It’s been a busy six months since, I last bunged an entry in the blog.

I managed to not get washed away in the very wet summer, which included a trip to Sydney back in March, where it was mostly just as wet as it was in NZ . Still, it was good to catch up with some pals, have a few beers and laugh at some of the most bizarrely-dressed participants of the annual Sydney Mardi Gras, which – unknowningly – fell smack in the middle of visiting.

Back home and after a few weeks of cleaning, painting and repairs, it was time for the kiwifruit harvest. Despite the slightly lowish volumes, we were relieved to finally get the crop off the vines and safely to market.

In a year where PSA V has decimated the kiwifruit industry in the Bay of Plenty, we considered ourselves very lucky indeed!

By this time, the weather had improved remarkably and we enjoyed a long Indian summer through to early June, harvesting the bulk of the Mandarin crop before what passes for winter in the Bay finally arrived. Chilly, frosty nights are mostly followed by glorious blue-sky days (now THERE’s something you don’t see often in Blighty ).

Onward and upward…

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