Beautiful day in Golden Bay

While much of the South Island further south of us had torrential rain and major flooding,the storms passed us by so while the Takaka Hill had no snow and icy roads Trev and I made the most of it and headed over to Golden Bay.
We took all sorts of winter gear and ended up stripping down to shirts and it could have been shorts if we had taken them.
We walked up and down the main street with its many artisan shops. I was very interested in the historical plaques on many of the buildings. We are considering something similar for Motueka.
My main blip though is of the Te Waikorupupu Springs which have had a major makeover at the entrance and viewing platform since I was there last.Again see extras.
Amongst other things the panels tell us this-

"Te Waikoropupu Springs are a taonga (treasure) and waahi tapu (a sacred place) for Māori, both locally and nationally. The legends of Te Waikoropupu are told in the stories of Huriawa, its taniwha (guardian spirit). In Māori tradition the Springs are waiora, the purest form of water which is the wairua (spiritual) and the physical source of life. The Springs provide water for healing, and in the past were a place of ceremonial blessings at times of birth and death and the leaving and returning of travellers."


Wikipedia adds- The horizontal visibility of the constantly 11.7 °C cool water in the springs has been measured at an average of 63 metres, and until 2011 was considered second only to sub-glacial water in the Antarctic.

The springs are notable for the volume of water discharged from the eight main vents. It is estimated that 14,000 litres of water are produced per second, approximately enough to fill 40 bathtubs.
Always a joy and moreso in winter when we had it to ourselves for a while.
We drove on to Pohara Beach for the obligatory icecream and discovered at Tarakohe just round the corner a new breakwater and marina. One more extra showing some typical Golden Bay topography where once stood a cement works. All gone now.