then off to explore the dunes whilst the calm and dry weather held.

Low tide mudflats on Paterson Inlet at the entrance to Freshwater River

Freshwater River snaking towards the west coast

Mason Bay Homestead with Big Sandhill behind

Mason Bay view north - Whenua Hou (Codfish Island) is at top left

Beach landing Mason Bay 17 November 2014

Track outside Mason Bay Hut

DOC's Mason Bay Hut - 20 bunk backcountry hut, $5 per person per night

Jen and I tramped to Mason Bay in October 2012 and struck westerly gales and winter temperatures; our attempt to climb Big Sandhill (156m) was thwarted when we were unable to stand up nearer the top so it was strange walking up there late afternoon this time without even a slight breeze. A dotterel with 3 chicks alarmed as we walked over the dunes so gave them a wide berth.

Big Sandhill from Mason Bay Hut

Mason Bay dunes looking southwest to the Ernest Islands

Fab sand formations created by the wind and rain

Native pīngao/pīkao, golden sand sedge, Ficinia spiralis, found on active
sand dunes and endemic to New Zealand

Spot the trampers heading toward Big Sandhill

Follow the footprints - almost at the top

Interesting rocks along the way - this is a big chunk of white marble

Looking from Big Sandhill down to the sea - Ernest Islands are top left, Whenua Hou at top right

Summit pole on Big Sandhill

We knew that there was a track heading from Big Sandhill to the Mason Bay Homestead (ringed at right) so followed our noses until we found it. We chose the left turn at the junction which took us along a rat line back to the DOC hut (ringed at left). There were lots of interesting plants on the dunes and track, including some magnificent clumps of Earina mucronata, bamboo orchid. I'll have to get my books out to identify most of these dune plants - remind me if I forget to do it!

A magnificent clump of bamboo orchid

Close-up of bamboo orchid flower

I could spend weeks exploring Mason Bay; amazing how the plants adapt to the challenging conditions of the windswept dunes. We saw kiwi prints and probe marks in several places and had our fingers crossed that the kiwi would find us that evening. More in the next blog...

Orchids at home - early November

What a busy month! I'm sorry for the break in blogging but hope my adventures in the second half of the month will make up for it. Whilst I process over 500 photos from that, I'll pop up these early November pics of orchids and fungi from around my boundary track.

Earina mucronata (Bamboo orchid) spikes - not quite opened

A clump of Spider orchids

Close-up of Spider orchid

Another Spider orchid - this one with extra long
lateral sepals and petals

Spider orchids by the dozens

Chiloglottis cornuta - not quite open

My Chiloglottis corner - more than 100 covering a 2sq m patch

I'll have to study the spider orchids in greater detail to find the difference between Corybas, Singularybas and Nematoceras - my understanding is that they are all slightly different forms of Corybas but I could very well be wrong!!

I came across three white fungi as I walked around; again, studying fungal forms could be a fulltime job in itself - I so love the diversity of our beautiful world...

Orchids and an eclipse

Native orchids are popping up all over the place - there's never a 'boring' walk here and it makes me realise how much I missed when I had a car. The summer-flowering sun orchid (Thelymitra) just has green shoots at present and most of the greenhood (Pterostylis) orchids haven't flowered yet but there are a heap of spider orchids (Corybas) in flower. My camera doesn't have much depth of field so it's challenging to get a good photo with most of the flower in focus - but trying is always fun.

Greenhood orchid flower (Pterostylis)

Earina mucronata flower buds starting to open

A spider orchid flower (Corybas)

Spider orchids high on a bank at the base of a tree

I think this is Corybas rivularis in flower

Close-up of spider orchid

Newly opened spider orchid

Another shot of the one above

And another angle

This spider orchid leaf is about the size of my thumbnail

Corybas rivularis in flower

This spider orchid has the longest lateral sepals I've seen

Close-up of Corybas rivularis flower

Earina mucronata flower buds - almost open

Delicate greenhood orchid flower

Of course, you realise I'm guessing at most of these! I usually check out Hugh Wilson's 'Field Guide to Stewart Island Plants' - but tonight picked up the 'Colour field guide to the native orchids of New Zealand' by Eric Scanlen and Ian St George and got totally lost. This fab reference book has Corybas as a synonym for Nematoceras, a name I haven't come across before. And the 'rivularis' part has changed to 'rivulare' - or is this a different orchid??

I'm in awe of the people who specialise in identifying our native plants; the range is so diverse and the orchid 'language' especially has my brain stretched to full capacity...

"Sheathing bract at stem base, is a colourless, trumpet-shaped sheath, usually sloping up to a variable apiculus at the rear, whose point is mostly dark but sometimes green. Peduncle lengthens as a scape after pollination for good seed distribution."

Just as well there's a website that makes it easier - go to New Zealand Native Orchids website for a look around. Their Orchid Structures web page is great to learn the parts of an orchid flower. I'll have to study it well so I can start identifying some of the plants I find.

The total lunar eclipse last Wednesday night was almost a fizzer here. Heavy cloud and driving rain was the excuse for an early night but fortunately I woke at 11pm and watched the moon sliding into full eclipse with the occasional cloud sweeping past. My wee camera came up trumps again with being able to capture some of the action, not bad at all for a 4x optical zoom and being handheld!