Denniston -> Karamea / Oparara Arches

Our Sunday destination was Karamea. Although it is only 64km away (if you’re one of those proverbial crows who can fly in a dead straight line) it is actually 219km by road.

The first leg was following the Buller River down the Upper and Lower Buller Gorges. We really enjoyed the scenery along this stretch of the road which at times was reduced to a single lane cut into the side of the gorge. By the time we reach the coast the weather had taken a turn for the worse with continuous drizzle and overcast skies which limited our view of the mountains to our east.

Apart from a stop for fuel we passed through Westport turning north along the coastal road. 15km NE of Westport is the turn off to Denniston. We had heard from others that there is an interesting mining museum half a kilometer high in the mountains which for a period of time was only accessible via a precipitous inclined railway. We the clouds covering the skies it didn’t look promising but we took the winding road up the mountain regardless reaching the museum in the thick of cloud and rain having seen little but the inside of a cloud on the way up.

We donned our waterproofs and made the best of it. Only a few of the old buildings are left but we were very impressed with the displays of photos and writings around the place which really gave a sense of how folks lived their lives up in the isolated mining town. Quite a lot of the old mining machinery was still in evidence which added to the interest of the place. Of most interest was the inclined railway. Some of the rails were still in place and a few of the cars were preserved. From the top it was possible to look down and see the course of the old railway down the side of the mountain. We were fortunate at this stage as for a short period of time the clouds developed a gap and we could see down the mountain and out to the coast. We took plenty of pics of course.

We ate our prepared sandwiches in the car as the rain set back in before heading down the winding road. We took a brief look at the base of the incline before heading north to Karamea.

After two days in a tiny hut we were keen to find a self contained room for a night. We checked out a few places in Karamea before settling on The Karamea Hotel which had some nice inexpensive motel style rooms out back.

Taking a chance on the weather improving we then headed further north and then 15km inland along a dirt track to visit the Oparara Arches. The rocks in the area are predominantly limestone thus the creation, over millions of years, of arches and tunnels through which the Oparara River flows.

We first visited the arch called the Moria Gate. From the car park we walked through forest which was remarkable for the amount of moss growing all the trees making the area feel almost fairy tale. We took the side trail to visit the underside of the arch. The path ended up at a small hole in the rocks into which we had to climb. It was essentially a back door entrance into a cave set into the rocks one side of the arch. In of itself the cave and arch was quite impressive but not as impressive as those we’d seen in Nuie. (We noted that if we ever reach the point where everything we see is not as good as something we’ve seen before it’s time to stop traveling. We’re not there yet.)

The only way out was back the way we came. We continued along the main trail which, without us realizing we had done so, took us over the top of the arch and over to the other side of the river where we were able to get a good view of the arch in it’s entirety.

We kept following this path until we reached a place called mirror tarn which was a small lake with very little wind creating an almost perfectly mirrored surface.

Back at the car park we headed off up river towards Oporara Arch. As we approached this one we were awed by the size of it. Essentially it was a tunnel fronted by a towering separate arch. The arch towered 37 meters over our heads. The overall tunnel was 200 meters long and 49 meters wide. All very impressive.

It had now been a long day so we hiked back to the car and back to Karamea along the dirt track and then the coastal road. Having spent above our norm on the room we ate in and relaxed for the rest of the evening.

Overnight the weather has been atrocious. The winds have been howling and it has poured down with rain. We’re very, very glad we’re in this self-contained unit.

Today we’ll be heading down the coast and perhaps stopping off at one or two places. Not sure how far we’ll get but our next main stop will be at one of the glaciers, Franz Josef or Fox. Because of the weather and a little tireness we’ve had a bit of a lie in so we may not make it all the way today.