Around Murchison - Wed 20th Jan 2010

The morning started a bit cloudy and humid. Liz firstly took me up the valley of the Matakitaki river which is a tributary of the Buller. We pulled in at the start of a walking track up the Six Mile Creek valley. It was the site of a smalls scale HEP developed the provide Murchison with electricity at the beginning of the 20th C. It went out of use in the 1970s. After a walk up a steep incline the path led through undisturbed mountain beech woodland. There were bellbirds calling and a cheeky bush robin bobbed about on the path near my feet pecking at the insects I disturbed as I walked. Liz's knee had given out on the incline so she had gone back to the car and I was therefore enjoying all this completely on my own. At the end of the walk was a waterfall and weir to feed the intake which channelled the water down to the HEP powerhouse.

At one point the path on the way up had followed the side of a steep slope with a sheer drop down to the valley botto. By this time I was very aware as to how much this area had been affected by the Murchison earthquake in 1929. I knew that if there was such an event at that moment I would slide with the hillside into the valley below! Luckily it didn't happen.

On my way back I met two people walking up the valley wearing surgical gloves and one carrying a trap. I stopped to chat to them and they were Germans from the Munich area who lived in NZ during the summer and went back to Germany for the summer there. They had joined the local conservation groups and were out checking the traps set for pests such as rats and stoats. They are designed to help protect NZ birds which are often almost flightless. The bush robin is and example. Obviously they were having some success.

Next Liz took me back to town and we went to the Museum where there is moving display and memorial all about the 1929 earthquake. The photo below of the general store shows original Murchison buildings. Inside the general store there is all the victorian shelving and you can buy pans for gold panning!! We then went to her excellent butcher and Liz bought us two huge rib eye steaks for supper plus some of the bacon which was voted the best in NZ this year. We then went to the cafe over the road and I had a BLT containing some of the award winning bacon which was super. It was smoked and had a hint of honey flavour to it.

We then went over to the next valley which contained the Maruia river. This area showed the effect of the earth quake as the waterfall there was created by earth uplift, as was the cliff face that ran down the valley parallel to the river.

Liz then drove me over to see a well known lake; Lake Rotoroa. We looked for eels in the crystal clear water but there were none so we went for a walk through the woodland. Again it was original native bush. There were loads of sand flies around as it was a humid day so we prepared with lots of repellent. I have to say I have been lucky. Not one bite. This makes a refreshing change as biting insects usually love me!! Once in the woods we were less bothered by the flies and it was cool and peaceful. Liz took loads of photos. She is a very good, and now professional photographer and has some of her photos on sale in the Murchison gift shop.

After our walk we went home and after a rest ate the delicious steaks.