Tuesday 28 October 2008

Punakaiki




Next on our tour of the west coast we drove from Greymouth to Punakaiki to visit the Pancake Rocks which are described as one of the 101 must do’s for Kiwis.
Punakaiki has spectacular blowholes set in magnificent rocks which look like pancakes stacked one on top of another and are impressive both in their appearance and by the noise they produce as the waves slap on the limestone rocks which have stood the test of time over 30 million years. A few unwary tourists felt the full force of the water coming up through the blowholes which are at their best at high tide which was when we arrived, however we were standing just behind them so all was good, for us at least.
We also walked (sorry tramped!) along the coast and watched the seals sunning themselves on the massive rocks of the coast. There was a definite pecking order and a large bull seal was going around making his importance known to all and sundry and ended up on the prime rock but alone, looking like a grumpy “Nigel no mates”. The seals are so well camouflaged we spent some time just looking at the rocks and being surprised when what appeared to be just rocks moved and slid off into the ocean. They are amazing creatures to watch as they surf through the rough water and yet seem so clumsy on the rocks.After we had seen enough of the seals we climbed along the path high up to the point and enjoyed a fantastic view which Ian was able to take as a 360 degree panorama which we will enjoy looking at when we get home.

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