04-Jan-2013 -- While on a return trip to New Zealand - where I was born and grew up - I was finally able to visit this confluence point, which is the closest confluence point to my hometown of Auckland.

I began this visit by parking my rental car at a somewhat discreet spot along Fitzpatrick Road, about 500m northwest of the point. This was probably not the ideal starting point, however, because to reach the point I had to first hike down and then back up a steep, densely-forested gully (filled with native bush); then across a short section of dairy farm; then across a short section of pine forest. These pine trees - which are most likely Pinus radiata - are not native to New Zealand (though, coincidentally, they originate from central California, near where I now reside).

Finally, I hiked down another steep, densely-forested gully to reach the confluence point, which lies at the very bottom of the gully, which is filled with native "ponga" ferns. In this respect, the confluence point is quite remarkable, because it is surrounded by dairy farms, and technically lies within the metropolitan limits of Auckland - New Zealand's largest city, with a population of more than 1 million. Yet this confluence point still likely looks similar to the way it did hundreds of years ago, before the arrival of humans.