Cape Palliser is the southern most tip of the North Island and is further south than a few towns on the South Island. It is home to the largest breeding colony of fur seals in New Zealand. The seals are well camouflaged against the rocks so they are a little hard to spot at first. But then, you notice that their blubbery, log-shaped bodies are everywhere. There are no barriers between people and the seals. Regardless, we weren’t going to hug any of them for fear of getting our hand bit off.

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We drove to the Tararua Forest and went for a day hike. Naturally we picked the Gentle Annie track because it sounded like a nice, leisurely stroll. But, it was false advertising. It was about 60 degrees uphill and about 50 degrees downhill. At least the look out provided panoramic views of the forest.

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It’s late summer here and the Cicadas are out in full force. There are “heaps” of them and they sounds like a million little chainsaws constantly running. We found this one on a day hike in the Rimutaka Forset.

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