We have had illness in the house this week (only the two non sickies went out last night) so today's adventure was a slow wander. We started with the intention of just doing the short loop of Bledisloe Park. Just a little walk to get some fresh air and move the sicky bodies.
Mr T led us confidently around the loop stopping to peer over into the stream at each opportunity. He was on the look out for ducks. Once at the end of the loop, I asked him which way. He picked uh and pointed with the steps. My bad… But given I offered the choice, it was only right to follow through… We wandered up. As we got further up he got a little slower and added a grunt at each step. He was working hard. We decided to head back down one flight from the top (otherwise it would have been an extra extra long adventure). Back at the bottom, Toddler charged off running. We caught up and overtook. "No Mama! Me!". He wanted to be the leader. He happily led us back to the car. A short, child led adventure. One of the best kinds.
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Tonight was a night walk with a twist. I had been waiting patiently for Manawatū Summer Shakespeare. On our walks I have been watching as their team slowly set up shop down by the river. Each time there was a little more prop and intrigue.
Tonight we headed down. It was suggested that we park at the Esplanade train station and there would be a guide to lead us down to the theatre. Through a little hole in the bushes we wend our way down through the bushes, ducking under a branch or too until we found ourselves in an enchanted forest complete with giggling fairies, fairy lights, swings, and fairy folk music. We settled in around the camp fire and waited for the night show to begin. The show was fantastic. Wonderful, animated actors, audience interaction, hilarious fun and thoughtful sets and stage. The campfire was even lit as darkness fell and kept going as part of the story. Just brilliant. 100% recommend! By the end it was very dark and the wander back up to the car was a little more difficult on the unfamiliar pathway... But it was an extremely fun night time adventure! (no photos because they all looked like a big flash of fire light. Check out the official 'gram at https://www.instagram.com/palmyshakespeare/?hl=en) We parked on Springdale Grove and wandered through the bush (recently a lot of tree removed so it's a bit bare and not very shady until the shrubs and ferns grow up) walk up to Atawhai Park.
Mr 2 loved the undulating pathway and was stoked to find some steps to climb. Atawhai Park is brilliant. It has a range of play equipment including a short flying fox and a basketball hoop. It's got a big open space to run, kick a ball or stare out onto the hills. It's away from the road so good for runners. Either end has bush walks if you're feeling adventurous. One end goes down toe Bledisloe Park, the other out to Springdale Gove. Otherwise, park on Atawhai Road and head through the main of side entrances. Recommend! Ahimate Reserve is a spot that keeps on giving. There are so many little adventures to have here. Today we went for a walk and ended up spending most of our time hanging out in the shady, cool spots of Bill’s Bush.
Bill’s Bush is a remnant of original totara and a single northern rata, which has been replanted over the years by local residents. Bill Regnault is the Bill in the name. It is near to the Buick Crescent entrance to the reserve area but you you'll find it if you head in that general direction from anywhere in the reserve. Once inside, you'll probably come across plenty of Palmy Rocks - we did and toddler was quite intrigued. Once they became projectiles, I picked them up and hid them for the next person. We wandered along spotting rocks until we came across some little houses that must be for wee fairy folk. We stopped here for snacks and sit. Thank you to the kind friends who helped the fairies prepare their homes. Let’s just go for a little walk, we said. Let’s go up the hill a little bit, we said… If you know me it doesn’t take much to convince me to keep going a little further, which is just what we did today on the Fern Walk. The Fern Walk is about twenty five minutes from town up into the Pohongina Valley. Easy drive but you have to be careful not to miss the carpark on the right hand side of the road. It’s just past the Totara Reserve signage. The track is lovely and wide, lovely and flat. It’s pram appropriate till the first bridge, which is narrow to cross and has a couple of stairs at either end. Then, up until the start of the loop, it’s an easy amble with lots of spots to explore including weta hotels and various points of entry to the stream. The whole track is great for a baby carrier and for little adventurous legs. When the track turns into a loop we thought “we’ll go a little way up and then turn back…” but then it gets a little more difficult. If you don’t want to do the full 2.5 hour loop, stop here of just wander up the right hand loop at little way. Once we had started up the left hand loop, we realised it was easier and safer (not that it was dangerous per sae, just a little steep and stoney in spots) to carry on up and around - as per the sign’s suggestion. Toddler managed most of the uphill without falling off the edge... Well, of course he didn’t fall off the edge at all but half way up he began to get a bit too daring and oblivious to the edge so up into the backpack he hopped. He did really well at navigating the various sets of stairs and zig-zags. Near the top, there is a fallen tree that requires a few metres of crawling - or limbo if you’re game and bendy. Mr 2 and his mama managed to do it without taking the backpack off. He has just learned that treating his mum like a horsey is pretty fun so a horsey ride through the bushes was a great adventure (except for the bit where his head got a bonk on the way back to standing, whoops mama). Miss 11 was aggrieved at having to go all the way up. Her disgust was slightly moderated by Whittaker's 100 and 1000s chocolate (wow, amazingly amazing, imo!) but the harrumphing did continue until we reached the top. Then she bounded off and we didn’t see her until we got back to the start of the loop. At which time she let us know she’d been waiting basically for ever... love my tweenager. Once at the top, the track wanders along the ridge offering lovely glimpses of the valley’s beautiful podocarp forest - full of all the beauties: ponga, mamaku, kahikatea... the list is long - and a little side trip to a huge beautiful specimen of Northern Rata. This part of the amble was long but very easy. You could spend a lot of time up here but today we needed to be back in town for the afternoon.
The way down was similar to the Tawa Loop - pretty easy for little legs to navigate, wide formed track, a few sets of stairs and a little gravelly in spots but nothing terrible. In all the Fern Walk is a long one and next time I’d like to make sure we have all day free to take it easy and explore more slowly. Everyone had tired legs at the end and enjoyed a restful afternoon (and this Mama let the tech time happen guilt free!). I love being in the bush, it's real, free and a beautiful way to spend time. Today we went on an organised adventure! We went orienteering. While it wasn’t free, it was well priced for a family adventure - $5 per adult, $3 per child and a maximum of $10 for a family. Today’s orienteering course headed out from Peren Park, up Summerhill. There were four options ranging from 1km to 5km. As it was just me and my little pal today, we did a middle sized 2.2km course. I took the carrier for when little legs got tired or keeping on track was needed. It was long enough for me to get into it too (I would have enjoyed this or a longer version doing it for time too). We received a paper map and a trendy finger ring to track our progress at each ‘gate’ and the course leaders made sure we were heading off the right way and hinted at where we would end up coming back into the finish. They were really friendly and super helpful. There were plenty of families and complete beginners, and everyone was treated kindly and with the same enthusiasm. We headed off (at toddler pace) into the tracks of Summerhill. It took us an hour of wandering between the eleven marks and back to ‘home’ at Peren Park. The route was very lovely and, as always, is right on our back door step. Upon return we spent some time exploring the rest of Peren Park - swings, obstacle course, basketball half court (with adjustable hoop) and a hut with a trapdoor!
A very pleasant way to spend a little time on a Sunday. Red Kiwi Orienteering ran this event and have others planned during the year. Membership quickly becomes the best option after you go to a couple of events and realise it is a good way to get outdoors with more purpose than just a wander along the river (not that there is anything wrong with this - we do it often). There is a permanent course at the Esplanade if you want to try it out. The map is available HERE It's always nice to introduce a friend to one of my favourite places, and have a walk and a chatter.
Today we headed to Bledisloe Park and more specifically, the Arboretum. We stuck to the pram friendly parts as toddler decided he wanted to have a ride rather than walk or be carried. We crossed the first and second bridges, headed through the Bledisloe Park loop track, past the second stairs and over the third bridge. After the third bridge, we turned left (second left) to carry on walking in the bush (not out to the ring road) and over bridge number four. Instead of following the Te Araroa Trail track up the hill (see our other adventure up there), we carried on through the bush track. Today the cicada voice was strong. It's a great place for cicada spotting and then shell collecting later in the season. The bush track soon opens into a clearing and you can wander along a well worn track that sticks pretty close to the stream. In summer the ground is really dry but it winter it gets a bit boggy and less pram friendly. There are a few roots to contend with but nothing too bumpy. There are many holey trees to explore, and rocks and mini hills to clamber over. In fact, over the mini hill (stopbank for the Turitea stream) in one of my favourite spots in all of Palmy - the Arboretum. The Arboretum is full of exotic species of plants and trees, developed by a former Massey groundsman, Dave Bull. Read more about this lovely project here. Today we walked along the stream all the way to the gated bridge. If you don't have a pram, heading over the bridge and to the right up the hill leads you up to the back of Massey University by the playing fields. Another nice wander but today, we didn't cross the bridge and instead followed the stream to the left till we reached the Massey No Entry sign. At this point, we hooked a left over the stopbank and into the Arboretum. The arboretum is a great place for a shady picnic, a romantic wander, and a fascinating look at non traditional garden plantings. Sometimes it is a little overgrown but to me that's part of its charm. It's described as a secret garden and I wholeheartedly agree with this. This time, we had two sleeping babes so we didn't stop or explore too deeply (for fear of waking them!). By the time we'd wandered back through the bush, over the bridges and the loop track, both were awake from their mini naps. We stopped for a bit under a big shady tree on the Massey grounds and played with sticks and spiky chesnuts (maybe, not quite sure what they were!) and toddler did some running up and down a nearby hill. Whether you're into a slow wander, splashing in streams, exploring holey trees, admiring beautiful bushes or listening to the cicada cacophony - the Arboretum and wider Bledisloe Park has everything you need for an adventure. |
AuthorI'm Kate. I have 3 children - 2 bios and a steppie, 1 under 5 and 2 tweenagers. I am determined to spend more time outside this year and share more of Palmy's wonderful places and free play activities. Categories
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