A few days ago I bought a $25 tent from K Mart and recruited two like-minded REI dividend recipients, Steve and Lexi, to join me for a weekend on the Otago Peninsula. Our plan was to see everything and sleep where we could. We accomplished both. Covering 20 kilometers a day, we saw beaches, mountain tops, cliffs, seals, wild flowers, and many sassy sheep.
But I won’t map the whole peninsula. There is too much to write about. Instead I’ll focus on our last evening.
A couple friends told us about the perfect campsite right off a trail leading to Boulder Beach. Boulder Beach had been closed the last two months for penguin mating season – insert joke here – so nobody was on the trail. We hiked down to a patch of trees between the road and the beach. In the small tree line we found the only flat area on the peninsula, sheltered by a dense canopy of moss-covered trees. Next to the tree fort was a bubbling stream. Beyond it, a view of the Pacific. We made camp, ate dinner, then took a sunset walk to the end of the trail.
The three of us cleared the trees and stopped. Everything was in front of us -- the sun sliding behind ocean cliffs, the beach in constant motion, sand changing from light to dark with each wave, rock formations resisting the tide. No one said anything. We just watched until the sun was gone. Then we slept.
The best days I’ve had here are unplanned. I’m out there doing something and all the sudden I find the sun setting over the Pacific. No trail, lookout, or guided tour can compare.
On a different note, I’ve heard whispers of blizzards and protests back home. So my slushie friends find the nearest electric blanket or a willing friend to keep you warm. All winters come to an end. And keep pounding on the capital door. With enough noise, it will open eventually.
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