Once Upon A Time There Was An Ocean . . .

But now it's a mountain range
Something unstoppable set into motion
Nothing is different, but everything's changed

Paul Simon

This morning I made it up the hill to the pylons and the lookout place.  From there you get a panorama view to the south, west and north.  On coming down again a discovery was made.  On part of the track there are very clear shell fossils.  They look like small scallop shells.  At home I googled to find out that they are from the Triassic Period about 200 million years ago when new Zealand was largely a marine environment.  The last time I was standing on rock that was once under the sea I was in Red Rock Canyon in Waterton Lakes National Park, Alberta, Canada.  That piece of the canyon was under the great inland sea one and a half billion years ago.  Those bits of data are amazing to me.  The data about my walk is rather ordinary.  From my house to the lookout is two kilometers return.  My house is 100 meters above sea level and the lookout is 220 meters above sea level.  The very top of the ridge line is 513 meters so I wasn't even half way.  I will not be deterred and will boldly trudge onward and upward.  
The 1st extra is looking west to Kahurangi National Park and the tops that had snow on them yesterday.  You can see the steam from the MDF plant and the edge of the Waimea Inlet.  2nd extra my shoe beside the shells on the track.