- The peninsula adjacent to and just southeast of Christchurch - formed originally as islands by two separate shield volcanoes between 11 and 8 million years ago, and eventually connecting with the Canterbury Plains due to the erosion from both the Southern Alps and the shield volcanoes to form the peninsula, and the shield to unwanted winds to the city of Christchurch. Currently, this peninsula also serves as geologic wonderland and an aesthetic attraction to residents and tourists, as I found out on a little outing last weekend...
After purchasing a Toyota Royal Lounge shaggin' wagon van with a couple other friends last weekend (see above), we were showing it off to anyone that would ogle at our baby late Saturday night, until we couldn't take it anymore and had to take Ol' Royale out for an adventure... at midnight. We packed up our tents, some clothes, and some PB&J's and hit the road with no real destination in mind. We came across some very steep and hilly gravel roads, and knew we were on the right path. After getting out a few times to view the stars, search for some flat, soft grass, and to check on the health of a hedgehog (which became roadkill, sorry buddy) we found a path called "Lighthouse Road". Like any insect in the dark, we were captivated. We made our way down this slippery and steep slope of a road past a Department of Conservation (DOC) sign warning us not to go any further... stupid kids, we should've listened. We spent the next half hour around 3am digging and pushing Ol' Royale out of the mud, and like always (so far), she prevailed. We decided to walk to the lighthouse. Everything but the stars and the crescent moon were pitch black, so we hadn't a clue of our surroundings, and judging by the beam from the lighthouse and the crash of the waves against some sort of rock, we still had no idea what to expect in the morning. We spent the next hour or so taking bets on how far away the ocean was, setting up camp, dining on PB&J's, and simply just wondering about a lot of things. After being awaken by some prevailing oceanic winds, we woke up to the following:
Not Pictured: A family of wild seals.
Thanks for the warm welcome, New Zealand!
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