Little Tramp

Hiking is called tramping in New Zealand, and Rachel Mortimer and her children took Molly and I on a little tramp to the Flagstaff Scenic Reserve.  It was a grey day with "coastal cloud" coverage, so the vistas were not spectacular, but here are some photos . . .

The Pacific Ocean from the top of the marker hill.

Kiwi and offspring.  This is Rachel, who I teach with and leader of this expedition, and her son Riley.

This is a large basalt (oceanic volcanic rock) formation.  If you look at the apex of the "W" in the distance, you will see a long dormant volcanic cone.

 We then traveled to the Esplanade.  The Esplanade is a district of cafes along the oceanfront that is also a hang out for surfers.  Dunedin is, apparently, One of New Zealand's major surfing hot spots and home to a world surfing competition.  To surf here, one wears a wetsuit as it is very cold.

The black dots in the surf behind Molly are surfers.

The surf breaking against the Esplanade wall