On our second morning visiting the Otago Peninsula we woke to a beautifully clear and sunny morning. After stopping for a quick breakfast in Dunedin, we took to old Main Road out of the city in search of some unusual rock formations
We found the small parking area that marked the trailhead and set off up a flight of steps that led to a steep track through the bush. After a while we came to a clearing which gave us great views out towards the Otago Peninsula where we had been exploring the previous day.
The track continued to climb, and as we got higher we started to notice little pockets of snow that lingered at the side of the track. Undeterred we continued on up the hill until we reached an opening in the forest which gave us our first glimpse of our destination; The Organ Pipes.
The Organ Pipes are columnar jointed basalt columns, much like the pyramids we had visited on a previous trip to the area. As we stood at the bottom of the rubble pile, it was hard to believe that we were looking at naturally formed rocks and not leftover concrete castings for streetlights or something similar.
We realised that the only way to the top of the Organ Pipes was a scramble up the pile of fallen rock columns. Although some of the rocks were still a little slick from the heavy overnight frost, we found that they were actually quite stable to climb.
Before long we were at the top of the Organ pipes and were able to appreciate both the uniquely shaped rocks and the beautiful views across the rolling hills north of Dunedin.
After leaving the Organ Pipes, we continued north up the coast to one of my favourite places in New Zealand; the small town of Moeraki. We had a table booked for a late lunch at Fleur’s restaurant, a small seafood restaurant that always has delicious and simply cooked local fish. With little time before our lunch reservation, we stopped by the nearby beach to check on the Moeraki Boulders.
As luck would have it, we arrived at the beach close to low tide and were able to see many of the boulders sticking out of the sand. Along the way we stopped to take a look at some of the new boulders that were just emerging from the base of the cliff.
Although we have been to the beach here a few times now, the tide and weather always makes the area feel different. With such a low tide, were were really able to appreciate some of the lone boulders on the edge of the bigger group.
After having spent some time looking at the boulders we made our way back around the bay for a tasty lunch. The weather was just warm enough to sit out on the deck overlooking the ocean which made for a perfect end to our weekend away.