The Catlins are a rugged, sparsely populated area in the southeastern corner of the South Island. We spent five days exploring the area and were amazed how few people we saw on the roads and even in the largest town Owaka (population 300). There are many amazing empty beaches, spectacular views, interesting art, and beautiful waterfalls.
Our AirBnB near Owaka was on a one acre plot of land with views of the Catlins Estuary and the South Pacific Ocean. We could see sheep, but not see another house from our place. The sunrises and sunsets were spectacular.
Beaches and Seal Lions
One highlight was seeing many sea lions. Most of the time they were sleeping, but on Cannibal Beach we saw them fighting, running, and swimming. We kept a safe distance, they apparently can chase and bite people if they get too close.
Hiking: Views, History, and Waterfalls
Nugget Point was one of our top hikes in the area with sweeping views and waves crashing on rocks.
Another interesting hike was to Cathedral Caves that are only accessible at low tides. The one downside was that the beach had one of the worst amount of sandflies we had encountered on our trip.
There are numerous waterfall hikes, and we did many of them. Our favorites were McLean Falls and Koropuku Falls.
Curio Bay is a another great spot in the Catlins. We saw the worlds rarest dolphin, the Hector dolphin, swimming in the bay. There is also a 180 million year old petrified forest near the headlands that is considered the most extensive in the world. They look like actual logs laying on the rocks.
The Catlins is also the southern most point of the South Island. We plan to get to the northern most point of the North Island soon.
Quirky Artsy Catlins
Apparently the locals are not very impressed with the Teapotland display in a yard on main street, but we thought is was interesting how many different teapots this person had collected.
Our favorite art experience in the area was the Lost Gypsy Gallery. Blair Somerville calls his creations automata. Basically it is interactive art that moves in some creative way when a crank or button are used. There are hundreds to try out and we spent a lot of time exploring his gallery, which consisted of an old bus and a few sheds packed with his fantastic art.
We learned his brother is a part time artist as well, but works on a larger scale
Quiet Owaka
We went out to a delicious dinner one night and had a good view of the main street in Owaka. We could count on one hand the number of cars that drove by in the one hour we sat there.
The Census
It turns out that every five years New Zealand counts everyone in the country, including visitors, on what is called census night. We both had to take and sign the New Zealand census and are now part of their official record. Harry Styles was performing in Auckland and we heard on the news that even he had to take and sign the census as well.
From here we head up the east coast to Dunedin. The Catlins were amazing, we will see how we deal with getting back into city life.
I am loving the remote south island. I wish I had more time there last time I visited too.
South Island sounds amazing. Would you stay in the Carlin’s longer?
We spent 5 nights there and it seemed like enough to see everything. But another day could have been used to relax on a beach.