Sunset at Titahi Bay...

    Saturday was bright and beautiful and, for a change, warm so after a day of wandering around Elena and I went to Titahi Bay to see the sunset.
    There is something about the air in New Zealand that makes rainbows and sunsets just a little more spectacular than they are in Florida... I know, I know, hundreds of people gather at Mallory Dock every evening in Key West to watch the sun go down and I've been among them more than a few times in the past BUT the sunsets here are a little more vibrant, a little more, well, spectacular.
    We got to Titahi Bay around 4 p.m. It's winter here so the sun usually sets around 5:30 p.m. Because we had a little time, we went for a walk along the beach where we ran into a very friendly old bulldog who wanted his ears scratched. Back to the walk after a few warm-and-fuzzy minutes with the dog, we scrambled (well, Elena scrambled... I sort of hobbled) over some rocks until we came to the remains of a fossilized forest that is only visible at low tide. No one knows for sure when these trees fell or, in fact, why they did but they're old... really old. At first they look like some very odd rock formations but when you get closer you can see that they were once trees. Very, very cool...
    We continued past the trees until we got as close as we could to the point at the bay where it becomes the Pacific Ocean. Elena might have been able to go farther but the rocks were too steep (and too jagged) for me so we turned back. We made it to the parking lot just as the sun was starting to go down and tried desperately to get pictures that really show just how spectacular it is. Unfortunately, in my case, I'm not skilled enough with a digital camera to capture the brilliant colors... sometimes (well, let's be honest, ALL the time) technology defeats me.
    All I can say is, if you ever find yourself in New Zealand it would be worth your time to go to Titahi Bay and watch the sun go down.

It's hard to believe but these "rocks" are the fossilized remains of ancient trees.

This is a better shot of the fossilized trees at Titahi Bay

Sunset at Titahi Bay

Another shot of the sun setting at Titahi Bay

I thought if I kept shooting photos of the sun setting at Titahi Bay that eventually I'd capture the beautiful colors but...

Really... can you go to the beach, any beach, and not take pictures of the gulls?