North Otago Coast

All Day Bay

Fossil hunting at All day Bay

Campbells Bay looking down to All Day Bay

cool driftwood seat

the gang

baches on no exit roads... 

...more old baches

now that's relaxation!

yellow eyed penguin

Y.E.P. 2

On the lighthouse headland seals were lying around everywhere

cute

a Moeraki Boulder

 

Today we explored the Otago coastline south of Oamaru - a geological safari and a marine life safari.  We are parked-up freedom camping at All Day Bay (good name - we'll be here all night too!) and first we took the car north to Campbells Bay where there were 'ancient shrimp burrows in Ototara limestone...' and then Kakanui North Head (for dark mineral breccia?) - everywhere had great views up and down the coast.  Next stop on the trail was supposed to be near Coast Restaurant but we couldn't find it so had coffee there instead.  That was the end of the 2-day vanished World geology trail.

Next we went down the main road to Moeraki and explored the little dead end roads south and west of Moeraki.  Finally we went down Lighthouse Road expecting to see a lighthouse (which we did) but there was also a hide to view yellow eyed penguins and a headland walk.  We saw so many seals and/or sea lions here!  We also saw the penguins - but not from the hide, they were walking around or just sitting in the bush at the edge of the track.

Elephants and Earthquakes

me at Elephant Rocks

Malcolm at Elephant Rocks

fossilised whale skeleton (with a couple of more recent bones)

Malcolm at Earthquakes

We had a geological morning visiting some sites on the Vanished World trail in the Waitake Valley.  First we visited Elephant Rocks - an area of weathered limestone lumps which are quite surreal.  Next stop, Anatini where the fossilised skeleton of a baleen whale can be seen (behind perspex) - the rocks here are weirdly eroded too.  Third site, Earthquakes, was so named because people thought the huge chunks of rock had been shaken from the cliff in earthquakes - but that didn't happen.  They fell from cliffs when the land slumped thousands of years ago.  There was another fossil whale here, behind a steel grill.  We drove past some other stuff but you would have to be really keen on geology to stop at them all.    

Lake Pukaki and Steampunk

Cloudy view towards Mount Cook

Our Xmas spot

Xmas day walk - it was quite chilly!

sunnier view from the bus at Lake Pukaki

...just couldn't get the sun on the mountains!

 

coffee stop at Lake Aviemore

outside Steampunk H.Q. Oamaru

steam punk bus channelling Darth Vader

steampunkery

 

We spent Christmas time at Lake Pukaki which looked fantastic when the sun was out - bright turquoise water.  Mount Cook was mostly hidden behind clouds, sometimes showing some snowy slopes, sometimes it's summit but never its whole self.  Yesterday was a very social day.  We discovered our friends Gaye and Rob Ambler were in their motorhome not far away so we visited them and had lunch there.  Then in the evening we went to Tekapo and had dinner there with our friend Katherine (from Whangarei) and her friend visiting from the U.K.  Today we left Lake Pukaki and drove across to Omarama (where Katherine passed us, waving - they were off to Wanaka) - we turned and drove down to a place called Awamoko on highway 83, north of Oamaru.

Since we have an interest in the Steampunk phenomena we checked out Steampunk H Q - 'tomorrow as it used to be'.

Happy Christmas

Happy Christmas!

Across to the lakes

on the road from Geraldine, roadside lupins and mountains in the distance

me at a viewpoint (coffee stop) near Fairlie



Tekapo - most picturesque dump station yet!




our spot at Lake Pukaki

view from the bus - Mt Cook in the distance

cycling round the lake

Malcolm finds a Xmas tree - just the right size

We went to see The Hobbit at Geraldine - in a cute little old theatre where they give you tickets off a roll and the seating is rows of old sofas with dubious looking throws.  There was an intermission and very DIY local ads.  Good old kiwi fun!

Then on a gorgeous sunny day we drove from Geraldine to lake Pukaki via Lake Tekapo.  We went to do our Xmas shopping in Twizel but unfortunately it didn't have any shops!!  Well it had some - if you are into fishing, quite a few cafes and 2 4-Squares (grocers).  So we got our last groceries for Xmas but I have to make do with a bar of chocolate and a magazine from Malcolm for Xmas!  Either that or a fishing rod.  Anyway I'm sure I can find something for him to buy me at a place with shops.

Today dawned cloudy but we decided to cycle some of the Alps to Ocean bike trail that passes near our bus.  Most of the time it was sunny (and not cold) with the mountains coming more and more into view.  We met 130 cyclists doing the ride in a group - they had a helicopter ride from Mt Cook to the road beside the lake.  This cycle trail goes to Oamaru  but we just went an hour each way collecting our Xmas tree en route.  After lunch it got windy and clouds came over from the Alps and big waves breaking on our beach - certainly changeable weather!

We go to Mesopotamia and sort of have an accident

Bayeux tapestry made from bits of metal!

big totara in the Peel Forest (near Geraldine)

having fun driving through fords

heading inland

...snow on the mountain tops

sheep penned up...

ready to be drenched

sheep that were sitting in the road

roadside view

old agricultural stuff at Mesopotamia station entrance

getting ready to flip the lad's 4WD back onto its wheels

 

 

Today has been sunny and we spent the morning in Geraldine which is a nice little town with boutique-y type shops.  We visited the giant jumper shop which we had read about.  This is an amazing place.  Apart from the giant jumper on the wall (and in the Guinness book of records) the guy has made a copy of the Bayeux Tapestry out of tiny metal pieces from the knitting pattern machines.  The pieces are placed together on a sticky surface making a background he paints on.  It has taken him 25 years and is also in the Guinness book of records.  There is much more to tell about this guy - he has put his tapestry onto a CD and it is interactive.  Click on a knight and it tells you about him, the castle associated etc etc.  Anyway guess what Malcolm's getting for Xmas?

Then we went into the Peel Forest and did a short walk to the biggest totara.  Then on along a very long dirt road into the snowy mountains to the entrance of Mesopotamia station.  Named by Samuel Butler in 1860 because it was between 2 rivers.  One of New Zealand's most famous historical stations (for UK/Canadian readers - this is not a railway it is a ranch, I don't know why they are called stations in NZ and Australia).

Then on the way back -drama!  Two guys in a big 4WD came round a corner too fast, saw us, braked and swerved - missed us but rolled, their vehicle landed on its roof.  We feared the worst but they both emerged without a scratch and before too long another guy came up in a ute and with Malcolm helping they flipped the vehicle back upright and he drove it to the side of the road.  We left then and continued on our way - that could have been much worse but no harm done except a badly munted car for someone!

our spot at French Farm by the Akaroa harbour

Onawe Peninsula walk

at the start of the peninsula walk

looking down from the old pa site at the end of the peninsula - the white dot on the shoreline is the bus

me at the pa summit

driving around in the afternoon

 

Malcolm at Le Bons beach

the summit road

rain forest at Otepatotu

views from the road

Malcolm at the Otepatotu summit

bellbird

Today we had great weather.  We moved the bus to the harbourside at French farm, established in 1840 - now a vineyard.  We went for a walk on the Onawe Peninsula which is a very narrow ridge of land that sticks into the harbour at Barrys Bay.  It goes up to a pa site.  There were great views all around and the loop track back goes through bush close to the water.  From the peninsula you could see a little white blob that was the bus!

In the afternoon we went for a drive up the Summit Road to Otepatotu Reserve where we did a loop walk through mountain totara hung with moss - very goblin forest!  It's name translates roughly to 'place of the fairies'.  We saw lots of birds that we have identified from the bird book as bell birds.