Spraying at Horahora Domain

We stopped overnight at Horahora Domain again—this time there were a lot more campers than last time.

Early in the morning, the Aqua-Ag people arrived with their air boat.

Apparently, as the sign says, today is the day they are scheduled to spray the lake for aquatic weeds.

After loading up the sprayer with herbicide, they were all ready to start.

The harbourmaster and another boat were waiting off shore, ready to assist and keep the area clear.

A soon as it was loaded up, the air boat headed off up the lake, around the corner and out of sight.

As I set off to follow, I noticed the weed along the shore. I imagine this is what they're spraying for. There certainly is plenty of it around.

Not so easy to spot on the water.

A bunch of Canadian geese had spent the night in a quiet spot over the other side of the road.

There was a black swan and three cygnets also enjoying the cooler morning.

Then the rowers arrived.

The harbourmaster raced off to intercept them before they entered the spraying area.

Confusion ensued for a while as the rowers decided what to do.

Their training cut short, they turned around and headed back the way they'd come.

The air boat in action.

Looking back towards where we were camping.

And the geese again. In spite of the hot dry weather over much of the country, it looks beautifully green in this area.

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Horahora Domain

We only stayed at Horahora Domain one night—hence why we did not even unhitch. But it's such a beautiful spot—and free! Another one to add to the "I'll be back" list!

Horahora Domain is just off State Highway 1, right beside Lake Karapiro. About 18kms from Cambridge (towards Hamilton), turn off onto Maungataurari Road. Horahora Domain is situated about 2km down this road on your left.

There's plenty of space for campers of any size, and it's a great place for a picnic. There's a boat ramp and it's a popular spot for water sports. While we were there, there was a wakeboarder entertaining us.

There are public toilets and rubbish bins, but you must be certified self-contained to be able to stay overnight.

Although online it says no dogs allowed, the signs here say they are okay on leads. Lucy was told she was not allowed outside . . . see her poking her head out? She often sits on the top step with her feet down on the next step.

There were a couple of other campers there at the same time as us, but there was plenty of space.

As for the bird life, Mr & Mrs Swan kept their babies at quite a distance, so it was a challenge to get sharp photos of them. They had four young ones (cygnets)—more than just these two—but they were quite spread out. So I settled for a shot of just a couple of them with their parents.

Then, just before the light disappeared, this white-faced heron arrived.