Rocks

These are the Pancake Rocks between Greymouth and Westport. Named because of the horizontal bedding planes and how these have been eroded differentially. These are very thin layers of Mudstone and Limestone. Probably the Mudstone has been eroded more rapidly, although there might be more to it than this. The limestone is eroded mechanically by the sea and by solution. The result is a series of columns, stacks, blowholes, arches and caves to give a very distinctive landscape.