Brrrr... southerly storms again. The air temperature is not so bad - but the biting wind isn't fun. Big swells have been pounding in - rolling and cresting and foaming - but it's so difficult to convey their beauty and power in photographs. Sometimes an adventurous person will be on the rocks, giving scale - but in midwinter who would want to risk getting drenched by the spray, or even swept off their feet? Just imagine a constant low rumble from the waves, having to hold your body upright against the pushing and pulling of the wind, your glasses fogging up with salt spray, and the waves always being at their most photogenic when you are focusing your camera somewhere else. But in the late afternoon there was a period when the winds eased. People were admiring the sight of the waves rolling in and a brave person scaled the rocks - which are larger than you might think - to give some idea of the scale. Thank you!
Rocks by Princess Bay, waves and seaspray of the southerly swell, a person clambering on the rocks giving a sense of scale and Taputeranga, the island of Island Bay, in the background.
To give you some idea of the beauty of the waves as they roll in to Houghton Bay (which is just beyond Princess Bay and is, in calmer times, used for surfing by the brave.) The dense salt spray drifts inland a long way and mists everything. That salty taste!