Late with my newsletter again… oh well, like Jim says… this sleepy little backwater of Hawke’s Bay just isn’t home to a lot of newsworthy events! Even the online edition of the Hawke’s Bay Today newspaper sometimes turns up blank, so I guess I shouldn’t feel too bad.
Spring flowers blooming near the beach with Cape Kidnapper’s in the background.
Something that is newsworthy, I think, are the earthquakes that have been shaking New Zealand since mid-July. During the last several months, the country has experienced a remarkable series of earthquakes beginning with a large 6.5 magnitude quake located in the Cook Strait between the North and South Islands, near the small South Island town of Seddon. And they haven’t stopped since! The government website, GeoNet, keeps track of earthquakes in NZ and has a special section dedicated to the “Cook Strait Earthquakes.” The counter says the total number of quakes in the region since mid-July is now over 5,200! The ground continues to shake from the top of the South Island to the bottom of the North Island, almost daily. We have felt a handful of the quakes here at our home north of Napier, with the only noteworthy one being the first. I was sitting on my knees putting wood in the fireplace and all of a sudden felt sort of a rolling sensation. I looked over and saw a plant bouncing in its pot and heard something banging in the attic, then I realized what was happening. When I later found out how far the shockwaves had traveled, I was surprised. New Zealand is a “Ring of Fire” country and is known for its history of erupting volcanoes and shaking earthquakes. These recent events have reminded Kiwis just how forceful Mother Nature can be.
A fiery Hawke’s Bay sunset reflects off the broken clouds.
Our town of Napier is no stranger to earthquakes. In 1931 it was the epicenter of a large quake that remains New Zealand’s worst natural disaster. In fact, when we first told people we were moving to Napier – that’s the first thing they’d say… “you know there was a big earthquake there in ’31”… I guess it’s what Napier is famous for! The quake of ’31 killed 261 people, destroyed most of the buildings in the city and changed the local landscape by raising the seabed and creating about 15 square miles of dry land.
A section of downtown Napier after the 1931 earthquake.
Ahuriri Lagoon was much larger before the ’31 quake.
Part of the ‘new’ coastline created in 1931.
Because the city was leveled and, in many areas burned, everything had to be rebuilt. In the early thirties the Art Deco style was en vogue and most of the buildings in the central business district were rebuilt in this manner. Many of these buildings are still standing making Napier one of the best examples of an Art Deco city that exists today. Touring the architecture of the city is one of the city’s attractions, especially for people visiting on cruise ships.
Welcome to the Art Deco City!
The National Tobacco Company building is one of the most photographed in the city.
The Spirit of Napier statue represents Napier rising from the ashes of the 1931 earthquake.
Speaking of cruise ships, the tourist season officially started at the beginning of October and the first passenger ship almost arrived soon after. I happened to look out that afternoon and saw the vessel heading into port, then looked again a bit later only to see it heading out the other way! Unfortunately, the winds were so high that day that it made docking of the large ship unsafe and it had to turn around and leave the bay. No Art Deco tours for those folks!
There was no visit to Napier for this ship.
As for Jim and me, we’re keeping busy with the usual sorts of things… a little work on the house, minding the animals and raising this year’s team of racing pigeons. Jim finally received the trophies his birds earned from last year’s racing. We were pretty happy with their performance. Included in the bunch was a trophy for best Young Bird of the season, one I was particularly proud of. I think Jim’s favorite is the Young Bird Championship cup!
The trophies from the 2013 pigeon racing season.
Our first group of this year’s babies practicing their flying skills.
A high speed fly-by!
We also took the time to visit Te Mata Peak which is a Hawke’s Bay landmark and viewing platform to see all of the surrounding landscape. It is one of the highest points in the area at about 1300 feet (even though where we live just tops it by 100 feet or so!). The views were very nice, looking out over the Pacific Ocean and all the way back over the Heretaunga Plains to the Ruahine Mountain range. On a clear day you can see the volcano Ruapehu near the center of the North Island.
Farming land and a glimpse of the Pacific Ocean as seen from Te Mata Peak.
Clouds skim the snow-capped peaks of the Ruahine Mountain range in the distance.
The rugged landscape surrounding Te Mata Peak.
And so the adventure continues… not only in learning about the Hawke’s Bay area, but in our personal lives as well. An event I’m happy to mention is that Jim and I recently celebrated our 15th wedding anniversary. Still feels like we’re on our honeymoon!
