Kayataurs.

All quiet on the Southern Front. Everyone tired from our efforts last night and not enough sleep. We came through the Kuwara Gorge and River, which is a swirling torrent in aqua marine. Looking up at the rugged mountains above, I had the feeling Indians were watching us. Pete knew his river well, and it was amazing how he understood what was coming and what we needed to do to negotiate it. However, I don't have a photo of that as we were all clinging onto the raft, so I'm putting up a picture of the road up to Treble Cone Ski Fields as seen from Mt Roy. Don't think I'll be going up THERE. Spook tells me that the road to Cardrona, where we have season tickets, is just as bad!!!

Cold winds today and more snow on the hills. Snowing in Dunedin this morning. People not happy with their summer at all. It SHOULD be warm until May, they tell me. Last night, there was strong sunshine, grey skies and big rainbows on the way to the Gorge. Very Autumnal, but the trees haven't changed colours as the ground is wet. Despite the cold appearance of everything last night, the water wasn't icy at all. Not that we went in, but there was plenty of face fulls. We went to the clubs local pub in Cromwell for huge plates of communal chips afterwards. When I saw how small the youngest boy was, I couldn't believe he had come down that river in a kayak. Each person in the water looked as if the kayak was part of their body, they were so in tune Like Centaurs, or maybe Kayataurs.. As we all travelled down together, it was amazing that every one moved so fast and smoothly, without an engine. In a boiling hole, someone looked as if he was in trouble, his boat pointing straight up to the sky, but it was just a stunt. The 13yr old girl who Meg knows from school - Jessie - rolled in the water, was submerged for too long, I thought, and rolled back up, grinning.

They certainly earned their chips!

Fire lit tonight and Spook is going to need to go to Queenstown to find some trousers and warmer clothes. He has worn trousers once since we came here, when we had a day of sleat in November.