The flat-bottomed pastoral Waitaki Valley is a little-travelled route but includes some unique sights and scenery between the turn-off at SH1 and Omarama. Predominantly farmland, bordered by increasingly impressive hills as you near the Alps, the valley is also a blokes’ paradise, known to all red-blooded Kiwi males as a place to shoot ducks, catch trout and salmon, water ski on the strikingly blue hydrolakes, and marvel at their associated hydroelectric engineering wonders. All that and some great Pinot Noirs too. Woof! This is a possible route to Wanaka/Queenstown if you’re heading south, or to Twizel and Mt Cook if you’re heading north.
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With the most easily accessible variety of wildlife on the South Island, Otago Peninsula is a near compulsory excursion unless you hate animals. Albatross, penguins, fur seals and sea lions are all to be found here, along with some rugged countryside, wild walks and beaches, and interesting historical sites. Despite the host of tours that have consequently made the peninsula their stomping ground, the area maintains its quiet rural air. For an overview, pick up the Otago Peninsula brochure and map from the Dunedin i-SITE and check out www.otago-peninsula.co.nz.
At the head of the Waitaki Valley, surrounded by mountain ranges, the Omarama area is at the centre of fabulous landscapes. The bizarre moonscape of the Clay Cliffs (admission $5) is the result of two million years of erosion on layers of silt and gravel that were exposed along the active Osler fault line. The cliffs are on private land; the turn-off is 3.5km north of Omarama, then it’s another 10km on unsealed road.
Nothing moves very fast in Oamaru: tourists saunter, locals languish and penguins waddle. Even the chosen forms of transportation – penny-farthings and steam trains – reflect an unhurried pace. For travellers, the town focuses mostly on penguins and the historic district, but eccentric gems such as the South Island’s yummiest cheese factory, cool galleries and a peculiar live-music venue are other distractions.
The broad, braided Waitaki River rushes across the northern boundary of Otago, setting the boundary with the one-eyed Cantabrians to the north. South of the river on the coast lies Oamaru, a town of penguins and penny-farthings that’s worthy of a day or two of your time. The Waitaki Valley itself is an alternative route inland, featuring freaky rock formations, Maori rock paintings and ancient fossils. Good sources of information on the area are www.tourismwaitaki.co.nz and www.waitaki.net.nz.
Coastal Otago, and its one major city, Dunedin, has attractions both urban and rural, offering travellers a chance to escape the crowds of Queenstown, party down in the South Island’s coolest city, and get up close and personal with the island’s most accessible wildlife.
Dunedin’s compact little town centre is a comfortable blend of the historic and the contemporary, reflected in its alluring museums, tempting cafés and restaurants, and smorgasbord of bars. Weatherboard houses ranging from stately to ramshackle pepper its hilly suburbs, and nicely preserved bluestone Victorian buildings are dotted throughout the centre. The country’s oldest university provides an energy that might otherwise be missing, and drives a thriving theatre, live-music and – it must be said – drinking scene.
There’s a couple of really good reasons to visit Cromwell: the sweet little historic precinct near the lake, and to eat (and eat, and eat). Courtesy of great local farms and orchards the little town has way more than its fair share of great eateries. If you’re passing through on your way east to Dunedin or west to Queenstown, it’s worth stopping here for lunch. Oh, and a third reason: take a photo of yourself the beside spectacularly ugly giant fruit salad at the entrance to town.
The little village of Clyde (www.clyde.co.nz) on the bank of the emerald green Clutha River looks more like a cute 19th-century gold-rush film set than a real town. Despite a recent influx of retirees (or perhaps because of them) Clyde retains a friendly, small-town feel, even when holidaymakers arrive in numbers over summer, and is a great place to chill out for a couple of days. It’s also one end of the Otago Central Rail Trail.