Thunder and Lightning

I was on duty at Zealandia acting as Tail End Charlie on a Zealandia By Night Tour. We had three Americans, two locals and two  visitors from Auckland.
As I arrived the weather started to deteriorate and I figured it was going to be a wet tour. The tour party was well prepared with raincoats and leggings and were keen to head out into the valley.
But first we entered the Exhibition to learn a little about New Zealand's history and our vision for a 'back to the future' scenario by creating a haven for our endangered species which have little defence against any mammal. I was upstairs operating the video when I heard heavy rain starting to fall on the roof and a couple of booms of thunder.

It was raining heavily when we left. In an instant my shoes and trousers were soaked. Usually I take leggings but for some reason it had not occurred to me this time, something I was rapidly regretting. My top half was fine. I had a  good solid Zealandia raincoat on plus a peaked hat to keep water off my face. The ground was already streaming with water.

As we approached our first stop, Bird Song Gully, lightning lit up the sky, followed by booms of thunder. Our American guests looked nervous. Seconds later the next rattling light show assailed us. Our guide asked the visitors how they felt about continuing. The Americans, who had a healthy respect of lightning storms said they were not keen. Two others were undecided and the other two wished to continue. We decided to split with me taking our our American guests back to the visitors centre. They would be able to attempt the night tour again in a couple of days hence. The rain poured down and the pyrotechnics continued as we made our way back to the safety of the centre. As we arrived at the gate the two undecided guests had decided to call it a day as well. We were a bedraggled lot as we entered the building and I fumbled around to turn off alarms and turn on lights.

I apologised for Wellington's lousy weather and sent them on their way. Actually thunder storms are not part of the usual bag of tricks Wellington throws at us and this was the first time I had been in Zealandia under such conditions.

I then headed back up the valley. A drain had blocked with leaves and a little river was flowing over the path. As I was totally drenched as it was I delved in and removed the debris to allow the
water to run freely into the culvert.

I made my way back to the guide and his two stalwarts amid clashes of thunder and a brilliant light display. They had arrived at the place where our most reliable kiwi Flip Flop hangs out. He turned up at about the same time I did and was totally unperturbed by the storm. We watched him using our red torch light which creates the least disturbance to night animals. The lightning showed no such consideration. During the flashes we could see the kiwi as if it were daylight. He went about his business, probing for worms and snuffling about with no concerns whatsoever.

Finally, after an hour or so things started to calm down. Our two visitors were very happy with their decision to continue on as they had seen kiwi in the wild for the first time. What was a bit of thunder and lightning compared to that!

Lightning strikes over the harbour