I arrived in Riverton Aparima early this afternoon. For a description of the area, see the entry for “R is for Riverton Rocks Red Rock” in this Post. I am going to be staying three days in a crib at Taramea Bay. After some unpacking, I drove the short distance to the Back Beach, arriving at 3.30pm. Conditions were pleasant, being sunny, 12 degrees, with no wind. It was low tide which limited the number of stones being wet by the waves. I fossicked for just 30 minutes, mainly at the western end of the beach, around a small cove.
I had noticed a mechanical digger at work at the back of the beach, near the road, and stopped to ask what was going on. It turns out that the local council is digging test pits to check if there used to be a rubbish dump there which could be subject to coastal erosion.
The following seven stones are highlights from this short fossick. Firstly, the most intriguing to me looks relatively innocuous at first sight, but it consists of two slightly different halves with a dark vein at the boundary:
A cute little trace fossil argillite stone:
This third stone seems to be a type of spotted argillite. It has an interesting texture:
Two different black igneous stones with white crystals – the second cooled more slowly, giving time for the crystals to grow larger before it hardened:
Finally, two quartzy stones, one white (with a vein), the other with a creamy yellow blush, both again with an interesting texture when viewed closely:
Tomorrow I make it to Gemstone Beach, where I get caught in a rain storm..
An Index to all the Posts in this Series is here.
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