Waimea River Stopbank. Organiser: Robyn Walsh
From the original 15 the group had reduced to 9, by 9.30, due to various life dramas. So, at 9.50 we headed out under the Appleby Bridge and around up onto the stopbank. Ten minutes before morning tea our number increased to 10 by the unscheduled arrival of Don Sullivan. The morning was calm and mild but thick cloud had built up over the plain, which made our morning tea break a bit cool by the river. A few of us tried out our stone-skimming skills. John Olykan's technique made him the clear winner with most of his throws sending stones almost to the other side.
At 11.15 it was more toil back up on the levee with Ross leading at a fine pace. The cloud had now partially dispersed so it was much warmer. The trail's end was reached at 12.15 and it was here we munched into our lunches. Beverley decided that she would rather not walk back, so late-comer Don offered to steam back along the stopbank to his car and drive round to pick Beverley up, also car-driver Sharan. Don shot through at 12.40 and it took about one hour by the time he'd dropped Sharan back at her car. In the meantime the rest of us started the return walk at 1.20pm, past the apple orchards, a hop garden, and kiwifruit plus willow trees by the stopbank, all out in leaf. Arrived back at 3pm after a pleasant stroll.
Icecreams were in order on the way home, but the suggested stop at Appleby Store became Three Brothers corner as Sharan disappeared into the distance. We met up again and sat outside the store to partake in our chosen delights. After a few licks, a surprise sound from Sharan revealed she had licked her icecream off its cone, onto the table. Not to be outdone, Sharan put it back on its pedestal to carefully lick around the "contaminated" part. All seemed OK until we heard more cries of dismay. This time she'd dropped the lot - icecream and cone - on the table. Sharan wisely gave up at this point and put it in the rubbish bin. Thanks to Sharan for a few laughs to end our day together.
On the walk: John Olykan, Ross Price, Beverley Muirhead, Sharan Foga, Kazumi Yamamoto, Ana Christian, visitors Wang Li Yun from Taiwan, Rachel Cole, Don Sullivan, and organiser Robyn Walsh.