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We were awake early and packing up the car soon after. The thick, damp mists were still swirling so no fabulous views but we know they are there somewhere. After one last breakfast and a fond farewell to our hosts Nina and Roger it was time to leave Camp Estate and be on our way southwards towards Invercargill.
Leaving Dunedin the road was long and straight but once we turned off the main highway into the Catlins area the road and scenery started to become much more interesting. If you had the time, The Catlins is a whole trip all by itself. There is just so much to see, so many places to stop for a look but if you have somewhere that you just have to be then you really have to watch the time or you are bound to be late!
We passed an amazing bridge of concrete arches in Balclutha. We stopped at a small town called Owaka, actually the main town of the Catlins, and had a look around their small museum. It was absolutely fantastic and gave us so much insight into the character of the local people as well as lots of events in their history. Carrying on we made a stop at the Purakaunui Falls. Theseare a short walk through impressive podocarp and beech forest. The falls have a 20 metre drop and cascade over 3 tiers. Purakaunui Falls also featured on a New Zealand postage stamp and on many calendars.
Next stop was Mclean Falls. This was a pleasant 40 minute round trip walk from the gravel road in the hot sunshine. The 22-metre falls are on the Tautuku River and are often described as the most spectacular in the region. These falls were well worth a look and seemed much more spectacular than those at Purakaunui. Sadly we had to give the famous Cathedral Caves a miss as they can only be viewed at low tide and, in any case, time was rather tight.
Never mind, it's good to leave something for next time!
We did, however, have time for Curio Bay and we were so glad that we did. It is such an amazing place! According to the books this place is of international significance bcause of its fossilised forest dating back to the Jurassic period. The tree fossils on the beach here are clearly identifiable as such. They are 160 million years old and are from a forest which was alive when New Zealand was part of Gondwanaland. We went down onto the beach and looked at these fossils which are everywhere you look with genuine wonder and amazement and thoughts of times gone by. As if this was not enough excitement for one day we saw several rare, yellow eyed penguins leave the bushes and make their way down to the sea.
Tearing ourselves away and with an eye on the clock we carried on our way towards Invercargill airport. We were doing really well but at the last minute the sat nav decided to take us in completely the wrong direction. As we sailed past the airport turning we decided to out the sat nav away and use instinct. Well, as always, we got their just in time to complete the formalities and boarded our dinky, 10 seater plane for the short hop to Stewart Island. The sun was blazing down and it was an excellent flight with beautiful views. Such fun and so different to be in such a small plane. So noisy, too!!
After landing on the grass air strip we were soon transported to Stewart Island Lodge and shown to our very comfortable room. No time to waste! Within half an hour we were out for dinner at The South Sea Island Hotel , a Stewart Island icon, situated in the middle of Halfmoon Bay, just a stone’s throw from the beach. Fantastic food! Simon had fish pie and Amanda had fabulous green lipped mussels in garlic and white wine.
After dinner it was a quick march to Oban Pier to board the boat for a Kiwi spotting tour. We set off in the fading light for an evening cruise and guided bush walk in the hope of seeing brown kiwis in their natural environment. A wonderful boat ride on mirror like sea in the setting sun. After about half an hour we disembarked and set off with our guide at a brisk pace along the track towards Ocean beach. Last night we were eating dinner at Larnach castle Tonight we are roaming a distant beach in the pitch dark in search of kiwis! It was an unforgettable experience and, even better, we actually saw one! These rare and special creatures come down out of the bush to eat the little sand hoppers which feed off the kelp. Wow! Amazing! Unbelievable! All those words are not enough to describe how exciting it is to come across one of these unusual birds in its natural habitat. Our guide was able to give us masses of information about kiwis which was all completely new to us and very interesting. What an experience.
Back on the boat we all had hot drinks on the trip back to Oban. A swift walk back to the lodge, up the 1 in 3 hill and we were in our bed by midnight after what had been a very long and very interesting day.
Leaving Dunedin the road was long and straight but once we turned off the main highway into the Catlins area the road and scenery started to become much more interesting. If you had the time, The Catlins is a whole trip all by itself. There is just so much to see, so many places to stop for a look but if you have somewhere that you just have to be then you really have to watch the time or you are bound to be late!
We passed an amazing bridge of concrete arches in Balclutha. We stopped at a small town called Owaka, actually the main town of the Catlins, and had a look around their small museum. It was absolutely fantastic and gave us so much insight into the character of the local people as well as lots of events in their history. Carrying on we made a stop at the Purakaunui Falls. Theseare a short walk through impressive podocarp and beech forest. The falls have a 20 metre drop and cascade over 3 tiers. Purakaunui Falls also featured on a New Zealand postage stamp and on many calendars.
Next stop was Mclean Falls. This was a pleasant 40 minute round trip walk from the gravel road in the hot sunshine. The 22-metre falls are on the Tautuku River and are often described as the most spectacular in the region. These falls were well worth a look and seemed much more spectacular than those at Purakaunui. Sadly we had to give the famous Cathedral Caves a miss as they can only be viewed at low tide and, in any case, time was rather tight.
Never mind, it's good to leave something for next time!
We did, however, have time for Curio Bay and we were so glad that we did. It is such an amazing place! According to the books this place is of international significance bcause of its fossilised forest dating back to the Jurassic period. The tree fossils on the beach here are clearly identifiable as such. They are 160 million years old and are from a forest which was alive when New Zealand was part of Gondwanaland. We went down onto the beach and looked at these fossils which are everywhere you look with genuine wonder and amazement and thoughts of times gone by. As if this was not enough excitement for one day we saw several rare, yellow eyed penguins leave the bushes and make their way down to the sea.
Tearing ourselves away and with an eye on the clock we carried on our way towards Invercargill airport. We were doing really well but at the last minute the sat nav decided to take us in completely the wrong direction. As we sailed past the airport turning we decided to out the sat nav away and use instinct. Well, as always, we got their just in time to complete the formalities and boarded our dinky, 10 seater plane for the short hop to Stewart Island. The sun was blazing down and it was an excellent flight with beautiful views. Such fun and so different to be in such a small plane. So noisy, too!!
After landing on the grass air strip we were soon transported to Stewart Island Lodge and shown to our very comfortable room. No time to waste! Within half an hour we were out for dinner at The South Sea Island Hotel , a Stewart Island icon, situated in the middle of Halfmoon Bay, just a stone’s throw from the beach. Fantastic food! Simon had fish pie and Amanda had fabulous green lipped mussels in garlic and white wine.
After dinner it was a quick march to Oban Pier to board the boat for a Kiwi spotting tour. We set off in the fading light for an evening cruise and guided bush walk in the hope of seeing brown kiwis in their natural environment. A wonderful boat ride on mirror like sea in the setting sun. After about half an hour we disembarked and set off with our guide at a brisk pace along the track towards Ocean beach. Last night we were eating dinner at Larnach castle Tonight we are roaming a distant beach in the pitch dark in search of kiwis! It was an unforgettable experience and, even better, we actually saw one! These rare and special creatures come down out of the bush to eat the little sand hoppers which feed off the kelp. Wow! Amazing! Unbelievable! All those words are not enough to describe how exciting it is to come across one of these unusual birds in its natural habitat. Our guide was able to give us masses of information about kiwis which was all completely new to us and very interesting. What an experience.
Back on the boat we all had hot drinks on the trip back to Oban. A swift walk back to the lodge, up the 1 in 3 hill and we were in our bed by midnight after what had been a very long and very interesting day.
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