Who knew about the hoodoos? Driving along SH1 between Christchurch and Kaikōura, there’s a wealth of big scenery rolling past the windows – plains, hilly farmland, mountains, sea – but it’s worth stopping here and there for a closer look at some of North Canterbury’s hidden treasures.
Just a ten-minute drive along a side road from the cute and leafy little town of Cheviot, and in a classically beautiful South Island setting, is a taster of the type of scenery you would more famously find in Utah’s Bryce Canyon.
Because badlands are always so good to see. From the viewpoint right beside the road, and beyond a fringe of green in the foreground, the artistically sculpted vertical ripples of the cliffs are a vision in creamy brown siltstone and sandstone, laid down millions of years ago.
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Banded with layers of gravel and relentlessly eroded into fluted pillars of varying sizes and shapes, they would be a dramatic and unusual enough sight on their own.
Add in the backdrop of surf-streaked blue ocean butted with bare purple headlands, and a tantalising glimpse of the little settlement of Gore Bay down beside its sandy beach, and the whole picture is rewardingly spectacular.
There are no shops at Gore Bay, so bring your own supplies, especially if you’re likely to be tempted to do one of the walks here, like the pretty Tweedies Gully Track.
There is accommodation on offer, though: campground, B&B, lodge. With the beach lying open to the Southern Ocean, the surfing can be really good, so come prepared if that’s your thing.
At low tide, walk past the cliffs along the beach to Port Robinson and around the lighthouse-topped Point Gibson to Manuka Bay, where there’s a track through the bush to the Hurunui River mouth for some more great views.
Or for something less strenuous, head into Cheviot and check out its pretty and unusual little river stone church, the Knox Community Centre. Refuel at one of the cafés, then head out again for an easy circuit of the 3km Ready Money Trail through the Cheviot Hills Reserve – named after William ‘Ready Money’ Robinson, who in 1856 paid, with a wheelbarrow of cash, the deposit on a huge chunk of land here, and established Port Robinson. The remains of his mansion are in the Reserve, which also features magnificent old trees full of birds, daffodils in spring, and plenty of inviting benches along the route.
There are more birds to see at peaceful St Anne’s Lagoon, a few minutes’ drive north from Cheviot – it’s a perfect picnic spot and beautiful in autumn. If low-impact, self-sufficient gardening is your thing, Blockhill, inland from Parnassus, offers tours and workshops in sustainable horticulture and forestry.
Just a bit of time to drive to the lookout, and then all you have to do is get out of your car.
The cliffs are always spectacular.
See: visithurunui.co.nz
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