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Published: February 10th 2007
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Bear Falls
Jish models his stylish camo outfit at the Puraukaunui Fall. So here we are, it's day 12 in the campervan and we haven't seen a single waterfall yet despite the fact that they're supposed to be everywhere. Well it seems that waterfalls in NZ are a bit like buses - you wait around for ages to see one and then 4 come along at once!
The first of the waterfalls we got to see today wasn't far from our beachside campsite at Purakaunui and no prizes for guessing the name - the Purakaunui Falls, of course! It was just a 10 minute walk from the car park to see the beautiful waterfall that was as high as it was wide with a lovely flow of water spilling gently over the edge. Very nice.
Back on Scenic Route 38, we stopped again just past Caberfeidh to view another waterfall but were surprised to find there were actually 2 together. We opted to climb the steep path to the pretty Horseshoe Falls first of all, which looked so dainty it could have been a waterfall for fairies. The water trickled down in fine threads like strands of silver that glinted in the halflight of the forest. It reminded me of one
Sing-a-long-a-Jude
All together now: "I'm gonna wash that man right out of my hair..." (This is the Horseshoe Halls by the way!) of those oil lamps from the 1970s where beads of oil slowly travelled down from lampshade to base via a plastic thread. Glynn has no idea what I'm talking about with this, so I hope you do ;-) We ambled back down the steep slope and found the Matai Falls which was just as impressive as the Purakaunui Falls we had visited earlier. It was a higher waterfall at Matai but much narrower. So, that's 3 waterfalls altogether now; the final one comes a bit later.
Our ultimate destination today was Porpoise Bay where we were told we could see dolphins (hence the name) but we stopped off en route to enjoy the delightful Lost Gypsy Gallery housed in an old converted bus just off the main road. It's hard to describe the stuff inside other than to call them curiosities. The gallery is owned by a guy who has left the rat race and now spends his time making gadgets out of recycled goods and stuff no-one wants any more. None of the gadgets actually serve any purpose unless you count the teabag dunker, but they were all thoroughly entertaining. We played with loads of odd stuff ranging
Fairy Falls
Such a pretty little waterfall. from 'The Southern Gurgles' which was made from sea shells that dipped in a pool of water when the attached handle was turned and made a noise like someone gargling. There was also a model train that ran a circuit around the bus lighting up mini bulbs, clocks and setting off numerous sound effects as it went. On its journey it travelled through a rubber mask of Prince Charles that was as out of place as everything else in the room. Glynn's favourite piece had to be the sheep skeleton hooked up to a bicycle that turned its head and said baa when you crancked the handle. Mine was the Charlie Brown doll wearing a scary looking electrical headset on that lit up when you clasped his hands together. It was so much fun there!
When we finally managed to drag ourselves away from the oddments at the Lost Gypsy Gallery, we made our way to Porpoise Bay via the intriguingly named Nigara Falls. We couldn't resist taking a look at the waterfall proudly mentioned on the sign in the small town as we passed through and had to laugh at what we found. Niagara Falls on the US/Canadian
Matai Falls
Glynn wonders why these things always make him need the toilet! border is one of THE natural wonders of the world (I haven't seen it for real but it looks impressive in all the photos). Well, I think someone was having a laugh when they named this little waterfall because it was nothing more than a bit of water rushing over a couple of chunky rocks. I'm not even sure it can be classed as a waterfall! There was a picture of the real thing right next to the NZ version - I'll let you compare the two and see what you think!!
On to Porpoise Bay where we figured we would be extremely lucky to see any dolphins but sure enough, there in the water was a small cluster of them darting in and out of a couple of groups of people braving the sea water. We watched mesmerised as the dolphins swam about, fins arching in the water and it looked like they were having as much fun as the people around them. We debated whether to join in but there were probably too many people in the water for us to have a good experience so we hatched a cunning plan to come back tomorrow morning instead.
The Great Temptation
Sweet inevitability... Although it was getting quite late and we hadn't found anywhere to stay yet, we took a drive down to Slope Point, the southernmost tip of the South Island. A 20 minute walk across a sheep-dung laden field took us to a cool signpost that displayed the distances to the South Pole (too cold for me) and to the Equator (that's more like it!). The sign was perched near a huge cliff where there had obviously been a recent landslide but that didn't stop Glynn from walking to the edge and peering right over the side, where he spotted a couple of plucky seals perched on the rocks.
There was nowhere to camp for the night down at SlopePoint so we stopped by a Backpackers we had passed on the way down that advertised van sites too. The owner was kind enough to inform me that it would be $20 for the van but she had no facilities specifically for campervans. She instead recommended that we backtracked 2km down the road to Weir Road where we would find a so-called Freedom Campsite. We were so taken aback by her honesty and friendliness as she was obviously doing herself
Moby Click
Just one of the oddities at the Lost Gypsy Gallery. out of business by suggesting we go elsewhere but the campsite was ideal with a longdrop toilet and a nice spot by the river estuary to park. Alas the weather had taken a turn for the worse so we didn't get a chance to explore the area at all. Still, it beats paying just to park on someone's lawn for the night!
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