Westcoast

The West Coast

The Westcoast features a thin band of rainforest concertinaed between the granite alpine peaks of the Southern Alps and the wild and rugged Westcoast, it's breadth scarred by a rabble of mountain streams and raging rock strewn rivers. The natural barrier formed by the Southern Alps is responsible for forming much of New Zealand's weather, it all starts with a weather pattern known as the Roaring Forties. 'The Roaring Forties' is a westerly wind pattern that travels uninhibited across the vast and desolate Southern Ocean from the Sub Antarctic.

Southern Alps

When the wind with all it's moisture in tow meets the formidable wall of the Southern Alps rising nearly 3.5 km above the ocean, just over 20 km from the coast, the clouds are forced to drop their contents before continuing east ward across the Island. Milford Sound in southern Westland receives over 9m of rain a year making it one of the wettest places in the world!! By contrast, the other side of the coast often battles severe and prolonged drought. It always pays to be ready for rain on the coast as there's a pretty good chance you'll get plenty of it, in saying that though, you can't have rain forest without rain!!! Oddly enough due to seasonal patterns, the coast can go for long spells of dry weather, sadly for most visitors to N.Z., these are usually in the middle of winter.

Westport

Westport is the second largest town on the Westcoast. The residents of the Westcoast or 'Coasters' as they are referred to are well known for their ruggedness and their generous hospitality. After the gold rushes of the 1860's began to dry up the prospectors headed south to the Otago gold fields. Coal mining and forestry became two of the main industries. Coal mining has been phased out due to its eco-unfriendly by-products and restrictions have been placed on native logging. The Coasters despite all their hardships are renowned for their rugged resilience and resourcefulness that epitomize kiwi culture and ingenuity.

Pancake Rocks

About 60 km south of Westport are the infamous pancake rocks of Punakaiki. This unique rock formation literally looks like massive stacks of pancakes. They have been formed over thousands of years as the pounding ocean has eroded away the softer limestone layers giving the rocks the appearance of being stacked on top of each other. There are also spectacular blow holes shooting a geyser of salt water several metres into the air. This can be quite spectacular and even intimidating when the sea is rough particularly on a westerly swell.

Reefton

Reefton, inland between Westport and Greymouth, was originally called Quartzopolis in recognition of the towns development due to the gold rush of the 1860's. In August 1888 it became the first town in New Zealand to have electricity . The Coast also has the claim to the largest gold nugget ever found in New Zealand. It was found at Jones creek near Ross in 1909 and weighed 2807 gm, now that would have been a good party!!!

Greymouth

Greymouth is the largest town on the Westcoast. It's a good place to stock up on groceries for your trip down the coast. There is a smaller supermarket in Hokitika and a convenience shop in Franz Josef, be warned though, the prices in Franz Josef boarder on extortionate. It's a good idea to fuel up in Hokitika, petrol is also alot , lot more expensive in Franz Josef. The next reasonably priced petrol is Wanaka.

Favourite Spot in NZ - Garth (Ace Picton)

Garths recommendation is the area between Punakaiki and Greymouth on the West Coast. "I can't imagine anyone not appreciating the ruggedness of this area, the beauty between land and sea, and for anyone who likes to relax by the water, the whitebaiting in the season is a great activity, and the satisfaction of being in a natural environment.