The Wandering Tattler

On April 4, we took the TranzAlpine train from Christchurch westward across the Canterbury Plain and along a river valley up to Arthur's Pass in the Southern Alps. the TranzAlpine is the only rail line linking the east and west coasts of the South Island and it follows one of only a handful of auto roads that traverse the mountains. The village of Arthur's Pass, nestled in a valley at 3,000 feet among steep 7,000-foot peaks, is the headquarters of a national park that has several terrific hiking trails. We spent several hours hiking through the dripping rain forest to the base of a couple of thundering, high-volume waterfalls. Along one of the forest trails I spied this New Zealand Robin, which approached me fearlessly, ultimately flying up to perch on my telephoto lens. I actually had to shoo it away in order to gain enough distance to use my camera. When we reached the highway and began to walk back to the village, a rainbow appeared over our destination. A nice conclusion to a day of dramatic scenery and strenuous hiking.