#96 of 100 trips - Sandymount to Smaills Beach 1 October 2023

 

The change in weather from yesterdays snow and wind was encouraging enough that 10 people turned up for the start of this trip, a coastal traverse on the Pacific Ocean side of the peninsula which also includes some of the places visited on earlier #100 trips.  Starting at Sandymount (trip #71) we headed straight for the 300m descent down the sand dunes to Sandfly Bay.  It's surprising that so much sand has made it's way so far up the hill and it makes for a fun walk down, with some releasing their inner child  by taking long strides and running while managing to stay upright on the way down while others took a more sedate descent. 

Negotiating your way through the sand dunes is reasonably straightforward, as long as you follow the makers which are designed to keep people away from the penguin breeding places.  Once on the beach at Sandfly Bay we had to make a detour or two to avoid some large sealions sunbathing on the beach, near the walking track.  We were treated to a real spectacle with around 20 sea lions on the beach with some lounging on the warm sand and others cavorting in the waves.  We made the most of  this spectacle by choosing a large washed up log on the deserted beach as a good place to sit for a snack break and enjoy the show that the sea lions put on for us.  

Knowing that we had only started and still had a long way to go, we reluctantly continued along the beach, stopping often to watch the antics of the sea lions or take a detour around those that were relaxing in the sun.  As we neared the end of Sandfly Bay we had the 100m climb up the sand dunes and it was here that we started to encounter large numbers of people heading down to the beach.  Sandfly Bay is a popular beach for seeing sea lions and the warm, sunny weather was obviously bringing the people out.  We were glad that we had been there so early.  We stopped to catch our breath at the lookout and admire the view over Sandfly Bay.

The next part of our walk involved some road walking which we had already done on trip #79 so we knew what to expect and walked along in small groups taking this opportunity of easy walking to chat and look around. We passed paddocks with sheep and lambs bouncing around while looking ahead we could see the road leading us to the hill we would need to climb.  This time of year really shows the extent of the problem that gorse has become is highlighted by it's bright yellow flower. 

Following the road right to the end takes us down the hill to Boulder Beach where we had been on trip #57 when the weather had been wet and misty.  Today it could not have been more different as the earlier clouds had cleared and the temperature was starting to rise.  Once near the bottom of the hill, we took a path that twisted and turned through the vegetation to the Boulder Beach where we scrambled over the rocks to the deserted beach which seemed the perfect place to stop for a lunch break.  

While the beach looked deserted we soon discovered that there were a few sea lions sunbathing away from the waters edge.  Often the sleeping sea lions look like a log until one of their flippers is raised like a sail to test the breeze then a head would pop up to check that nothing of interest is happening then after all that effort, the sea lion would lie back down to continue it's snooze.

We spent more time at Boulder Beach than we probably should have but we were in no rush to leave and  packing up after lunch was slow which probably wasn't the wisest choice as the tide had turned while we had enjoyed our relaxed lunch and it was starting to come in, lapping around the edge of the rocky shore of Boulder Beach.  With most in the group never having been all the way along Boulder Beach the decision was made to walk along the beach to the cliffs at the end and then find our way through the vegetation back to the track. 

Again, this was not the wisest decision as  we could not find a track at the far end of the beach despite scouting around looking for one.  In the end we had to climb over the tussock and brush covered sand dunes while being careful not to disturb any hidden sea lions.  There were times we thought we had stumbled onto a track only to discover that it was a track made by a sea lion and we were left to scout around for a better way again.

 After a few false turns, we eventually stumbled onto a trapping track which lead us back the main track.  The temperatures were really starting to rise as we eyed the hill ahead of us. Up close the climb up the hill did not look as daunting as it had from a distance with the track climbed steadily 120m upwards with frequent stops to catch our breath in rising heat and admire the views opening out behind us. Reaching the top of the hill we again took time to sit and soak up the fantastic views, particularly since we could see where we had started at Sandymount earlier that morning (the hill slightly right of centre in the distance) and Boulder Beach was spread out in front of us. 

It would have been nice to stay here for longer but we still had a few kilometres to go so we reluctantly dragged ourselves away and rounded the headland where we again stopped to admire more spectacular views.  We had been spoiled with wonderful vistas today starting at Sandymount with views looking over the harbour towards the harbour mouth, then along the coast over Sandfly Bay and Boulder Beach and now we had the city with Saddle Hill  and the coast line as far as Nugget Point spread out before us.

As we continued heading towards the Karetai Track (trip #53) ,  we were happy to notice that it was downhill all the way.  The track follows a paper road down hill to Smaills Beach and instead of following the paper road all the way to the bottom, we turned off at Pudneys Cliff to admire the sheer cliffs that plummet 100m straight down to the sea.  Thankful that there was not a breath of wind, we followed the narrow path along the cliff top and continued down to Smaills Beach where there was a tricky rocky scramble down a small bluff to the beach.  Happy to be back at sea level again, it was only a short 5 minute walk through the sand dunes back to the cars and everyone agreed that it had been a wonderful 16.2km walk in 5.5 hours with perfect weather and fantastic views

#71 of 100 trips for 100 years - Sandymount-Sandfly Beach 15 July 2023 (by Jade Pettinger)

 

Midwinter is arguably the best time to visit Sandymount - there is just something about this time of year that makes this special place even more magical. After a week of Dunedin’s notorious cold, grey weather that hugged the hills, it was an absolute delight to draw back the curtains on Saturday morning to a clear sky with not a breath of wind. 11 of us met at the clubrooms, a pleasing amount for a long weekend. As this was a through trip, the arrangements were slightly more complicated as a car shuffle was needed to avoid unnecessary road walking. Those left waiting whilst the drivers rearranged the cars had no complaints as they enjoyed a stunning vista overlooking Hoopers Inlet from the car park. 

 It wasn’t long before the group was reunited, and we set off to circumnavigate Sandymount before tackling the climb up to the summit. We headed off in a clockwise direction, passing through a tunnel of towering macrocarpa trees. A few minutes later we emerged into farmland, evidenced by the muddy ruts on the road caused by various farm vehicles. 

Trying our best to avoid bogs, we made our way down to a relatively new lookout, recently installed by DOC (presumably to make up for the removal of the viewing platforms at the nearby Chasm and Lovers Leap). The views from here are some of the best on the Otago Peninsula, and they were made even more dreamier by the early morning light. The breathtaking scenery in front of us made stopping for morning tea an easy decision, despite being less than 10 minutes into the trip.

The panoramic views from here are simply stunning and highlights many predominant features of the Peninsula. Directly in front of us was Mt Charles/Poatiri, the highest point on the Peninsula, whose lower flanks were shrouded in the mist whilst the rising sun lit up the summit. Stretching out in front of Mt Charles were the pale sands of Allans Beach, contrasted by the sparkling turquoise waters of the Pacific Ocean. Further to the left was Hoopers Inlet encompassed by the rolling green and gold hills of the Peninsula, with the distant hills of the northern skyline on the horizon.

This turned into one of the longer morning tea stops, as we enjoyed chit chatting as much as we were enjoying the spectacular landscape. From here, we opted to head out towards the tussock covered headland, otherwise known as The Chasm. We admired the sheer cliffs that plummeted steeply into the raging ocean from a safe distance. It was exhilarating looking out over the endless Pacific Ocean and really made you feel like you were standing on the edge of the world.

Our circumnavigation around Sandymount continued through farmland, skirting the cliffs as we headed for the summit. As we reached the junction between Sandfly Bay and Sandymount, the terrain underfoot changed from soggy paddocks to sand. This made our 100m climb to the summit just a little bit tricker, as we slid backwards with every step. We were also battling a slightly overgrown track, which only made reaching the top more rewarding.

The summit of Sandymount is marked with a trig and a plane table, useful features as they provide a means to get above the head-high flaxes and shrubs that have taken over. The views from the summit provide a different perspective from earlier. We were treated to uninterrupted views of the coastline snaking from Sandfly Bay to Boulder Beach and further towards Dunedin. The clear skies meant we could see many places we have visited on previous trips - namely Harbour Cone/Hereweka, Saddle Hill/Pukemakamaka, Taieri Mouth, Seal Point and Mt Cargill/Kapukataumahaka.

Now it was time for the fun part - the descent down 300m of sand dunes to Sandfly Bay. The more mature among us walked down in a sensible fashion, while others delighted in the child-like fun of running and jumping down. It didn’t take long to descend and before we knew it we were walking amongst the sand hills that surrounded the beach. There is something about sand dunes that feel extra-terrestrial, almost like you could be walking on Mars.

Sandfly Bay is a popular resting ground for the New Zealand sea lion and great care is often required to avoid becoming their next meal. On high alert as we wound our way down the narrow path that led onto the beach, we found ourselves pushing through waist-high Marram grass in order to give the three slumbering sea lions on the track some space.

Once on the beach, we found a perch about 20m away from a group of half a dozen sunbathing sea lions dozing on the water's edge. They provided plenty of entertainment as we fuelled up for the slog up to the carpark. Every so often, they would seemingly get a burst of energy and decide to assert their dominance. One sea lion would approach another barking and growling and before long they were all going at it, baring their teeth and nipping at each other. Just as quickly as the commotion started, it would stop again as they flopped down to regain their energy, before repeating the cycle again.

Being about one kilometre long, it didn’t take us long to make our way to the southern end of the beach. We made sure to keep our distance from the sea lions, some of which were among the biggest I have ever seen! Jumping over a small creek, we started making our way up the sandhills to the carpark. 

With past visions of steep sand hills rising directly from the beach floating in our minds, it was a pleasant surprise to see DOC have done some work in rerouting the track so it sidles around. This was much easier than the scramble it used to be, and it didn’t take us long at all to climb over 100m to the car park. 

By Jade Pettinger