Dogs taken for a walk on the beach where there were some Variable Oyster Catchers. There was a one-legged Variable Oyster Catcher, yes a real one legged one and not a bird hiding a leg under its wing. Pete says this bird has been around for several years.

We said goodbye to Betsy who was off to Christchurch on the bus from Nelson.

We went out to visit the Rutherford birth place in Brightwater. (We had been past there on the 26th, but had failed to stop.) On the way, we saw the interesting spectacle of a house been driven down the road. We had been told that they do this, often at night, but here we actually saw one being transported during the day. We even saw water coming out of the plumbing as they jacked up the side of the trailer to pass over some parked cars. Some of the street signs in the middle of the road are just popped into sockets and so were easily removed to allow the house around a roundabout.

During the afternoon the furniture van arrived to collect the furniture for Peter & Nic’s newly purchased bach in Golden Bay.

In the evening we went to Isel park to dog walk. It is in Stoke, has some magnificent trees. There were stalls selling food drinks  etc. This evening there was a magnificent sun set over Nelson.

We were sleeping in the garden sleep-out. Casper the Rag Doll cat visited us, coming in through the cat flap, and proceeded to purr loudly and attempt to force himself to get between our heads. A great cat. [Ed’s note: since returning, we learnt with horror that he was run over and killed in the cul-de-sac. A very sad & unnecessary end to his life.]