Cathedral Caves at Patatowai

The local attraction in the area of Patatowai are the Cathedral Caves, sea caves on the beach.  These are only accessible at low tide, so timing was important.  We learned that we could access the caves at 9:20 in the morning so we were at the parking lot at the appointed time and were on our way to the beach.

The path to the beach was downhill and through a dense forest.  I was reminded of many of the forests depicted in Lord of The Rings!  It was very lush and filled with different plants and foliage.

When we reached the beach we made our way to the caves.  These are eroded into the living stone of the cliff solely by the action of the sea and are about 150 meters deep.  It is unusual for them to be so deep without collapsing and these are among the 30 longest in the world.  The entrance to the caves was about 50 feet high and was very impressive.

We walked through the caves and in the very back of them, in the rubble were several blue penguins taking care of their nests.  Incredible.

We left the caves through an adjoining tunnel and the tide was already coming in so we had to leave.  We made our way back to the path in the woods, and climbed the hill back to the parking lot, which was no small feet as it was about 15 minutes straight up.

More of the scenic southern route

We made our way to the lovely town of Dunedin for a quick visit on our way South.  We stopped in at the train station...a lovely building built in the early 1900's. Then we walked over to the Cadbury factory where we shopped a bit, but did not take the available tour as time was not on our side. 

We left in the early afternoon and made our way to Popatowai, our base for the night.  The road was scenic and very different from areas we had already seen.  It is very lush and green...not covered with the course grass and low vegetation we had seen so far.  We stopped at the Purakaunui waterfall for a quick look and shaft walk in the woods.

We found the spot we had arranged for the night.  We chose to book a cabin because rain was in the offing.  This is the first time we have taken advantage of cabins that are available at camp sites. We were surprised to find that it is tiny...just big enough for two single beds!  It actually is not as wide as our tent!  It will certainly keep the rain off though.

After a quick dinner at The Whistling Frog we found the local beach and went for a long walk as dusk fell...then back to tuck into bed in the smallest building ever!

Exploring Otago Peninsula

It seeming like our legs needed a short break from hiking...we decided to drive a bit to see the sights of this Peninsula.  The extremities of the peninsula are a mere 25 minutes from Dunedin, the second largest city on the South Island and it is jam packed with interesting places and sights.  We meandered about and eventually...we went for a short hike...up a steep hill to see the magnificent views...sigh...so much for giving the legs a break!  Then we took the scenic coastal drive back into Dunedin where we saw a movie...The Theory Of Everything.

Sandfly Bay

At dusk we drove across the windiest of roads to take a walk to sandfly bay.  On the way there we saw the most remarkable trees...reminiscent of Tolkien's Ents.

When we arrived at sandfly bay we were faced with a challenging walk.  It went oner sand dunes of fine, fine sand...like icing sugar.  It was steep and very high from top to bottom.  We went down quickly with the help of gravity and did not relish the return trip!  It was well worth it though as the rare and endanger d yellow eyed penguins were coming in to feed their chicks.  They were far away but we could see them in the hills.  We also came upon a group of sessions basking in the dying sun...all against the backdrop of a most beautiful view.  We walked the length of the beach and then made our way back.  As suspected he climb up the hill was difficult with the sand shifting under our feet as we struggled up the steep dune!  We were well and truly tired for bedtime that night!

This day is for the birds!

We awoke bright and early and made our way to Otago...the peninsula which extends into the ocean from Dunedin, thus forming the protected harbour.  This area is famous for wildlife... Especially for the Royal Albatross...a beautiful and huge seabird, which I am fascinated by.  This bird, once grown from hatchling takes flight for the first time from high cliffs, and does not return to land for five years!  Rather it circumnavigates the south pole until it finally returns to its nesting ground to breed.  It is one of the largest of birds, with a wing span of 3 metres!! The Royal Albatross centre is situated right at the Northern end of the Peninsula and was established to protect the Albatross and to protect its breeding grounds.  It is also situated in a most beautiful setting with the entrance to Dunedin in sight and large and small shops passing by.  This was our first stop.

We joined the tour we had booked and were soon in the observation gallery where we could see several nests upon which the adults sat protecting their new chicks.  We also had the added treat of seeing an albatross in flight soaring on the updrafts and coming in to land.

The tour was over all to soon and we made our way to a local camp ground where we settled in. 

Youth Hostel

We arrived in Dunedin in the late afternoon.  After several days in sparsely populated areas, it was a surprise to see such a large city, with a large port and busy streets.  It being a Sunday, few things were open so we made our way directly to the youth hostel we had booked.  It is a lovely old home and we had a sperate room...and shared washrooms.  It was very comfortable.  We met a couple from Abittibi-what a coincidence!  They knew the area where are cottage is situated...so we had a long chat with them while we prepared our meals in shared kitchen facilities.  They are on a six month exploration of New Zealand and had many tips to share!

We took a short walk that night, but otherwise stayed in and relaxed.  It was my first ever hostel experience and was quite pleasant...despite sharing facilities.  The price was right-which is a big consideration as it is very expensive to travel here.  Food is also expensive and gas is double the price that we pay at home..so we must economize where we can!

Oamaru continued

After saying goodbye on Sunday, we made our way back to Oamaru to visit the farmers market.  We indulged in many fruits, fresh from the orchards (peaches, plums, etc) and we wandered through many boutiques and small artisan's booths.  Oamaru is  New Zealand's "steam punk" headquarters and so there is heavy emphasis on Victorian style wares, including costumes and jewelry.  (If you don't know what steam punk is, well, never mind...it is hard to explain).  Of particular interest was a bookstore we found, specializing in books relating to adventure and exploration.  In the store was a reproduction of Shackleton's boat, which was used in the filming of a movie about this explorer who made a famous attempt to get to the south pole. 

After a fascinating day, we left enroute to Dunedin where we had reservations at a backpackers hostel...another new experience for me.