January 2023 – Moo and Moochelle

Month: January 2023

Tunnel Beach, Dunedin, OTAGO

Tunnel Beach is one of Dunedin’s worst kept secrets. For good reason. It’s a great spot, although it’s a steep (but short) walk back up to the car from the beach. The highlight of course is the tunnel down to the secluded beach where you can hunt for fossils and explore caves (at low tide) […]

Nicols Falls, Dunedin, OTAGO

This is one of my favourite spots in Dunedin. It’s a relatively short walk (though fairly steep) and not many people know about it for some reason. It is definitely a “hidden gem” in lush native forest, which isn’t super common around Dunedin. There is also a great spot for glow worms if you go […]

Dyke’s Dam (Sowburn Walkway), Patearoa, CENTRAL OTAGO

Patearoa is a small settlement in rural Central Otago, meaning “fortification with a clear view” in Te Reo Māori, although this may be more the original name of the Rock and Pillar Ranges, rather than the name given to the village. Europeans settled here in search of gold in the 1860s, and named the place […]

Blue Lake Loop Track, St Bathans, CENTRAL OTAGO

St Bathans is a former gold and coal mining settlement in the heart of rural Central Otago. Fun fact: it was previously named Dunstan Creek, but was founded as St Bathans in 1863. It was named by surveyor John Turnball, after the Scottish parish of Abbey St Bathans. By 1887 it had a population of […]