Dunedin -> Invercargill

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14th Feb 2009

We sleep in a little late today and take breakfast on the move from a petrol station on the outskirts of Dunedin. We decide to take the scenic route to Invercargill which involves driving along the coastal area known as Catlins. We take abreak and stretch at a town called Clutha, it is situated on a river and there is a river festival going on, a bunch of guys are raft racing down the river. We next enter the Catlins, it is a beautiful corner of south east New Zealand with beautiful sandy beaches. As we drive into Catlins we pass Catlins lake, it is very picturesque.

A little further on we stop at another scenic point known as Purakaunui Falls. It is a ten minute walk through a forest filled with tall ferns and invloves a bit of a steep descent. At the foot of the hill we have a great view of a waterfall in the forest, the falls drop down a distance of 65ft and it is very beautiful.

We take another break at a place called Porpoise Bay, it has a sandy beach and is frequently visited by Hector's dolphins, a small breed of dolphin that often play in the surf here. There are signs around the beach advising bathers that if they want an encounter they should lie still in the water and let the dolphins approach. Unfortunately we don't see any while we are there.

We finally reach Invercargill, it is a pretty unremarkable town compared to some we've visited. Once again it has scottish links, a lot of the roads are named after Scottish rivers, we are staying in a motel along Tay Street. We dine at The Lone Star and the food is really good. Then onto the bars which seem pretty lively, we see at least three guys wearing kilts which seems a little surreal. Next destination is Milford Sound.

We stayed at Birchwood Manor

A map of our route

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Photos

Catlins Lake
A picturesque lake at the beginning of the Catlins region

Purakaunui Falls
Waterfalls in a forest

Porpoise Bay
A bay in the Catlins where Hecor's dolphins like to play