I came down late from a walk to the top of the No. 1 Line track, where I'd brewed Lapsang Souchong tea, scribbled a few notes in the little moleskine, let my thoughts wander, watched the shadow creep up the far side of the gully. By the time I reached the car the light was fading fast. A short distance down the road I stopped, dialled the ISO to 1600 and wondered how to evoke what it felt like to look out over the valley towards the Whanahuia and the mountains encircling the headwaters of the Oroua.
All content © 2015 Pete McGregor
Kia ora Pete,
ReplyDeleteAs cold as it looks the thought of being tucked up there somewhere in a hut with the fire lit seems very appealing.
Robb
I agree, Robb. I'd be wanting the big sleeping bag, too.
ReplyDeleteMy first thought was that this was not NZ - and I wondered why I thought that, as I read your words below. I think it is the almost absence of the green lushness that we associate with Aotearoa. This image feels almost brutally beautiful, with the light falling on the wragged trees that cling to the side of the hill, the dark shadows of the hills, the bleached colours of sky and snow. Not Mordor, but something from Norse mythology - Midgard, perhaps.
ReplyDeleteLisa, the mountains with their fresh snow certainly looked like a glimpse of Niflheim.
ReplyDelete'Brutally beautiful' — what a wonderful phrase. Thank you :-)