Peaks and Places | Travel and Adventure Blog

The weather continued to be less than desirable for us as we began to head back up the coast before going back to Queenstown. Luckily, we were still able to make the most of this trip, and got to see a lot of different things. Just driving through the Catlins was a treat, with rolling green hills and beaches with huge cliffs along the sides. We even got to drive past a deer farm, where there was this magnificent stag watching us as we stopped to get a closer look.

One of our first stops was a little waterfall, tucked just off the side of the road, called Koropuku Falls. Two local men, Wayne Allen and Peter Hill, one day decided to create this track to this small but charming falls. While the track is relatively short, it is pretty challenging, especially if you are going in the rain, like Eric and I were. There were several stream crossings and the path was muddy and slippery. Once we made it to the falls, it was well worth the struggle getting there. The fall was going absolutely crazy thanks to the rain, and there was a pool underneath that I bet would be a great place to swim in the summer (if the falls were a little calmer). This little waterfall would have been so easy to miss, and I am so glad that we were able to take the time to stop and check it out.

The next place we wanted to check out was Jack’s Blowhole. Blowholes like this one, and like the ones we saw at Pancake Rocks, have quickly become one of our favorite things to stumble upon. The hike out to this one made us feel like we were getting further and further away from the beach. Eventually, we walked out and there was just a giant hole in the middle of our path, and the ocean waves were breaking inside. This blowhole was unique to the others we have seen, and it was really cool. This blowhole was over 200 meters from the ocean, making it even cooler. I don’t think the tide was high while we were there, so we didn’t get to witness the full power of the blow hole, but it was still very impressive.

As we continued our way up, we made sure to stop at any beach that piqued our interest along the way. The beaches had yellow sand and we were able to see some with volcanic rock, and some that had no rocks or shells in sights. At one of the beaches, we even got lucky and saw a fur seal playing in the waves! While the weather really wasn’t what we were hoping for, we still wanted to make sure we made the most out of the time we spent in the area. I would love to make it back to the Catlins in nicer weather, so that we are able to truly enjoy the views that were quite literally clouded this trip by the weather.