I know I shouldn't...

On Saturday at the markets I gave in to temptation and purchased a brand new set of telescopic garden pruning shears.  I should have waited to get home to try them out.

Instead GB found a use for them that very afternoon.

We took the long way home from Warkworth , stopping first at the Old Cement Works by the river. 

I've posted photos from there before and I'm sure GB got some great shots. 

 The creek by the cement works at low tide

There are so many lovely places around Warkworth and Matakana but unfortunately the weather was a bit dull, grey and overcast.  I say unfortunately from a photographic point of view, personally I was delighted hoping against hope that the weather was the same here on the farm and that long awaited rain was coming our way.

But I can never pass by Leigh Harbour.  It's a small harbour, home to a fleet  of commercial fishing boats and is the access to other diving and fishing spots around the islands of the Hauraki Gulf. Most of the boats at anchor were not the fancy yachts you see at a lot of New Zealand harbours but honest to goodness working vessels.

I can't quite believe I got this shot of one of the many birds at work in the harbour.  

Birds in flight are usually totally beyond me.

A crab pot laying on the jetty

We wandered around happily clicking away at birds and boats and probably wouldn't have noticed this boat being pulled in if GB hadn't been concerned that I'd left the car parked in the boat trailer area and ran back up the road to move it - he's a law abiding citizen!

I followed him at a more leisurely pace, by which time the young fishermen had pulled up behind us in the carpark.  One of them approached me with a lovely big trevally in his hand and asked if I'd like it.  Would I ever!  I'd found a plastic bag in the boot and was joyfully stowing it away when he said perhaps I'd like another.  Gratefully accepted of course.  You can't get fresher than still alive. 

So we were happy trippers as we carried on our way over the hill towards Pakiri with our dinner in the boot.  However, it became apparent from the noises coming from the boot that the fish were still very much alive and when we stopped at the top of the hill to take photos we became concerned with the animal cruelty aspect.   Now I can bait a hook and love fishing, can scale and gut a fish no problem but I simply cannot kill them.  GB announced he'd kill it and being the bright spark that he is decided my new pruning shears would be just the ticket.

I think I should wait till he's out of the country before posting the evidence:

Oh, almost forgot, the view from the top of the hill, not bad considering the conditions.