NZ Field trips Nov 2013 - Feb 2014.

[Maggi Young]

Doug, these photos are outstanding! Truly beautiful portraits of the flowers and landscape.  A Perfect illustration of the glory of your country.

(What a pity Jean W. and I were unable to find replacement purple leggings for Toolie, though, after he sacrificed them as a boot repair for David L. a few years ago - the sight of his knees is pretty scary........      )

[kiwi]

Thanks very much Maggie and Ian! I look forward to seeing some shots from the weekend from the other guys......
We have some exciting trips planned this season so stay tuned....
Cheers,
Doug.

[jandals]

Nice work Doug and thanks for your help getting rid of that agave juice . Adding lime certainly helps !!

Cliff and Sue are resting up in Queenstown now and Cliff is helping Jean get rid of some of her gin . Tonic instead of lime apparently .

There were 83 at his lecture today .  Although Cliff was saying that this was the start number and he thinks at least 36 made it to the end

Posting a few pictures with the Bookers and some other planty stuff

The craziest pittosporum of them all - P.anomalum



Cliff and Sue on the new swingbridge



Ranunculus lyallii below the bridge



"Look , there's one !! "



There's even one each...



Will do a few more tomorrow

[David Lyttle]

It was a great pleasure meeting Cliff and Sue - at least we found Ranunculus crithmifolius in flower on the Little Omarama Saddle. It is a pity you missed out on seeing it Doug.

A couple of shots in the Hooker valley before Cliff and Sue joined us;

The party; from the left, John Fitzgerald, Dave Toole, Peter Salmond, Steve Newall, Doug Logan and daughter Sam.

Looking down the Hooker Valley ( from near the place where the cover photo of "Above the Treeline" was taken as near as I can tell. I was trying to replicate it but Mt Cook was in the cloud all the time we were there so I took a photo loking down the valley instead)

Ranunculus lyallii growing in profusion in the Hooker Valley

Ranunculus crithmifolius gtowing on the Little Omarama Saddle ( I thought I had better post these images before Cliff copyrights them all we were following each other ftom plant to plant but we kept finding more)

[jandals]

... and a very happy camper



Mt.Cook with the characteristic cloud produced by a strong NW wind which made Omarama Saddle a little bit breezy the next day



Thanks to everyone who came along . It was nice to have a few new faces for the weekend . Looking forward to a few adventures over the coming months .

Nice pictures Doug and David

[Maggi Young]

By jove, those Ranunculus lyallii are "locally plentiful" in some spots, aren't they? 

I suppose the medicinal gin will prevent Cliff  from becoming over-excited by them - or perhaps the opposite is true?

Ranunculus crithmifolius is a particular favourite with us- the foliage is so distinctive - plus it will grow in a Scottish trough!

[David Nicholson]

What a beautiful country. Was Sue saying "I checked the policies before we set off, just a gentle shove should do it"?

[Anthony Darby]

What amazing photos, and what a fantastic experience. The divaricating habit of Pittosporum anomalum is a defence against moa browsing. 

[David Lyttle]

By jove, those Ranunculus lyallii are "locally plentiful" in some spots, aren't they? 

Ranunculus crithmifolius is a particular favourite with us- the foliage is so distinctive - plus it will grow in a Scottish trough!

Maggi.

The Ranunculus lyallii were popping up out of the ground all over the place with their leaves unfurling; they die down in winter and emerge again once the snow has gone.

Cliff was very interested to see the Ranunculus crithmifolius in their natural habitat. They grow on the bare ground where the soil has been exposed either by natural processes or by building roads and fences. The soil is a mixture of gravel, clay and silt and not particularly fertile. I gatherfrom his comments he has not been as successful growing them as you.

Here are some more shots on the old moraine in the Hooker Valley; Discaria toumatou, Phyllocladus alpinus and Aciphylla aurea in the foreground.

Aciphylla aurea begining to flower.

Northwest clouds over the Burnett Mountains flanking the Tasman Valley. These cloud formations are indicative of strong northwest winds associated with depressions moving in from the Tasman sea which is what we experienced on Little Omarama Saddle the next day.

[Martinr]

Those lenticular clouds are one reason glider pilots love the area. Ascending the updraught of  a mountain wave is an experience no one forgets.

[Tim Ingram]

Really stunning pictures - amazing to see Aciphylla aurea en masse like that, even if rather typical of the family as a whole.

[ichristie]

........... have booked the special amber nectar cheers Ian the Christie kind

That'll be the Manuka Honey, is it , Ian ? 

[kiwi]

HAPPY NEW YEAR EVERYONE!!! 

Walked up Mt Te Kinga last weekend, one of the most steepest Doc tracks I have tramped for a while!
An eight hour return track with some really interesting trees, plants and fungi. It was fantastic to see my favourite plants Giant Rata, Cordyline indivisa and Dracophyllum traversii growing side by side. 
Mt Te Kinga (1200 metres) Offers amazing views right through the West Coast coast line.

[kiwi]

Heres the DOC link if anyone is interested.
http://www.doc.govt.nz/Documents/parks-and-recreation/tracks-and-walks/west-coast/lake-brunner-moana-walks.pdf

Celmisia dicolor was everywhere on the tops but the stand out daisy was C armstrongii.
Found this beautiful Orchid, Pterostylis (australis, I think)
Also the stunning cushions of Donatia novae-zealandiae.

[kiwi]

On the way home a glimpse of a daisy led to some nice Celmisa's semicordata and bellidoides, which was growing right in the riverbed, submerged in some places! Good tips for cultivation...