Ata mārie :laserkiwi: 🌞 Happy Friday. ☕ I'm transporting kids home from school camp today, so enjoying some quiet time before the chaos.

Here's a relaxing picture of a sundew I found on a walk in the #Waitākere ranges last weekend. I believe it's one of the Drosera sp. and possibly one of the 7 #NZ native species. (Did you know we have we some native carnivorous plants?)

Today my friend and I walked the upper #Huia dam (reservoir) walk. Approx 12 km return. One big hill to climb after passing the lower dam, then a slightly dicey tunnel (warning signs for possible rock fall). I find it pretty amazing they built this in the 1920s in such difficult terrain and a remote location.
#Waitākere #NZ

Found some birds nest (Crucibilum laeve) #fungi on our walk. The little "eggs" are packets of spores that get splashed out and spread by rain droplets.
#Waitākere #NZ

A #fungi photo for your Friday. This is a Coltricia sp. At first glance I thought it was dead but a closer look made me realise it wasn't. These #mushroom have pores rather than gills underneath. Unfortunately I didn't think to take a photo of that at the time. The top had a velvety feel.
#Piha #Waitākere #NZ

Visited Kitekite falls again today. Was much nicer without the summer crowds on the track. The falls are quite deceptive from below as you only see the full height from a distance.
#Piha #Waitākere #NZ

Went for a walk yesterday and did the Mercer bay + Comans + Ahu Ahu Tracks as a big loop. It took us roughly 2.5h. We made the mistake (?) of looping down the Ahu Ahu track which meant a multitude of stairs going back up on Comans. Track quite close to the cliff in places and in another small section you need to climb up/down a small steep rocky section. Still a bit sore today! 😂 Awesome views along the way and thankfully not a windy day.
#Waitākere #NZ #hike

Found a couple of #fungi on the way. I think the one on the left is an Artomyces species and the one on the right might be Podoscypha petalodes.

#sporespondence #mushroom #NZ #Waitākere

Walked the Pipeline and Beveridge tracks today. Fortunately we made it most of the way around before the rain arrived. Legs are a bit sore tonight - my Fitbit says I've done 75 flights of stairs. 😮
#Waitākere #walk #hike

For a change of scenery, friend and I decided to do a walk through one of the council's "working farms", Pae o te Rangi, over the weekend.The farm had a disc golf course (! seemed random), as well as live electric fences - a fun surprise if you try crossing at any place other than the stiles. 😂 #NZ #Waitākere

Went for a #walk along the Upper Nihotupu Dam track today with the family. Didn't spot any interesting #insects , though to be honest I was enjoying the walk too much to go fossicking through the undergrowth. We did notice different fungi starting to appear (FYI for any mycologists or general fans of fungi)
#Aotearoa #nz #Waitākere #autumn