There’s a saying – “you can’t beat Wellington on a good day”. But sadly at this time of year those good days are few and far between.

Today, after rain for the last 3 days, it was a good day. I was driving back from the city around Oriental Bay, one of the more affluent parts of the city, and the temptation to stop and take some photos was too strong.

Oriental Bay is only 5 minutes drive from the city centre and is a favorite spot for Wellingtonians – everyone from families walking dogs through to lunchtime joggers.

Until a few years ago the beach was just rocks and boulders but the city council decided to re-sand the beach, building break waters at either end of the bay to keep the sand from washing away. For the most part it worked with only an annual top up of sand and some re-distribution from one end of the beach to the other being needed.

In summer the beach is packed with locals making the most of this inner city asset.