When I was a child we used to stay in an old bach in Kaikoura. A “bach” is a word coming from bachelor – an bit of a house out in nature that often is quite basic and maybe only just holding together. Or as Wikipedia defines it: “In New Zealand, a bach (pronounced “batch”) is a small, modest holiday home or beach house. Deliberately simple and often found near the coast or lakes, these rustic retreats are a celebrated Kiwi cultural icon representing a relaxed, no-frills philosophy of holidaying.”
We would wake up very early in the morning to the sound of my Uncle getting up – he often slept under the dining table if we didn’t have room in the house. This would be the sign that it was time to fish. We would pile into a car or two and go down behind the Kaikoura Railway Station to do some surf casting. I couldn’t cast beyond the waves so would leave most of the fishing up to my uncle. However I could keep the fire going. We were often there in late autumn or very early spring when the fire restrictions allowed a fire on the beach. I wouldn’t call it a bonfire, it was just a small fire made in the stones (we would scoop out a hollow to put the newspaper and wood) and we would keep adding to it for hours. We cooked all sorts of things in it:
Potatoes wrapped in tinfoil
Bananas wrapped in tinfoil
Toast on a stick
Heating up water for hot chocolate
It was a fun thing to do. These days the rules are a bit stricter and you have to be careful with fires (disclaimer). Always check the local council laws. Here is a fire we had recently. Check out my relaxing video – it definitely brings out the caveman in me watching this. I find it so relaxing.
Here are some photos from fires I’ve had in the past.
