Exact Geographic Center of New Zealand

The official geographic center of New Zealand is in the botanical gardens in Nelson. I don't know if it was politically expedient to claim a mountaintop in the botanical gardens as the exact geographic center of the country, or if they were just extremely lucky, or if the gardens and parkland grew up around the monument, but either way, I went there to see it 2 Sundays ago. I went to visit my friend Dana and we had a great time, chatting over lunch out on a patio, hiking up to the 'Center of New Zealand Lookout', or as Dana puts it "Center of New Zealand, Lookout!!" and smelling the variety of roses in the Queens Gardens. I also saw a hedgehog at my campground that morning, which was quite an exciting event for me, becuase I have been wanting to see a hedgehog ever since I was staying with Savage and his flatmate Alan said that he could hear hedgehogs rooting around outside his window at night. Well, I took it into my head that I would hang out in their backyard after dark with my headlamp and wait for the hedgehogs to show up so I could see them. I staked out a place in the tall grasses next to the house - not directly under Alan's window, since that might be a little weird, but close enough so that I could hopefully see those same hedgehogs. If you have ever tried to spot 5 inch high animals in 18 inch high grass, you will guess that I did not have much luck on that little quest. I heard some snuffling that might have been hedgehogs, but all I had to show for it in the end was a bunch of mosquito bites. And up until last weekend, the only hedgehogs I'd managed to see were dead ones on the side of the road, which obviously doesn't count. But there was a cute little baby one that came snuffling about, wandering through the campground in the morning. I think it was a little confused and was looking for its home. I was assured that although hedgehogs are normally nocturnal, it is normal for the little ones to get disoriented and come out during the day time. It doesn't mean that they are sick or injured or anything, which made me feel a lot better.