The gardener

Well he'd like to be except that I cat-proofed the veges with sticky uppy bamboo skewers. So far so good.

After a run this morning I high-tailed to Mitre10 to get a few things. I didn't have time to peruse the many isles of handy woman tools or garden plants and tools. I was a woman on a mission with a river crossing course to get to.

With days of warm weather on the plains and rain and snow melt in the hills, the Waimak (Waimakariri River) was high, dirty, and rising. Our instructor kept us well clear of any main channels which would have meant death. We did what he wanted to cover with us except for one thing he told us about.

The channel we used wasn't deep but it was swift. Usually these courses leave you frozen with a combination of freezing water and wind chill. Today was sunny with a warm wind, and even the water was warm (in a very relative sense). None of us wanted to hang around once we were wet and had floated down the river several times but it wasn't bad at all.

A bonus for me was that the dry bag I use to line my big pack kept everything dry. We had to do the course with a large pack full of a weight you'd take away for a weekend. I know the dry bag works in rain but I wasn't sure how it would cope with the the pressure from pressing in from the river. Perfect. Even with a dirty river I was happy river running by the end confident I could cross on my own. It's a few years now since I did any mountain running and it felt like a wee taste again.

The only thing we couldn't do was cross or float down the river in deep water. With today's conditions none of us would have survived. I learned some new things and refreshed other skills. It was good to do. Phones and cameras were safely locked away so it's a photo of the pope rather than a rising and dirty Waimak.

Tonight I get to experience my first local fireworks display. It's a big deal up at the local park but I'll be watching from my front lawn (and Benedict will be hiding under a bed).

Today's gratitude: For the combination of weather and long days. I'm loving my new home more and more.