Themed walk

— Posted inUncategorized — 2 min read

Went for a bush-hill walk for the first time in a while. I was also in pursuit of some old relics, which is the theme for April at Shoot&Tell. Weather at first wasn't great for walk or photography, but became better by 11. I left home with my camera at 11.45. …

Because of the old relics theme, I took an old unmaintained track from North corner of the Blue Trail in Otari Native Plant Gardens. As expected the old track was overgrown at places and had lots of old things such as dead branches lying around. There, I found colonies of strikingly coloured fungus on old dead branches, adding some autumnal colour to otherwise dark floor of evergreen southern hemisphere forest.

About 20 minutes walk uphill took me out in the open and up on the hill top pasture. There I spotted a small white object and recognised it a puffball. I have had a guidance that this should be edible. So without hesitation, I harvested it. Another ten minutes took me to my favourite spot, the rocky outcrops. There I spent some time for taking pictures on my other photographic theme, the composition tech. And I had just the thing for this tech theme in my pocket!

Another 20 minutes on the track and there was an old disintegrating stock loading pen, a bit like the one you see here but uglier. I spent more time there theme-photographing. (I think I spent more time taking pictures than walking today.) It was the saddle where an old farm road from Karori intersects with the Skyline track. I walked down the hill to the western suburb of Karori then walked down Parkvale Road to the shops. It was past 2.30pm and I was very hungry.

Now my stomach situation sorted, I started a leisurely stroll back to home. At Ian Galloway Park I stopped to watch club premier league rugby for some time. Then I stopped by at a friend's place for cup of tea and chat. I didn't get home until after sunset!

Go to the photo album, Walkers Eyes for bigger pictures. I have only uploaded the pictures for this post today, but will upload more later. Watch the space. 😉

PS
The puffball is now in my stomach :chef:

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  1. Thank you for taking me along on your Themed Walk. I enjoyed it very much…especially learning about the Puffball Mushroom. We have a wonderful tasting mushroom that many people hunt for in my area called Dry Land Fish. Do you have those in New Zealand?

  3. I'm scared to risk eating wild fungi. :insane:.One minor mis-identification and I'd be toast. :ko:.

  4. Originally posted by qlue:

    I'm scared to risk eating wild fungi.

    In the morning after I'm still alive 😀 Apparently some fungi only cause health damage if consumed with alcohol. I've been out of beer stock for some time. Maybe that saved my life? :pInterestingly what is most feared in NZ outdoors is not poisonous fungi or venomous animals but a ubervicious species of tree nettle Urtica ferox (Ongaonga). You don't even need to eat this. One faint touch and you are delivered a sharp electrical pain not unlike a wasp sting. The pain usually last for few days, gradually replaced by numbness. Takes about a week for the effects of one sting to go away. I had a couple of bad encounters (multiple stings) and at one occasion, experienced a delayed onset of dizzy-ness, short of breath, numbing sensations around lips and fingers and near syncope, three days after being stung! At least one person was killed after trying to push through a thicket of ongaonga.

  5. A whole fry pan of those can be a decent supplement to your supplies if on a hike, MM. Qlue, a little college can go a long way! 😀

  6. Hi Annette. Glad you enjoyed my new post. :happy: There are many more photos I haven't uploaded yet that are still to come. So watch the space. :chef: Tom coached me on puffball identification & cooking 😀 I haven't seen the Dry Land Fish (Morel mushroom) around here. There are other kind of field mushrooms but those I found yesterday looked passed the used by date. :p@Tom 😎 I took 200+ shots yesterday. I have looked through and deleted dud ones (shaking, out of focus, wrong exposure, and such likes). I'll still have to go over the good ones again and implement a strict selection process to narrow down to the final ten for upload. And thank you for puffball edibility ID & cooking tip. I cut it open to make sure it's still all white in the centre, sliced it and quickly fried with a little olive oil. :chef: Wasn't much at all, but the flavour was awesome! 😀

  7. Well, identifying a snake is a bit like identifying a bird. You have to know it to identify it. But leave it alone and it goes away. The stats for venomous snake bites are ridiculously low and in most cases, the 'victim' was interfering with the snake to begin with. :doh:.The same people think nothing of drinking and driving or having sex with a stranger, two examples of risky behaviour that cause many more deaths each year than snakes have caused in two decades. :faint:.

  8. " Atleast one person waskilled after trying to pushthrough a thicket ofongaonga ." – Wow, and I thought poison oak was bad. :yikes:

  9. Originally posted by Frlmnk:

    A whole fry pan of those

    Would've been nice, eh? I tried to walk slowly searching ground but my stomach kept saying, hurry to the shop! :lol:Originally posted by Frlmnk:

    Wow, and I thought poison oak was bad.

    At least it looks vicious and easy to spot if you know what to look at. There was some growing the disused stock loading pen. Small but sporting the nasty thorn like stings. :insane: Originally posted by qlue:

    the mambas are feared, despite the fact that most people have never even seen a mamba.

    Snakes are naturally scary. You don't want to get near one in case it's venomous. Is IDing a mamba from a distance difficult? If so, is that why people kill any snakes in sight, just in case?

  10. Ongaonga? Sounds like something from a Disney cartoon! :insane:.We've got blackjacks and khakibos but that's about it. In this area, the mambas are feared, despite the fact that most people have never even seen a mamba. :rolleyes:.Everyone else here has chronic, acute, herpetaphobia! :irked:.If it even looks like it might be a snake, they chase and kill it. :cry:.The fact that they usually end vs killing harmless grass snakes and not the deadly mamba doesn't seem to sink into their tiny brains. :doh:.

  11. Nice post MM, the orange fungus doesn't look too tasty, I have heard that puffballs are good eating but I must admit that the pie looked the best to me :chef:

  12. So that means that American cattle are more effective predators than Sylvester and Wile E. Coyote combined. :eyes:

  13. Cheers, DH. I've another shot of those at different location. It turned out quite well, sharp focus on the underside of some of them, clearly showing infestation of tiny tiny insects! So the bugs can have those and I have the pie (freshly baked at Brumby's Karori ;)Originally posted by qlue:

    But leave it alone and it goes away. The stats for venomous snake bites are ridiculously low and in most cases, the 'victim' was interfering with the snake to begin with. .The same people think nothing of drinking and driving or having sex with a stranger, two examples of risky behaviour that cause many more deaths each year than snakes have caused in two decades. .

    Very good point. Sad for the snakes, sad for those eventually get hurt from own risky actions. 🙁

  14. The modern fear of sharks was pushed out of proportion to actuall risk by the Jaws series of movies. :rolleyes:.Real sharks don't behave in the same manner as movies sharks as a rule. :p.

  15. Originally posted by debplatt:

    The colors in your photo are really popping! I checked out and enjoyed your album

    Thanks, Deb. I've got a bunch of themed ones for the S&T monthly theme I had to shortlist, another bunch of scenic pics for Wellington scenery album (Te Whanganui a Tara), another bunch for the Curious Interesting Silly album and more bunch of rugby playing young lads, which I'm planning to make a new album for. So I'll be busy. 😉

  16. Originally posted by darkesthour:

    so the cattle dislike Americans but like sharks?

    :eyes: I guess so. 😆

  17. cattle are more likely to kill Americans than sharks. so the cattle dislike Americans but like sharks? 😆

  18. Originally posted by mimi_s_mum:

    In the morning after I'm still alive

    I really enjoyed accompanying you on your walk. What wonderful weather you had for a photo outing. The colors in your photo are really popping! I checked out and enjoyed your album (and I've subscribed so I can keep a watch on the space :D).I really liked the orange fungi, and it was fun getting to see your pie.Originally posted by qlue:

    The same people think nothing of drinking and driving or having sex with a stranger, two examples of risky behaviour that cause many more deaths each year than snakes have caused in two decades. .

    I just read this interesting article in Popular Mechanics that cattle are more likely to kill Americans than sharks. Check out this passage from the article, "Cow Attack Survival Guide…":

    Between 2003 and 2008, 108 people died from cattle-induced injuries across the United States, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. That's 27 times the whopping four people killed in shark attacks in the United States during the same time period, according to the International Shark Attack File.

  19. It could be the other way round, perhaps Americans taste nicer than sharks? I cannot really see why else these cattle would be so discriminating 😆

  20. Originally posted by debplatt:

    "Cow Attack Survival Guide…":

    There were two cows grazing just below the top rocky outcrop and one of them was standing right on my path. I did give her a widish berth but she looked at me sharply letting me know I had to move even further off her. Originally posted by darkesthour:

    cattle are more likely to kill Americans than sharks. so the cattle dislike Americans but like sharks?

    😆 The logic dictates, doesn't it? :p

  21. Its beginning to sound like "Attack of the Killer Tomatoes" round here :eyes:

  22. Originally posted by darkesthour:

    it was about 12C earlier

    Not like summer any more even in the sunny HB :awww: Soon I'll be getting the slow cooker out from cupboard. :chef:I'd better go off to sort out lunch, and possibly another afternoon nature photography walk. Thanks for the chat. Was a great fun. :)TTFN

  23. Originally posted by darkesthour:

    Cows with swim fins, mask and snorkel, spear fishing for sharks You have to find that picture funny

    😆 😆 :lol:Sure I did :lol:So what's happening in your neck of woods? Sunny & warm? Here it's another dull morning and finally starting to warm up (still about 16°C). They have a guided walk at Otari this afternoon with some botany talks. I might go with my camera again.

  25. Originally posted by darkesthour:

    perhaps Americans taste nicer than sharks? I cannot really see why else these cattle would be so discriminating

    What about 'the cattle can't swim'?

  27. Cattle can swim, I have seen it in John Wayne movies so it must be true :knight:

  28. As often as I've camped on leased grazing land, (I'm on some right now), I've never been bothered by any domestic cattle. I have had one elk cow making a display of running back and forth right through an old barbed wire fence to tear it down and was confronted by a moose cow once but it resulted in no great tragedy. Had a bull moose walk within 10 feet of me in the Tetons. He couldn't even see me until I moved.

  30. Cows with swim fins, mask and snorkel, spear fishing for sharks 😆 You have to find that picture funny

  31. Originally posted by darkesthour:

    Cattle can swim,

    In the sea, where, naturally sharks are? Even if they can swim, they must swim underwater to hunt sharks, mustn't they?

  32. Originally posted by MM:

    Because of the old relics theme, I took an old unmaintained track…

    You know, I had been planning on just photographing stuff in my house. 😆

  34. Originally posted by Frlmnk:

    I've never been bothered by any domestic cattle.

    As young children, my brother and I would go in the cow paddock and when the cows ran at us we'd run and get up on this stack of wooden boards so they couldn't get us. Very stupid. Of course in my brother's case, it only mattered that he could run faster than I. :eyes:

  35. Back from botanising about a half an hour ago. It was a lot more talk and lot less walk that I had anticipated. It was cold, windy and started be showery towards the end. And I was freezing. Been in front of heater for 30 min, just started to feel my legs again. Next weekend talk/walk will be on fungi and I'm planning to attend. I don't think I'll be in my shorts again, though. :p

  36. Originally posted by Frlmnk:

    As often as I've camped on leased grazing land, (I'm on some right now), I've never been bothered by any domestic cattle.

    I suppose you were not bothering them either. 😉
    I was deliberately approaching her to take a good shot. She firmly snorted and eyeballed me when I got almost as close to her head as her body's length. I stepped off the flat rock I was standing to lower myself but stayed within the range until I took two more shots.

    Originally posted by debplatt:

    Originally posted by MM:

    Because of the old relics theme, I took an old unmaintained track…

    You know, I had been planning on just photographing stuff in my house. 😆

    😆 What about those rusty things in that children's garden? They looked very "relicy" to me. :p

  37. Originally posted by mimi_s_mum:

    What about those rusty things in that children's garden? They looked very "relicy" to me.

    Absolutely! Actually one of the catches with the group is that you can't post previously taken photos, or I'd definitely be posting them. Of course, I could go photograph them again…:idea: I think my first "relic" photo is going to be a covered bridge that I photographed today while on a hike.

  38. I've just finished selecting 10 pics for the week, all taken yesterday. I've never uploaded the full week quota before. :p Now I have to think about the stories to go with them. And get the dinner sorted. :DOriginally posted by debplatt:

    I could go photograph them again…

    Way to go :up:

  40. Originally posted by mimi_s_mum:

    There I spotted a small white object and recognised it a puffball. I have had a guidance that this should be edible. So without hesitation, I harvested it.

    I wonder about the safety of those orange mushrooms though. Bright colours are usually a warning.

  41. Originally posted by Mickeyjoe-Irl:

    I wonder about the safety of those orange mushrooms though.

    😆 Before I even contemplated that possibility, the arthropods had made claim on those. See my comment yesterday.Originally posted by mimi_s_mum:

    I've another shot of those at different location. It turned out quite well, sharp focus on the underside of some of them, clearly showing infestation of tiny tiny insects! So the bugs can have those and I have the pie (freshly baked at Brumby's Karori

    And this is the photo I mentioned.Hard to see in the thumbnail, but if you click this to go to my S&T album page and see the large version, you'll see those bugs. 😀

  42. Originally posted by mimi_s_mum:

    Originally posted by debplatt:

    The colors in your photo are really popping! I checked out and enjoyed your album

    Thanks, Deb. I've got a bunch of themed ones for the S&T monthly theme I had to shortlist, another bunch of scenic pics for Wellington scenery album (Te Whanganui a Tara), another bunch for the Curious Interesting Silly album and more bunch of rugby playing young lads, which I'm planning to make a new album for. So I'll be busy.

    I have now uploaded the rest of Walk photos. The collection is tagged 9-apr-2011. Or you can simply go to Walker's Eyes album and start from the photo-1.

    I've also short-listed the "arty" pictures for Curious Interesting Silly and uploaded will upload them shortly. They are tagged 9Apr11 They'll be also tagged 9-apr-2011 Photo descriptions and more detailed (useful) tagging have to wait until I get around to it. Hope it won't be long. 🙂

  44. Originally posted by Mickeyjoe-Irl:

    And did they survive?

    I presume so. I left the dead branch and the fungus colony untouched where they were. And that track is old and obsolete. Not many know or use it these days. 😉

  45. Originally posted by mimi_s_mum:

    Before I even contemplated that possibility, the arthropods had made claim on those. See my comment yesterday.

    And did they survive? 😀

  46. :doh: I meant the hungry arthropods. Suggesting those mushrooms are edible, for bugs anyway.

  47. Originally posted by Mickeyjoe-Irl:

    for bugs anyway.

    I'm sure they would not be there if the fungus were not edible. 😀

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