Day 13 Oamaru to Moeraki

Colin Grierson
Dec 9, 2024
4 min read

We ride to Moeraki today (actually Hampden a few km earlier) but first we will explore around here.

Its cooler still today, but fine with little wind. No complaints from us. We found this church by the waterfront, Presbyterian, also very well kept and looking good.

We are back in the Victorian area, cute and geared for visitors like us. Sitting on the penny farthing bike feels weird: too high, too far forward. I'd like to try riding one :-)

I also want to visit Steampunk HQ museum. We are here, it will probably be fun, why not? Sau Keng is less enthusiastic, but comes along. It's sort of an art exhibition - with a very specific genre. Good fun. Not for everyone.

Back outside in the Victorian area we bump into our Australian friends again :-) First time was on the bus to Twizel, Andrew got off the bus to help me look for my phone (which was still on the bus) Phillipa suggested the bus leave now we have got rid of the men... They started from Aoraki and rode the trail with manual bikes :-) We met them several times along the way and enjoyed their company. So back to the picture frame for a photo together :-) Enjoy the rest of your trip!

Swing bridges are to be crossed. Piers are to go to the end of. There is a nice long pier here, we ride to the end and admire the view. The Otago shag colony on the closed wooden pier looks as busy as before. I think they are nesting there. I looked up these birds last night. They are endemic to New Zealand, just the Otago coast now, fewer than 2500 birds remaining. But they seem happy here, a group appear to be just mucking around having fun in the water nearby us

There are good views from here too

It's time to leave. I ask Google to plot a course, approve it, and we set off past the playground towards the hill in the south.

The steampunk theme keeps appearing around here, the play equipment has attitude - I love it!

Our route is along the coast, avoiding SH1 as long as possible. We leave the downtown area, quite a decent climb, 60 m (okay, does not sound much... Believe me it's a long way up when you ride it)

Through the suburbs, it's a nice area here, we reach the end of the houses and the road slopes down. "Road closed ahead"?! I don't remember an alternative route to this other than SH1, and there is a good chance bikes will be able to get past any closure... I'll chance it.

Down we go and out to the coast. A very solid barrier blocks the road, no easy way to get the trike around it so we can find if we can get through. A lady is walking a dog back towards us, I ask her, she says a path exists past the area they are working on - that she has seen - but there may be more. Sau Keng does not want to try it... And there is an alternative route now I check the map. Back we go and back up the hill. Not so bad. More nice suburbia until finally we are in the country.

Very good looking farmland here, some of the paddocks are vibrantly green. At the corner of Beach Rd, which we "should" have come along, a solid mass of purple daisies. Beautiful.

Our road continues to the coast where we stop at a layoff to take photos and have a short break. It's a great looking beach. The locals here continue to amaze us. We are in our cool/cold weather clothing and were getting exercise riding, and we feel comfortable. We chose this spot because a small bank shelters us from the wind, otherwise we would get cold fast. A young couple are on the beach, with no shelter from the breeze. He's wearing just shorts. She is sunning herself wearing just a bikini.

Looking north the sea seems uncomfortably close to the road in places. If I were on the local council this would worry me a lot. I wonder if coastal erosion is what has closed Beach Rd.

A few more kilometres down the road we stop at Kakanui for a coffee and cake. It's a decent holiday town that we did not even know existed. The sign appears to have been made by the same people who did the Kurow sign.

Sau Keng's phone rings, we stop and she answers. "Are you at home? I have tomatoes to give to you" We are far from home, we are sorry we missed them. (They are particularly good, thanks Tay Heang)

Our road leaves the coast and follows the Waianakarua river inland. We climb above the river and get a good view of the valley, there is a spectacular show of yellow lupins.

At the end of our road - State highway 1. Our last 8 kilometers. The road sign says 'Dunedin' Wow, we really are are making our way South.

SH1 is not bad to ride on, most of the time there is a generous shoulder, but it's not pleasant. We have to be careful to stay on the side of the road, no cruising along side by side. And the traffic roars past us. Even a small car passing at 80 km/hr is loud. There are much nicer places to ride than here. But it's for only 8 km and we are going fast, it does not take long.

Same sign writter was here too.