The Oparara Basin

After spending the night in Westport we headed north along a scenic coastal drive to the small town of Karamea. The drive was spectacular, driving through dense thick rainforest vegetation, passing coastal lookouts of the rolling waves and driving up switchbacks to the top of mount Karamea. From Karamea we heard about the Oparara basin, a region known for its fantastic limestone formations and archways. When we got to the start of the road leading to the basin we noted a sign which advised no access to campers, lorries or large vehicles, though we thought we would give it a try anyway. The road was stomach clenching the whole 14km of single track, gravelly, hilly, potholed way, but we made it and it was totally worth every second. We began by hiking to Moria Gate arch, an archway cutout of the limestone by the river. We had to scramble through a cave to reach the arch and river which was exciting and a little terrifying as this section of New Zealand is home to New Zealand's largest spiders which dwell in these particular caves. Luckily we didn't see any so we could enjoy the view and the sound of the river rushing past and the stead drip of water from the cave's ceiling. After the arch the track took us past Mirror tarn, a reflective lake, before heading to Oparara Arch. Oparara arch was a sight to behold at 219m long, up to 79m wide and 43m high, it was barely possible to take it all in at once. On the last section of the track back to our campervan we were joined by a very friendly, inquisitive weka bird who took it upon itself to follow us. The weka is a flightless brown feathered bird endemic to New Zealand. Once back at the campervan, with our weka friend returned to his home we headed back onto the sketchy road, though were halted halfway back by a car which had flipped onto its roof. Luckily everyone in the car was ok but I think their day might have been ruined along with their hope of getting any deposit back on their rental car. We drove cautiously back to our campsite in Westport back along the coastal road, following an old railway.