The famous sheep dog statue on the lake’s edge is in memory of the hardy mustering dogs “without the help of which the grazing of this mountainous country would be impossible.”
We continue our journey south, driving through the Southern Alps passing Mount Cook in the distance. At 3754 metres NZ's highest mountain is dazzling... or it should have been... Sadly its' peak was covered with cloud and so we had to content ourselves with the postcard in the visitor centre!
We pass through the Waitaki Valley and stop at Danceys Pass. Under an impressive limestone overhang on a hill with great views to the mountains, we find the Maraewhenua Maori rock paintings.The charcoal-and-ochre paintings date back several centuries, tracing everything from pre-European hunting to sailing ships,
At last we reach Oamaru. We picked up a flyer for Chillawhile Backpackers when we were in Akaroa and go straight there. It is a hidden gem. A backpackers and art gallery and we are immediately made to feel like part of the family by Kelly the owner/manager. Oamaru is famous for its' yellow eyed and blue eyed penguin colonies and, after dumping our stuff we head off to the harbour to hunt for penguins coming ashore to nest at dusk armed with a local map and insider knowledge. Apparantly they come right into the town and nest under some of the Victorian historic buildings and can often be seen waddling up the high street. However, we dont see any!
We return to Chillawhile and are invited to share a lucky pot supper with the other guests, "woofers" (Willing Workers on Organic Farms who work a couple of hours a day in various roles in exhange for free lodgings) and neighbours. There are 16 of us in total and each group brings a dish to share - we all have to introduce ourselves and our dish so we get to kinow everyone really quickly - Nina from Finland, Jacob from Australia, Jack from Hong Kong, Deano - a native who is travelling with his daughter, Saskia around New Zealand, a Turkish neighbour, Alfred and his friend from Malaysia, Chester - another neighbour, Kelly (our hostess) and her daughter Saol. It is a veritable feast and the girls settle down afterwards with new friends and watch a DVD together.
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