/ Otago, South Island / By George
It was foggy when we drove out of Dunedin, intending to head to Oamaru. In the end we opted to stay at ‘The Red Shed’ at Moeraki, a $10 park over property (POP). The weather didn’t change much as we travelled up the east coast on SH1. We didn’t stop much along the way, as visibility was only average, it was raining and after an early afternoon departure from Dunedin we had a desire to see the boulders at Moeraki and we knew it would be dark before we reached Oamaru.
We arrived at the carpark adjacent to the boulders, which housed a café and information centre. These were both closed and there was only one other vehicle in the carpark, which left not long after our arrival. We weren’t entirely sure where the boulders were exactly, but headed down onto the beach and saw some other people further north so aimed for them. It was overcast and misty, with spray drifting off the wave breaks. The tide was well in by all accounts as the boulders were not nearly as conspicuous as the photos I had seen. Apart from two of the boulders the rest were either half buried in the sand or half submerged in the ocean. Nonetheless these spherical ‘concretions’ are an extremely rare sight and impose much fame on an otherwise typical wave cut coastline. Interestingly, identical spherical boulders exist on the Hokianga harbour on the northwest coast of the North Island, but don’t seem to have gained the same notoriety as the ones at Moeraki. Even though the outer crust of these boulders is more strongly cemented than the inside, they are eroding and breaking along septaria (large cracks). One of the boulders was still nestled in its mudstone womb, clearly showing how they become exposed after weathering off the weaker strata. Because of these cracks they resemble something that looks like it was created for a for a Sci-fi movie landscape. Another tick in the box of iconic NZ sights and a quiet overnight stay at the Red Shed ended the day.
We were offered a piece of advice by a fellow overnighter at the Red Shed regarding the various merits of Oamaru and Timaru, but his opinion seemed off the mark we discovered as we continued north. We ‘stumbled’ into Oamaru without any real preconceived idea of points of interest, but headed naturally for the waterfront as that often offers something to look at in most seaside towns (the sea at least!). On the way we passed the Columba Church constructed in 1883, which was an introduction to the Victorian architecture prevalent in Oamaru. Arriving adjacent to the Victorian precinct was unplanned, but provided a lengthy and enjoyable experience for which we give Oamaru top marks as first time tourists here. This area had much to see in a very small radius and was very different to the natural landscape features we had been immersed in further south.
Within the Victorian precinct was the Steampunk HQ, housed within a three storey building, which we were advised had the top two storeys removed. It looked like part of the rear of the building had also been removed leaving a precarious stone wall with redundant structural ties hanging uselessly on the inside. Didn’t see any red stickers though and the Steampunk concept fascinates me so we paid our $10 each and took the tour to enhance our understanding. Inside this ‘risque’ building was an intriguing assortment of the ingenious, macabre, threatening and historically disturbing (for me the dentist chair and X-ray machine!). Drawing on the Victorian era’s preoccupation with death and the after-life enables these enthusiasts to piece together elements of production line manufacture and meld it with personifications of evil. It’s easy see why this is HQ, as all the above is delivered in a dimly lit ambience of a gutted historic building – venue exquisite. Thrown into the mix on the tour and seemingly contradictory are an infinity lighting and a projected graphic experience. My understanding is that the rejection of modernism is part of the Steampunk ethos and sympathetic with the Victorian age .
After taking the tour though I was none the wiser truthfully, but see it as a form of escapism leveraging off the emerging liberalism and industrialization of the Victorian era. To join this culture you need to be able to weld bits of steel together, preferably with a cog or two and wear an authentic Victorian corset outside a period costume (females mainly!).
The Steampunk influence appears periodically around Oamaru by way of further random exhibits and shops selling all manner of memorabilia and clothing. One of these was ‘Steampunk Central’ in the Victorian precinct and run by full time Steampunker “Miss Purple”. She wasn’t in her heavily stocked shop when we visited but did arrive later in full costume in her highly identifiable small truck. The whole of the precinct felt like a genuine Victorian experience, spoilt only by the modern cars parking here. The 1960’s VW beetle didn’t look totally out of place actually! There were a number of other shops in the precinct worth visiting. Ian Andersen is an artisan sculptor of Oamaru stone, who works in his warehouse in full view and has a number of pieces for sale in his showroom. Debs bought some offcuts from his store here to further a hobby she started many years ago. There is also a bakery, ice cream shop (Deb’s favourite store) and an art gallery, along with an operating Woolstore. Oamaru wouldn’t appear on an international tourist’s whirlwind destination itinerary, but we found this area distinctly unique in this country especially with the Steampunk experience.
Before we left Oamaru we took a drive out to the Blue Penguin colony and were surprised to find two large grandstands. Clearly the penguins are the subject of the very public viewing, although during our visit the info centre was closed and the whole area deserted. There was an enclosure full of small wooden boxes, which are the penguin’s nests. Having looked at some literature since there is an evening viewing and the two stands divide general viewing from premium viewing, with prices varying accordingly. The little penguins arrive home from the sea every evening and make their way en masse to the nesting boxes. According to the information they can be seen at the colony during the day but we saw no sign of any, so they were obviously all off fishing! Much research on the life of these penguins is being undertaken here along with a very successful breeding programme. Despite not seeing any penguins there were a number of fur seals occupying the rocks on the shoreline below, providing some wildlife subjects for a few photos here.
On the way back from the penguin colony as we headed out of Oamaru we spotted a shag convention on the jetty. It was an extremely well supported event with a number of shag varieties attending, whilst seagulls maintained a watching brief. It was a just a short few hours visit to Oamaru, but we were impressed by what it had to offer, which was contrary to the view expressed by the fellow camper at the Red Shed. That said we all find interest in different slices of nature and life.
