Macandrew Bay to Pukehiki                                                                                  

29 March - After visiting the "Almost an Island" exhibition in MacAndrew Bay, I decided to have a bit of a look around as the hills looked interesting.   It appeared that the way to the top would be a slog, but I spoke with a local resident who was washing his bike in front of his house, and he said it would only take about 20 minutes to get up to Highcliff Road.  It took me about an hour and 20 minutes. 
There were some massive eucalyptus trees by the side of the road; the red leaf is from one of those.
"Best eggs on the street."
A confusing mix of two plants.  The pink flowers are Red Campion (Silene dioica), but the plant with the berries is Tutsan (Hypericum androsaemum), an introduced invasive plant that is quite a problem on the North Island.  The berries are mildly poisonous.  Tutsan is subject to a rust fungus (Melampsora hypericorum) which causes the reddish spots on the leaves.
Starting to get some views.
In a 11 March press release Otago Peninsula Biodiversity Group and Predator Free Dunedin declared the Otago Peninsula possum free (>).  Tthe community reported removing more than 26,000 possums across 9,200 hectares over more than 15 years.  However, the OPBG website notes work continues to control multiple species including rabbbits, mustelids, feral cats, rodents and hedgehogs.
A small creek beside the track.
View back toward Dunedin with the 70-200.  Note the two ships: Magnolia Express at the Oil Jetty and the Lignum Fibre at the Leith Berth.
 next >