Tag Archives: Arctocephalus forsteri

Nugget Point – Catlins Coastal Area – Otago Region – NEW ZEALAND

Wednesday 11/03/2026   Kaimātaitai Carpark – Nugget Point/Tokata Walk – Tokata Lighthouse (Nugget Point Lighthouse, 9 m tower, first lit 1870) – Viewing Platform – The Nuggets – The Nuggets Road – Roaring Bay Track – Roaring Bay Penguin Viewing Hide – Roaring Bay – Molyneux Bay

                                               Nugget Point/Tokata Walk; Roaring Bay Walk
                                               Nugget Point Totāra Scenic Reserve, Catlins Coastal Area

                                               Otago Region, NEW ZEALAND (Aotearoa)
                                               Kāi Tahu (Kāi Tahu people)    
                 

Participants: Beth Davies, Stephen Davies (Photos), Sue Davies (Report), Pablo Ureña Vega

We drove to the Kaimātaitai carpark on a crisp, mostly fine morning with a north-westerly breeze and thin cloud — typical changeable Catlins weather in early March. The Nugget Point/Tokata Walk starts from the carpark and heads gently uphill along a wide, well-formed gravel path. It’s more like a coastal lane than a bush track, firm underfoot and easy walking despite the steady climb out along the headland.

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Harrington Point Cruise – Otago Region – NEW ZEALAND

Monday 9/03/2026   Eden Wilderness Cruises Office Harbour – Te Rauone Beach – The Spit – Otekiho Beach – Pilots Beach – Taiaroa Head – South Pacific Ocean

                                       Taiaroa Head Nature Reserve, Harington Point

                                       Otago Region, NEW ZEALAND (Aotearoa)

                                       Otago Harbour – South Pacific Ocean

                                       Otago Region, NEW ZEALAND (Aotearoa)

                                       Kāi Tahu, Kāti Māmoe, Waitaha country (Kāi Tahu, Kāti Māmoe, Waitaha people)                               

                                                                  

Participants: Beth Davies, Lauren Davies, Stephen Davies (Photos), Sue Davies (Report), Pablo Ureña Vega

We departed from the Eden Wildlife Cruises wharf on a calm, clear morning with a small swell and light winds — the harbour was smooth with just gentle ripples as we headed out past Te Rauone Beach. The sky was clearing from high cloud, and the light was already brightening nicely.

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Tunnel Beach Walk – Tunnel Beach – NEW ZEALAND

Friday 6/03/2026   Tunnel Beach Car Park, Green Island Bush Road – Tunnel Beach Walk – Tunnel Beach – Tunnel (hand-carved, 1870s) – Natural Rock Arch – Clifftop Track – Forbury Head – Blowhole – Second Beach – Second Beach Track – St Clair Esplanade / St Clair Beach (Whakahekerau                                 

                                   Tunnel Beach Recreation Reserve (Doc) / South Dunedin Coastal Cliffs

                                   Otago Region, NEW ZEALAND (Aotearoa)

                                   Ngãi Tahu / Kãi Tahu Country (Ngãi Tahu / Kãi Tahu people)

                         

Participants: Beth Davies, Stephen Davies (Photos), Sue Davies (Report), Pablo Ureña Vega

From the gravel car park at the end of Green Island Bush Road — a clifftop paddock perched some 139 metres above the Southern Ocean — the Tunnel Beach Walk plunges immediately downhill on a well-formed, steep gravel single track. Five successive viewpoints, each a fenced clifftop “nest”, serve up progressively wider panoramas of sculpted sandstone headlands. Continue reading

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