Malvern Hills

This morning was so bright and sunny I decided to drive among the nearby hills. It is late autumn and not all the trees have lost their leaves. The countryside is very green after recent rain, but the rivers and creeks are still dry or very low after the drought.

The willows are still colourful

The Craigieburn Range has more snow than the closer mountains

Mount Torlesse, with the Red Peak on the left, Back Peak and Otarama on the right

Willows in the valley

The road through the poplars

The Mountains This Morning

Mount Torlesse

Back Peak and Otarama

Peaks Above the Fog

For a little while today the mountain tops broke through the clouds.

Mount Torlesse

Back Peak and Otarama

The Waimakariri River was still running high and dirty after the rain

Fresh Snow

For a few minutes this morning the heavy clouds lifted above the mountains.

Mount Torlesse, with a little sunlight on Back Peak and Otarama

Snow In Summer

Mount Torlesse with a recently harvested grain crop

Back Peak and Otarama

The moon over Porter's Skifield

The moon at 6.35 am

Summer Snow

The first two days of summer have been cold, with two falls of snow on the mountains.

Mount Torlesse, the Rubicon Peak

Back Peak and Otarama

Castle Hill Peak and The Gap

Second Snow of Autumn

Castle Hill Peak

Mount Torlesse

Back Peak and Otarama

Winter Sunrise

The snowy mountains catch the early light in dramatic ways. Here is how they looked this morning.

The Rubicon Peak of Mount Torlesse

Back Peak and Otarama

This is the sky that was reflecting colour onto the mountains.

Cloud Piercers

Back Peak and Otarama of the Torlesse Range

Stormy Sunrise

Rubicon Peak of Mount Torlesse 6.32 am

Back Peak and Otarama 6.34 am

Wintry Conditions

Back Peak and Otarama at 1.36 pm

Mountain Mood Change

Mount Torlesse at 7am

Back Peak and Otarama at 4.14pm

Mountain and Miner's Lettuce

The peak of Otarama, Torlesse Range, 7.30 am

Miner's Lettuce, Claytonia perfoliata

I found a patch of miner's lettuce near the Waimakariri Gorge Bridge, on the bluff of the northern side, under pine trees.  How did it come to be there?  Was it introduced when somebody dumped their garden rubbish there, or does its history go back to the early days before the bridge was built?

Photo taken today.

Also there, the broom was in flower, and here and there a ragwort in bud.

Moon and Jupiter

The mountains were obscured this morning, but the moon and Jupiter were in the clear.

By early afternoon the mountains were almost clear for a while